This Week in Oil and Gas History: March 20 – March 26
March 20th, 1919 – American Petroleum Institute Established The American Petroleum Institute (API) was established in New York City in 1921 in an effort to fuel World War I. The API created a scale to measure liquid petroleum density against water in 1921, an innovation that is now referred to as API gravity. March 20th, […]
This Week in Oil and Gas History: December 5 – December 11
December 9, 1921 — Lead Gas Introduced To Reduce Knocking Gas with a tetraethyl lead additive, or ethyl as it was advertised, promised to reduce the amount of ‘knock,’ which was a problem with early automobiles. Imagine worrying about your engine getting damaged every time you turned the key. That used to be the case […]
This Week in Oil and Gas History: November 14 – November 20
November 14, 1947 – First True Offshore Well Is Drilled The drilling platform called Kermac 16 would go on to produce oil for nearly forty years after it was first drilled. This offshore drilling platform, known as the Kermac 16, was the first of its kind, located 10 miles from shore, out of sight of […]
This Week in Oil and Gas History: September 25 – October 1
September 25th, 1922 – First Commercial Oil Well Drilled in New Mexico The Navajo Indian Reservation was the site of the first ever commercial well in New Mexico. The Midwest Refining Company finished the well and ultimately launched the oil industry in the state. Close to Shiprock, the Hogback No. 1 produced 375 BOPD. After […]
This Week in Oil and Gas History: September 18 – September 24
September 18th, 1948 – Utah Completes First Commercial Oil Well In 1948, Utah’s first commercial oil well was completed in the Uinta Basin, by the leader of the Equity Oil Company, J.L. “Mike” Dougan. J.L’s small company did surprisingly well for its size, beating bigger, more advanced competitors like Union Oil, Standard Oil of California, […]
This Week in Oil and Gas History: September 11 – September 17
September 11th, 1866 – Ewing’s Method Officially Patented, Leading to Mobil Oil In 1866, a carpenter named Matthew Ewing patented his method for distilling kerosene. Ewing’s method involved kerosene being distilled in a vacuum in a process that ultimately produced lubricants. The result of this post-Civil War innovation was the establishment of Mobil Oil. Matthew […]
This Week in Oil and Gas History: September 4 – September 10
September 4th, 1841 – Percussion Drilling Technology Patented The “Rock Drill Jar” was patented by William Morris on September 4th, 1841 with a discovery that would forever change the drilling industry as it further supported further development in early drilling technology. Morris experimented with his device while he drilled brine wells. Historian Samuel Pees explained […]
This Week in Oil and Gas History: August 28 – September 3
August 30th, 1919 – Snake Hollow Gas Boom Brings Industry to Pittsburgh The August 30th the discovery of the Snake Hollow Gusher in McKeesport, Pennsylvania spearheaded a Pittsburgh oil boom, eventually bringing 300 companies to the area in a matter of months. The well was located near Monongahela River and produced over 60 million feet […]
This Week in Oil and Gas History: August 21 – August 27
August 21st, 1897 – Olds Motor Vehicle Company Officially Opens in Michigan Ransom Eli Olds was a pioneer in the automotive industry beginning when he established the Olds Motor Vehicle Company in Michigan in August of 1897. This company was the first auto manufacturer in Detroit. In 1899, Olds Motor Vehicle was renamed to […]