Loren Steffy

A business blog

Happy Spindletop anniversary

Texas Energy Museum

On this day, in 1901, on a bump of land near Beaumont that locals called the Big Hill, a 200-foot gusher shot skyward, ushering in the age of liquid fuel. Spindletop, as the discovery became known, produced 4.2 million gallons of oil a day for nine days, and turned Beaumont into a boom town.

The first Spindletop well produced as much oil as 37,000 wells drilled in the eastern U.S., and changed the fortunes not just of Texas, but of the world. Suddenly, we had fuel that was cheap, abundant and efficient. One hundred and ten years later, we still haven’t found anything that can compete with all three of those characteristics.

This summer, on my way to southern Louisiana to report on the BP oil disaster, I stopped off at the Spindletop museum in Beaumont and wrote this column.

Categories: Energy

7 Responses

  1. Craig says:

    A second resurgence of Spindletop occurred when Michel T. Halbouty ‘rediscovered’ the giant oilfield and brought new life back to it in the early twentieth century. Anyone interested can read the book, “Spindletop” by Halbouty and James A. Clark (New York: Random House, 1952).

  2. Beaumont Bob says:

    The Spindletop discovery is probably the most important event in the history of Texas since the Battle of San Jacinto.

  3. Captain Cook says:

    Glad someone remembered! Thanks!

  4. Catclaw says:

    How many barrels of Spindletop oil was sold?

  5. craig says:

    This picture reflects voluntary restrictions by business on restraint in environmental matters. George W. Bush and Rick Perry would approve. The good ol days. Right.

  6. Indianpaintbrush says:

    And no mention of the Spindletop charity which supports many good causes?

  7. Joe says:

    craig….give it up, please. It changed the world and brought us out of the dark ages, including you, sort of.