Show kerosene brought oil lamps the development of a process of distilling kerosene from crude oil brought about the making of lamps designed especially for kerosene these lamps gave much better light than the tallow candles formerly used the production of kerosene was the main reason for the existence of the oil industry at first As time went on drilling for oil spread from new york pennsylvania and western virginia to ohio illinois and indiana when drilling spread into the west the term wildcat as applied to oil wells came into i n t 0 use it was applied to the search for oil in new areas out among the wildcats of kansas oklahoma and texas hence its application to drilling in unproved territory |