This was a terrific presentation of your family's role in the history of the Venango and Clarion County PA oil patch. I wish more people knew about the incredible history of that area. Thanks so much for posting (from a product of the McKean County oil patch). I would point out one small error though...the Spindletop well wasn't drilled in southwest Texas, but near Beaumont in southeast Texas.
Very nice video! I am the fourth great grand niece of John Benninghoff and my great aunt (that married into our family) if from the Tarr Family that also had an oil farm in Pennsylvania. My grandfather, his brother (his wife is from the Tarr family) and their father (my great grandfather) were all workers in the oil industry. John Benninghoff's safe and his picture are both in the Drake Well Museum and you can also see part of his farm at the end of the train ride on the Oil Creek & Titusville Railroad. I hope to go back some day to spend more time in the area. BTW, Rockefeller was run out of town at the end of a gun.
Hello from Petrolia Butler County Home of Witco and Penreco. Western PA history is fascinating and interesting indeed. Our valley here is rich in oil history the woods are still filled with abandoned wells everywhere. There are still quite a few operating to this day.
I was in the lobby of the Hotel Holley in Bradford, PA in the early 1960s and remember seeing a large picture on the wall of the surrounding hills of Bradford taken in the late 1800s or early 1900s. The hills were just filled with oil derricks.
Though born in the Youngstown, Ohio region, my connection to Venango county was a road trip with cousins during mid-winter in 1973 while searching for a place to get in some tobogganing. We spotted the name Pithole on the map, and thinking there had to be some comedy in visiting a place named Pithole, we ended up discovering one of the best toboggan locations of all time! On that day the place was thick with sled, toboggan and inner tube riders flying down through the old town from the main road above down to the river below. Over the years I've become familiar with the region's history, and look forward to a return trip. Thanks for creating this very informative video.
A great presentation, Rick. I loved how you weaved family experiences with the larger oil industry experiences around Pennsylvania and beyond; it added a more human element of individual livelihoods. Thank you!
Hi I am from Allison Park, Pa. We had several oil wells adjacent to our home and in the forest and fields. If you are interested in researching a not so perhaps famous oil town try: SAMPLE, PA. It is located about 2 miles from Allison Park and at one time there were over 10,000 people living and working there. The last time I was there the sigh said "6".
Thanks for this little documentary. My mother grew up in Oil City and I visited my grandparents there and in Franklin often, so these places are near and dear to my heart. Love the history of the area.
Truly Pennsylvania was ground zero for building the wealth of America. Both in the resource itself but also the technical ingenuity and problem solving plus logistic to create a new industry. Great story. I live in Ontario Canada I wonder if we have oil on our side of the lake.
My great grandfather, Thomas Aloysius Anderton, was one of the members of the group that founded the Continental Refining Corporation, CORECO, whose operation built a nearly two-mile refinery along PA 8 north of Oil City. Our family history is deeply intertwined with the area.
Loved this presentation I too have family ties as I grew up in the oil patch. I live and worked in the Burning Springs WV boom. The Rathbone well came in here only 2 months after the Drake well by reported history. However there at least some who feel the Rathbone well was actually first. That said though the Rathbone well was a big producer at over 100 barrels a day. The well has been restored and now considered the oldest producing well in existence. Like your area Burning Springs boomed in 1860 to over 10,000 and the story is pretty much the same as yours. One interesting note the great grandson of the original Rathbone that drilled here was a co-founder of what is now EXXON-MOBIL It was originally ESSO before they changed it to EXXON and a few years ago EXXON bought out MOBIL. As for my family my grandfather became a teamster back before 1920 and later became a driller. My dad also became a driller and later so did I. Me and my dad were among the first to drill the new Devonian Shale wells here in Burning Springs that sparked another mini boom in the 1980s.
I grew up in St. Petersburg beautiful area. Lately I've been interested in my families history and have been looking for any information on the "Dittman" Do you have any info on them?
My ancestors came from Venango county and were farmers who turned into wildcatters - eventually moving to Marion county WV and working for the South Penn Oil company as supervisors.
I also have Myers in my family. SMALL WORLD! I always thought it was funny thinking about those salt makers cursing the black goo that ended up being so valuable. I enjoyed your video. Take care. @@sheff11245
Great Video . My family started drilling in the early 1900's. My grandfather mainly worked later in the gas patch. He was a drilling contractor and owned a Standard Rig and A No 2 National Machine on which I grew up . Those were the very best days! Long hours and hard work but I would far rather have been out working on an oil or gas well any day instead of what I did for a living but twas not to be. Thank you again for this great video. On the 150th. I was on the Standard Rig at Drake Well because of my knowledge of the rig and because my father worked on it and helped set it up at the park.
a tree turned into a crane! 41:49 So glad to watch your presentation. I got interested in earlier America and started reading "Titan" a biography of Rockefeller from my uncle who was friends with David R. Jr.. Fascinating to get a look at the past and it's constraints. Well done!
Karen, we share a common Grandparent career experience. My grandfather on my mother's side was also a "Nitro Man" in St. Mary's West Virginia. Quite a dangerous occupation. Thank you for your comment. Rick
Excellent. I wonder what logs for Rockefeller said on those same dates. Did your father ever buy any stock in Standard Oil in the 1870s? Did you inherit any of those stocks? Thanks.
Thank you for the great family story. What could have made the US a leader in the oil industry has turned into greed and politics. Now we price our oil in line with Saudi prices which means they keep the price of oil artificially high. Even though Alaska has helped meet our oil demand, it does not matter as OPEC sets the price of oil. Probably not much different than when Rockefeller dominated the oil industry. The reason I looked into oil city is that my Son used to race r/c Monster Trucks there and it was one of our favorite places. Many thanks to your family for all they have done for the oil industry. Amazing your family could have so much to do with this international business.
Did her collection include Quaker State Stock from your dad's time to this time? Your father dad a large business, but you don't explain why it did not survive? Why? The museum is only a fossil really. Great presentation.
(sorry 4 years later reply) Yes Dad had Quaker State stock and for a number of years it split 2 for 1, but when my mom cashed it in years later, it was worth a fraction of its former value. GM Sheffer's business did really well during the late 1800s, but as the oil in the region diminished, so did his business. He eventually had to declare bankruptcy in his late 80s. Unfortunately the museum is purely a volunteer basis with few people interested in growing it. I live in Michigan so I can't help much. Rick
i am interested in oil history very much.......i am working in on of the oldest oil gas field.....stoney creek new brunswick....would like yo dhare dome information eith you.i am slso interested in a visit of that historic field
@@sheff11245 the old five forks restaurant formerly the tionesta inn used to be a shell station. If you have an email I can send you all sorts of old photos from the area. I have pictures of the Heisler locomotive from the tionesta rr along with some others.
Coal didn't take over wood as the major energy source in the US before 60 years after its mass extraction started. Without wood and coal, oil in the US couldn't be mass extracted. "Energy, like time, flows from past to future".
My family (grandfather and great grandfather) started in the oil industry in the late 1800’s in PA. Moved to Oklahoma in1890. Worked at Citi Service in Bartlesville ok.
My great grandfather Daniel O’Day was there💙 My fathers name is Daniel O’Day his father Is Frank O’Day who is the son of Daniel Sr. I have a few photos of the O’Day mansion and my great grand dad in the billiard room 😊
is that the O'Day company that still does big business in the handling of refined products. they would prove out meters on the fuel trucks at the local airport.
This was a terrific presentation of your family's role in the history of the Venango and Clarion County PA oil patch. I wish more people knew about the incredible history of that area. Thanks so much for posting (from a product of the McKean County oil patch). I would point out one small error though...the Spindletop well wasn't drilled in southwest Texas, but near Beaumont in southeast Texas.
Great presentation. I'm from Franklin-- this is awesome history
Very nice video! I am the fourth great grand niece of John Benninghoff and my great aunt (that married into our family) if from the Tarr Family that also had an oil farm in Pennsylvania. My grandfather, his brother (his wife is from the Tarr family) and their father (my great grandfather) were all workers in the oil industry. John Benninghoff's safe and his picture are both in the Drake Well Museum and you can also see part of his farm at the end of the train ride on the Oil Creek & Titusville Railroad. I hope to go back some day to spend more time in the area. BTW, Rockefeller was run out of town at the end of a gun.
We both are family members of the old Pennsylvania oil industry. Regards, Rick
Great video!! Loved it
Excellent presentation. I truly appreciate all the hard work that went into it!
Hello from Petrolia Butler County Home of Witco and Penreco. Western PA history is fascinating and interesting indeed. Our valley here is rich in oil history the woods are still filled with abandoned wells everywhere. There are still quite a few operating to this day.
I was in the lobby of the Hotel Holley in Bradford, PA in the early 1960s and remember seeing a large picture on the wall of the surrounding hills of Bradford taken in the late 1800s or early 1900s. The hills were just filled with oil derricks.
Though born in the Youngstown, Ohio region, my connection to Venango county was a road trip with cousins during mid-winter in 1973 while searching for a place to get in some tobogganing. We spotted the name Pithole on the map, and thinking there had to be some comedy in visiting a place named Pithole, we ended up discovering one of the best toboggan locations of all time! On that day the place was thick with sled, toboggan and inner tube riders flying down through the old town from the main road above down to the river below. Over the years I've become familiar with the region's history, and look forward to a return trip. Thanks for creating this very informative video.
My Dad and Mom grew up about 12 miles away. They took Brother and I there in the 60s. I have a souvenir bottle of oil from that well.
Thanks Dwight for you comment on my video. This used to be a great oil region. Rick
A great presentation, Rick. I loved how you weaved family experiences with the larger oil industry experiences around Pennsylvania and beyond; it added a more human element of individual livelihoods. Thank you!
Hi I am from Allison Park, Pa. We had several oil wells adjacent to our home and in the forest and fields. If you are interested in researching a not so perhaps famous oil town try: SAMPLE, PA. It is located about 2 miles from Allison Park and at one time there were over 10,000 people living and working there. The last time I was there the sigh said "6".
Thanks for this little documentary. My mother grew up in Oil City and I visited my grandparents there and in Franklin often, so these places are near and dear to my heart. Love the history of the area.
i live in franklin
Same as my mom she grew up there and my grandma and grandma i wish i could find more of my family
Truly Pennsylvania was ground zero for building the wealth of America. Both in the resource itself but also the technical ingenuity and problem solving plus logistic to create a new industry. Great story. I live in Ontario Canada I wonder if we have oil on our side of the lake.
you sure as hell do!
So happy I found this little jewel about the Oil City, PA. My Granny Horner grew up here on a farm in 1909.
Thanks so much for your video. I really appreciate it.
Great video! I grew up in Bradford where the refinery still pumps out product. It’s the center of the city pretty much
How does the oil industry compare to the Zippo/Case factory in Bradford?
AWESOME video, SHEFFER. You give the complete HISTORY of OIL.
Glad you liked it! It has been well received so far.
My great grandfather, Thomas Aloysius Anderton, was one of the members of the group that founded the Continental Refining Corporation, CORECO, whose operation built a nearly two-mile refinery along PA 8 north of Oil City. Our family history is deeply intertwined with the area.
Loved this presentation I too have family ties as I grew up in the oil patch. I live and worked in the Burning Springs WV boom. The Rathbone well came in here only 2 months after the Drake well by reported history. However there at least some who feel the Rathbone well was actually first. That said though the Rathbone well was a big producer at over 100 barrels a day. The well has been restored and now considered the oldest producing well in existence. Like your area Burning Springs boomed in 1860 to over 10,000 and the story is pretty much the same as yours. One interesting note the great grandson of the original Rathbone that drilled here was a co-founder of what is now EXXON-MOBIL It was originally ESSO before they changed it to EXXON and a few years ago EXXON bought out MOBIL. As for my family my grandfather became a teamster back before 1920 and later became a driller. My dad also became a driller and later so did I. Me and my dad were among the first to drill the new Devonian Shale wells here in Burning Springs that sparked another mini boom in the 1980s.
I grew up in St. Petersburg beautiful area. Lately I've been interested in my families history and have been looking for any information on the "Dittman" Do you have any info on them?
My ancestors came from Venango county and were farmers who turned into wildcatters - eventually moving to Marion county WV and working for the South Penn Oil company as supervisors.
Your comment is interesting. My dad was transferred by Quaker State to Saint Mary’s WV WHERE HE MET MY MOTHER.
I also have Myers in my family. SMALL WORLD! I always thought it was funny thinking about those salt makers cursing the black goo that ended up being so valuable. I enjoyed your video. Take care. @@sheff11245
Excellent documentary sir.
well done ,,,, thank you
Great Video . My family started drilling in the early 1900's. My grandfather mainly worked later in the gas patch. He was a drilling contractor and owned a Standard Rig and A No 2 National Machine on which I grew up . Those were the very best days! Long hours and hard work but I would far rather have been out working on an oil or gas well any day instead of what I did for a living but twas not to be. Thank you again for this great video. On the 150th. I was on the Standard Rig at Drake Well because of my knowledge of the rig and because my father worked on it and helped set it up at the park.
Can you tell me how did the get paid when oil was first struck to be fefined?
@@katevalentine7075 They got paid by the barrel depending on what it was selling for at the day they sold it.
Thanks for the time and effort. I learned a lot!
Thanks Mike. R
A great history lesson, thank you
Thank you for your kind comment. You may also be interested in my video "Old Iron furnaces of Venango and Clarion Counties, Pa". Rick
a tree turned into a crane! 41:49 So glad to watch your presentation. I got interested in earlier America and started reading "Titan" a biography of Rockefeller from my uncle who was friends with David R. Jr.. Fascinating to get a look at the past and it's constraints. Well done!
Well done very enjoyable
My grandfather was O.L. Hopkins, shooter for Otto Torpedo Co, Duke Center, PA.
Karen, we share a common Grandparent career experience. My grandfather on my mother's side was also a "Nitro Man" in St. Mary's West Virginia. Quite a dangerous occupation. Thank you for your comment. Rick
My Uncle Dick owned the K & H Garage in Duke Center. Been there many times as a child in the 1950s and 60s.
How did the get paid ?Where did they take the oil in the early days before oil riggs?
I never heard the entire history ,or names pertaining to that history, before.. Very interesting
Interesting & well done. Thank you!
Thanks David. Glad you enjoyed it. You might also be interested on my video on "Iron Furnaces in Venango and Clarion Counties PA. Rick
Nice ❤️
Excellent. I wonder what logs for Rockefeller said on those same dates. Did your father ever buy any stock in Standard Oil in the 1870s? Did you inherit any of those stocks? Thanks.
Sorry for the 4 year delay in responding. GM Sheffer did not have any Std Oil stock. Dad had Quaker State stock. Regards, Rick
Very informative, thanks.
Fantastic History of my area
Thanks for your nice words. A lot of memories in the Pennsylvania oil industry. R
Thank you for the great family story. What could have made the US a leader in the oil industry has turned into greed and politics. Now we price our oil in line with Saudi prices which means they keep the price of oil artificially high. Even though Alaska has helped meet our oil demand, it does not matter as OPEC sets the price of oil. Probably not much different than when Rockefeller dominated the oil industry. The reason I looked into oil city is that my Son used to race r/c Monster Trucks there and it was one of our favorite places. Many thanks to your family for all they have done for the oil industry. Amazing your family could have so much to do with this international business.
Super presentation! I visited Bradford during my holiday in august this year. Greetings from the Netherlands
Hi Frank, Thank you for your kind comment. My dad worked a year of so at the Quaker State in Bradford. Regards, Rick
Great video
thanks for sharing
I like too know if any book about your area history print.this one lesson best learning about oil history.calgary alberta
The first oil well was actually discovered in Oil Springs, Ontario, Canada.
I just found this out myself living in pa and working in the patch I was always told about Titusville. But it's still the first USA oil well.
Thanks for the great and personal history lesson, maybe John D Rockefeller and John Wilkes Booth knew each other, very interesting.
Nice work. I enjoyed the video.
Did her collection include Quaker State Stock from your dad's time to this time? Your father dad a large business, but you don't explain why it did not survive? Why? The museum is only a fossil really. Great presentation.
(sorry 4 years later reply) Yes Dad had Quaker State stock and for a number of years it split 2 for 1, but when my mom cashed it in years later, it was worth a fraction of its former value. GM Sheffer's business did really well during the late 1800s, but as the oil in the region diminished, so did his business. He eventually had to declare bankruptcy in his late 80s. Unfortunately the museum is purely a volunteer basis with few people interested in growing it. I live in Michigan so I can't help much. Rick
At 34:28 the author says 1960's, he meant 1860's
i am interested in oil history very much.......i am working in on of the oldest oil gas field.....stoney creek new brunswick....would like yo dhare dome information eith you.i am slso interested in a visit of that historic field
The first oil well was in Poland not Pennsylvania.
The wolfs head refinery is still there on 62
No, it is gone from the area just like Quaker State and Pennzoil. Regards, Rick
@@sheff11245 the old five forks restaurant formerly the tionesta inn used to be a shell station. If you have an email I can send you all sorts of old photos from the area. I have pictures of the Heisler locomotive from the tionesta rr along with some others.
I know Emlenton too lol my best friend lives on master rd
Born and raised in Oil City.
Coal didn't take over wood as the major energy source in the US before 60 years after its mass extraction started.
Without wood and coal, oil in the US couldn't be mass extracted.
"Energy, like time, flows from past to future".
My family (grandfather and great grandfather) started in the oil industry in the late 1800’s in PA. Moved to Oklahoma in1890. Worked at Citi Service in Bartlesville ok.
How many people got cancer?
The first ever oil well was in Poland not Pennsylvania. Ignacy Lukaszcwicz. Look it up. Our history books were wrong.
My great grandfather Daniel O’Day was there💙 My fathers name is Daniel O’Day his father Is Frank O’Day who is the son of Daniel Sr. I have a few photos of the O’Day mansion and my great grand dad in the billiard room 😊
is that the O'Day company that still does big business in the handling of refined products. they would prove out meters on the fuel trucks at the local airport.
What is that wierd noise?
Hemp can make all that stuff to.
what hemp needs is infastructure to product those products on more than a cottage industry scale.
Messy, dreadful business.
The first oil well was in Poland not Pennsylvania.
This is about the US, not Poland.