Extra! Extra! Eyes of the World on Texas: Spindletop and
the Texas Oil Boom
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Spindletop and the Texas Oil Boom
The gusher that blew at Spindletop on January 10, 1901, was not the first successful well in the country or even in Texas. But the tremendous production power signified by the blast, shooting oil 200 feet in the air, followed by the 70,000 barrels-a-day flowing after the strike, kicked off a boom that established the state’s petroleum industry and forever changed how we live. The population of nearby Beaumont exploded from 9,000 to about 50,000 people in a matter of months. Derricks blossomed across the landscape. The origins of gas companies Texaco, Mobil, and Exxon are all linked to this event. The abundance of fuel transformed transportation in the U.S. as gas became cheaper, and a new infrastructure developed out of the need to deliver oil to destinations all over the world. The Lucas Gusher at Spindletop was the beginning of a new era in American history.
Spindletop--a Texas Titan: the story of the Lucas Well, brought in on January 10, 1901, which started the oil development of Texas. American Petroleum Institute, 1945. TSLAC-MAIN Collection, 622.338 AM35. Click or tap on image to view larger version.
A Lucas Oil Well button, Artifacts Collection, ATF0268. Click or tap on image to view larger version.
The Lucas geyser was the first major oil gusher (or blowout) of the Texas oil boom. Anthony F. Lucas, the leading United States expert on salt dome formations at the time, led the first successful effort for oil drilling on Spindletop Hill, south of Beaumont, that resulted in the Lucas geyser on January 10, 1901. The geyser, found at a depth of 1,139 feet, blew a stream of oil over 100 feet high until it was capped nine days later and flowed an estimated 100,000 barrels a day, marking the birth of the modern petroleum industry.
Spindletop: Where Oil Became an Industry, c1951. Spencer Robinson. TSLAC-MAIN Collection 622.338 SP46s. Click or tap on image to view larger version.
The Spindletop Fiftieth Anniversary, Inc. formed to lead activities commemorating the anniversary of the Lucas geyser in 1951. Committees organized various celebrations such as a Parade of Progress, a Hall of Exhibits, and a Lucas Gusher Monument dedication, and raised funds for an educational endowment donated to Lamar State College of Technology at Beaumont (now Lamar University) for an engineering library. This volume of contains the text of speeches, the winner of an essay contest, photos of events, and other information sharing the significance of the petroleum industry at the time. etter between Horrell and Higgins family members regarding ongoing feud, July 30, 1877.
Postcard, oil gusher near Beaumont, ca. 1910-1920. Colorized photograph. William Deming Hornaday photograph collection, 1975/70-4119.
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Postcard, view of Spindletop oil field, Beaumont, ca. 1910. Colorized photograph. William Deming Hornaday photograph collection, 1975/70-4120.
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Postcard, Oil refinery near Beaumont, ca. 1910-1920. Colorized photograph. William Deming Hornaday photograph collection, 1975/70-4121.
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