Spindle Top—An Important Oil Region Near Beaumont, Texas.

Creator

Keystone View Company

Preview

Creation Date

1905

Description

This lantern slide is an image of the Spindle Top oil field, located in Beaumont, Jefferson County, Texas. On January 10, 1901, Captain Anthony F. Lucas, John H. Galey, and the Hamill brothers drilled into “..the largest gusher ever seen.” Named the “Lucas Gusher”, it ‘..blew oil over 150 feet in the air at a rate of 100,000 barrels per day…” for 9 days before it could be controlled, using a ‘Christmas Tree’, an assemblage of valves, casing spools, and fittings, designed by the Hamills. By 1902, Spindle Top had produced 17,420,949 barrels of oil. The bounty of petroleum made “..mass consumption.. economically feasible.” The Texas Oil Boom prompted economic growth and oil prospecting, transforming the United States into the leading oil producer in the world. On November 13, 1966, Spindle Top was designated as a National Historic Landmark in Texas.

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