Uncommon set of maps published by the Barlow & Hill land company, focusing on the oil reserves of central and southern California.
The maps appear in a pamphlet that serves to index all the different landholders in six oil regions of California.
One map shows the greater southern and central California area, showing most of the state south of Monterey. Approximately a dozen drilling areas are named, six of which are expanded in the other maps from the booklet. The rest of the booklet provides indices to the maps, apparently naming all plots of land shown. Numerous advertisements are also shown, mainly targeted at speculators and oilmen, advertising, for example, reamers, oil tanks, and, of course, land.
The oil industry in California in 1910 was already well-developed, with the La Brea tar pits having been used by Native Americans since pre-Spanish times. The 1860s would see the development of profitable drilling operations, with the Ojai Basin and the Pico Canyon Oilfields being exploited first. Development of oil reserves was limited to the coastal regions until 1899 when a discovery on the Kern River near Bakersfield reoriented the industry. This new oilfield quickly dominated Californian production and would allow the state to lead in U.S. oil production. The first decade of the 20th century, when this pamphlet was published, would see wild speculation and unsuccessful attempts at federal regulation.
Barlow & Hill
The Barlow & Hill land company was founded by Charles A. Barlow and William H. Hill in 1902 to invest in commodities, lands, and companies related to Californian oil exploration. Founded on the famous name of Charles Barlow, who represented California's 6th congressional district from 18979 to 1899 for the Populist Party, some of the offshoots of the original company still exist today.
In the pamphlet, the partners advertise the Midway Oilfield, located southwest of Bakersfield, which they predict will extend, before 1912, "over more proven oil territory than all the other oil fields in the state combined." Their prediction was not far from wrong: the oil field remains not only the largest in the state, but the largest in the continental United States.
Contents
- Oil Fields of California. This map shows oil fields in central and southern California. The map stretches from Monterey in the north to San Juan Capistrano in the south, and east to Owens Lake. Numerous oilfields are shown in addition to the ones shown in the other maps of the series, including the Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, and Cullerton fields. Railroad and county lines are also shown.
- Map of the Kern River Oil Field. Bakersfield and Kern City (now "East Bakersfield) are shown in the lower-left corner of the map. The Kern River passes through the center of the map. Numerous drilling sites and storing yards are shown. Plot holders are named, including the Standard Oil Co.
- Map of the Coalinga Oil Field. Shows the Coalinga Oil Field in Fresno County, naming plot holders and drilling sites.
- Map of the Oil Fields Coalinga to Temblor "Devil's Den." Shows the southern central valley oil fields. An expansive Tulare Lake is visible in the upper right of the map.
- Map of the McKittrick Oil Field. Shows the McKittrick Oil Field in Kern County, naming plot holders and drilling sites.
- Map of the Midway Oil Field. The Mt. Diablo Range can be seen to pass through the south and west of the map. Shows the Midway Oil Field in Kern County, naming plot holders and drilling sites.
Rarity
OCLC notes six examples of this 1910 atlas. Five examples of the condensed 1908 edition also exist. One additional example is undated.