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Show . Flowing Gold . - "The The " - The Story Sory S ory oryof of Oil OilA OilA Oillasic A Basic of the West The Mountain States Telephone Telephone Tele- Tele Telephone - - - phone and Telegraph cornpany corn com . pany s monthly periodical . ' * Monitor has presented a acomprehensive acomprehensive acomprehensive comprehensive story of the theoil theoil theoil oil industry which will willprove willprove willprove prove enlightening to Uin Uintab Uintah Uintah tab tah Basin residents whose whoseinitiation whoseInitiation whoseInitiation initiation to the industry isnow isnow is isnal now taking place The Ver Vernal Vernal nal reproducingthe Express is reproducing reproducin reproducinthe the story in two install installments instal instalments instaHments ments EdBy Ed . WrightOil By Warren Wright Oil 011 and the search tor for oil oilhate olhaye hate written bold and lasting lastingpages lastingpages lastinfpages pages in the story of the West WestThe WestThe WestThe The legendary tales of boom boomtowns boomtoWns boontowns towns and gushers and of wild wildcat 'wildcat wildcat ' cat < , at operators who drilled for oU oil oUbi oilby oiby bi by ' day and guarded their claims claimsby claimsby by rifle rifle-point rifle point rine-point rine - - point by night , are arestill arestill ansull still retold wherever oil od odmetl oilmeal metgather metl meal metlgath mealgather gath gather r in their never ending endtng endingsearch endtngsearch endtntsearch search for the wondrous fluid fluidEven fluidEven fluidEven Even todayexcitement todn today ' excitement runs runsh run ; ) } &lgh lgh Jgh & h in any area where oil has hasn ha ; Ween n discovered , and boom town townsettlements townaettlements towrsettlements settlements aettlements dlscoveredi dlscoverediand apr spring spring ng up as if 1 > 6y bi y - magic close by any newly open opened opened ed field that shows promise as asa a ; a producer producerIn In the early days of the Oil oilbusiness oibusiness business the modern value of ofpetroleum opetroleum petroleum was unknown About Aboutall Abouall > .Ill Ill all ' . it was good for was to pro- pro provide provide provide - ! vide kerosene for grandma s slighting ilighting lighting system lubrication to tokeep tkeep ( > keep the wheels rolling tree free on onthe onthe orthe the surrey with the fringe ringe on ontop ontop ortop ' top or maybe mQybe an occasional occasionalhandful occaslonahandful handful of scented oil to tamt tame tamegrandpa's tam tamgrandpa's > grandpa's grandpas ' ' windblown locksTime locksTime locks locksTime Time has wrought its changes changeshowever changeshowever changeshowever however , and today our world worldUter worldliterally workliterally I Uter literally 1Jy revolves in oil Air Airplanes Airplanes Airplanes planes powered t > by y 100-octan 100 octan 100-octane octane 100octanegasoline 100octanegasoline 100octangasoline - - < ' gasoline streak through the theskies theskies thskies ( skies at 6 0 or 7 miles a minute minuteDiesel minuteDiesel minuteDiesel Diesel powered trains slip over overthe overthe ovcithe the rails ralls at 100 miles per hourand hourand hourand and Diesel engines power powertrucks powertrucks poweitrucks trucks , , busses and ocean going goingvessels goingvessels goin goinvtessels vtessels vessels that move freight and andhum"n andhumaln anchuman hum"n humn humaln " cargo over the trade traderoutes traderoutes tradroutes ( routes of the world On top of ofthat ofthat ofthat that nearly 30 million passen passenger passenthe passenger ger cars roll roll on l the highways of ofthe olthe the landrand rand oill highwayss highwaysenearr enearr enearrly land the lan lanJ lanand land J , and oil furnishes s nearIy near Iy ly one-mird one mird one-gird one gird - - of the energy for electric power heat . , . and light lightfor for this country's countrys ' ' domestic and pnd pndindustrial Andindustrial andindustrial industrial users Crude Cru4e 011 oil 011sources oilsources sources have often been the thestakes thestakes stakes in a vicious vicipus game of International international In International ternational politics and IntrIguePost intriguePost intrigue Post war development developme9-t developme9 t developmerit - 01 of 01petroleum ofadtruse ol adtruse petroleum ed use i In a amyriad a myriad points myriad to of fields fieldsFur its fields expand- expand FQI For Fur For"xample Furxample - led expandled xample "xample -xample " - manufacturers of syn . ' thetic rubber plastics , . cosine cosme- cosme cosmetics cosmetics - . - tics , , preservatives and lnsecU insectl insectlrides lnsecUcides ! cides rides all aU look to the oil 011 industryto Industry [ to supply basic Ingredients ing\'edlents ing 'edlents edlents \ ' for fortheir fortheir foitheir their products productsAs As in the case of nearly everyother everyother every other natural resource kilo th file ter ter- tee- tee territory teerltory territory - - ritory rltory that our Company servesis servesis serves is rlchiy rtch.y rtchy richAy . endowed with oil oU andit andIt and It is found in considerable quan- quan quantities quantitles - tities titles up and down our mountainstates mountainstates mountain states in fields with romantic romanticInames romanticnames romanticnames Inames names like Montana's Montanas ' Kevin KevinSunburst KevinSunburst KevinSunburst Sunburst . , , Wyoming s Elk Basin Basinand Basinand Basinand and Salt Creek Colorado's Colorados ' ' Ran Ran'tely Rangely Rangely 'tely tely gely ' Field and New Mexko's Mexkos Mexico's Mexicos Mexico'sMonument Mexko'sMonument Mexico'sMonument MexicosMonument ' ' Monument and Vacuum In In1945 1945 New Mexico ranked seven seventh seventh seventh th and Wyoming eighth among amongthe amongthe amongthe the oil 011 producing states In the thenation thenation thenation thenationColorado nation nationI nationColorado Colorado HalOn Has Ha One . of ofThe ofThe oiThe The World a . Oldest Old.t Oldt . . WellsOil Wells W.ll Wll WellsOil . . I Oil was first discovered in inI inthe inthe inthe the West as early as 1843 IQ43 when whenan whenan whenan I an oily seepage from the tbe rock rocks rockswas rockiwas * I Iwas was reported in the vicinity vlcinityu _ _ of ofICanon ofCanon ofCanon ICanon Canon City Colorado This Thisseepage Thisseepage Thisseepage seepage was the site of the first firstdrilled firstdried firstdrifted drilled dried well in 10 our territory and andseveral andseveral andseveral several wells were sunk at this thislocation thislocation thislocation location in 1862 following followinl ( hy by hythree bythree bythree three years of drilling drllling of the theDrake theDrake theDrake Drake well in Pennslyv Pennslyvania Pennslyvaniawhich Pennslyvaniawhich nia niawhich which is known as the earliest earliestproducmg earliestproducing earliestproducing producmg producing oil 011 well At Florence FlorenceColorado FlorenceColorado FlorenceColorado Colorado a well was complet completed ed in 10 1876 the same year that thatAlexander thatAlexander thatAlexander Alexander Graham Bell pro produced produced produced duced the first working model modelof modelof modelof of the telephoneall telephoneOil telephone telephoneOil Oil all springs were also known knownin knownin in Wyoming at about the same sametime sametime sametime time In 1883 a booklet was pub pub- published publashed published - - lished lashed titled Report on thc the thcWyoming theWyoming theWyoming Wyoming Oil Springs that dis discussed discussed discussed cussed locations wheer oil 011 was wasknown wasknown wasknown known to flow out of the theground theground theground thegroundThe ground groundThe The Mormons Guide Book Bookpublished Bookpublished Bookpublished published in 1848 tells of an anoil anoil 011 oil spring near the present town townof townof townof of Evanston Wyoming ThIs ThIs'ipring Thisspring Thisspring 'ipring ipring spring ' later became known as asthe asthe asthe the Brigham Young oil well or orspring orspring oispring spring and early 19th centur century centuryexplorers centuryexplorers explorers and travelers knew of ofIts ofits olIts Its location and valued the od oil odor oilor oilor or tar for its medicinal purposes purposesall purposesOil all 011 from this spring was also alsoused alsoused alsoused used by emigrants to grease the theaxles theaxles ( heaxles axles of westward moving wag wagons wagons wagons ons as ointment for the galled galledbacks galledbacks galledbacks backs of oxen or to ease their theirown theirown theiiown own aches and painsThe painsThe pains painsThe The first deep dE'ep ' well In our ourterritory ourterritory ouiterritory territory was drilled in the prc pre prcsent present prosent sent Salt Creek field near Cas CasDer Casoer Casoer Der oer Wyoming WyominR In 1908 Here Herein Herein 10 in a small valley where a sur surface surface surface face , bole made with a hand handlJi handslipvel handanpvel lJi ! slipvel slipvelwould vet vetwouid would wouid soon be filled with withlive withlive withlive live oil all drilling operations were wereI werebegun werebegun werebegun begun At a depth of about 1 000 000feet 000feet 000feet feet the well blew In as a tre tremendous tremendous tremendous I mendous ( pusher Jusher gusher almost beyond beyondthe beyondthe beyondthe . the control of the drilling crew crewI crewThis crewThis This well marked the beginning beginningof I of a tremendous field that was was.later waslater waslater .later later . developed at Salt Creek Creekwhich Creekwhich Creekwhich which by itself has produced producedmore producedmore producedmore more than 300 million mf1lion barrels barrelsof barrelsof barrelsof of crude oil since the field wac wacdiscovered wasdiscovered : discovered Production for our ourl'irea ourarea ourarea l'irea lirea area ' is probably a shade beyond beyonda 1 a ' billion barrels for the same sameI sameperiod sameperiod sameperiodMan I period periodi periodMan Man made Earthquakes Earthquake . U.ed Ued Used U.edIn UsedIn UcedIn . i In the S Search arch for Oil OU OUProbably OilProbably OilProbably Probably none of us gives'l1uch givesnuch gives nuch 'l1uch l1uch -nuch ' - thought to driving Into a afilling afilling afilling filling station when the needle needleI needlef needleif I ) f our gas gau gauge e be begins lns to crawl crawlI crawlwer crawlwer crawlwer wer towards the big E ' ' but buthEt buthe buthe hEt he oil industry has done a lot lotf lotif lotf I if ) ) f work In anticipation anticipation of our ourasual ourasual ourasual asual request to tl ) fill er up ' ' . : One of the most interesting interestingphases interestingphases interestingphases phases of the business is the exploration ex expi exploration pi ploration oratIOn job in connection with withthe withthe withthe the search for new fields In Inthe Inthe Inthe the words of oil men all theeasy theeasy the theeasy easy oil has been discovered discovered'That discoveredThat discoveredThat 'That That ' means simply that all the thefields thefields thefields fields have been located wheJ"e wheJe where wheJ"e'iurface wheresurface wheresurface " 'iurface iurface surface ' geologic structures in inIdicate indicate indicate dicate that there were forma formatlOns formations formations tlOns tions under the earth capableof capabteof capabte capable Idicate of trapping oil Now it has be be- - become become become - come necessary to search for forthese forthese forthese these formations where there thereis thereis thereis is no giveaway evidence to meet meetthe meetthe meetthe the eye of exploration crews crewsThe crewsThe crewsThe The most widely used method methodof methodof methodof of searching for oil utilizes the theseismograph theseismograph theseismograph otto ofto seismograph and a system ot of oto ( to chart underground formations formationsthousands formationsthousands formationsthousands thousands of feet below the thesurface thesurface thesurface surface of the earthThe earthThe earth earthThe The theory behind the sels seis selsmograph seismograph seismograph mograph charting of under underground underground ground formations is relatively relativelysimple relativelysimple relativelysimple simple but like a lot more ofour ofour of our wondersit accepted American wonders it took a lot of brains and a lot lotof lotof lotof of Thefirst money to make It work The first operation of a seismograph seismographcrew crew on location is to drill a hole ahole about 100 feet deep A Acharge Acharge Acharge charge of dynamite Is then set setoU setoff setoff oU off in this hole , creating the theman theman theman man made earthquake Sound Soundwaves Soundwaves Soundwaves waves from this charge pene pene- - - trate penetrate the earth and as they beds bedsof of ofrock rock rockbelow . strike the various beds of rock rockbelow rockbelow below these the'ie theie ' same waves are re reflected reElected refleeted flected Elected back as a'i ai ' shivers of sound soundto soundto soundto to instruments at strategically strategicallylocated strategicallylocated strategicallylocated , located points pomt on the surface surface'that surfacethat surfacethat 'that that ' are wired to a master re re- - recording recording recording cording instrument As the re re- reflect10g reflecting reflecting - flecting flect10g qualities of each bed of ofrock ofrock ofrock rock are known the length of oftime oftime oftime time required for the shock to togo togo togo go from the point of discharge dischargeto to the formation and back to tothe tothe tothe the recording instrument will willreveal willreveal willreveal reveal the depth below the sur surface surface surface face of any any given rock bed Sub Sub- Subsequent Subsequent Subsequent - - sequent charges chargE's carges ' from different differentlocatIOns differentlocations differentlocations locatIOns in the area will give givean givean givean an t > exact xact picture of the under underground underground underground ground countrySometimes structure of the country countrySometimes Sometimes as many as six sixmonths sixmonths sfxmonths months are required to map an anarea anarea anarea area by this method at an op op- operating operating operating - - erating cost of about $9000 9000 $9 9 $ 000 a amonth amonth amonth month to keep a crew in the thefield thefield thefield thefieldOne field fieldOne One point to remember is this thisNeither thisNeither thisNeither Neither the & seismograph &elsmograph elsmograph nor norany norany norany any other Instrument yet deve deve- developed developed developed - loped can find fwd oil All that can canbe canbe canbe be learned by subsurface map map- mapping mapping mapping - - ping is the existence of a struc structure structure structure ture that could hold oil Theonly The Theonly Theonly only way to find fwd out It if oil oll isthere Is Isthere Isthere there is to move in with an oU oil oUrig oilrig oilrig rig drill down and tap the strue struc strueture structure structure structureTo ture tureTo ( To be Continued ) i |
