Native American Indians in the area had been aware of oil seeps for centuries, and used this tar they found at the surface to treat a variety of ailments. Some would even drink the stuff in hopes that it could cure digestive problems. In 1543, Spanish explorers discovered that black, sticky tar found washed up on the beaches along the Texas coast could be used to waterproof their boots. James Van Blaricum
In the late 1800's, Texas had produced minor amounts of oil, starting with a well in 1866 drilled by Lyne T. Barret near the east Texas town of Nacogdoches. This field, known as "Oil Springs", was finally exploited again in 1888, when a crew of drillers from Pennsylvania had a well come in at 250 - 300 barels per day. This find attracted other oil companies, and it would only be a matter of time before the huge, untapped potential of the underground reservoirs was discovered. Signal Oil and Gas
Corsicana was really the first big producing field in eastern Texas. This field, like so many others in the early days of oil, was discovered when local businessmen drilled deep wells looking for water, not oil. Amazingly, the first drillers in this area perceived the oil zones they reached as annoying nuisances, and often drilled past these zones to get to the water they were seeking. H.G.Damon and Ralph Beaton had a bit more foresight, and formed the Corsicana Oil Development Company. They brought in famed Pennsylvania oilman John Galey, and the team drilled marginally successful oil wells in Corsicana in 1896. These wells, however, all flowed at 25 barrels per day or less, and Galey and his partner, James Guffey, sold their interest in the company and headed back east, convinced that there was little future in Texas oil. Locals, however, proved them wrong, and by the end of the year 1900, more than 2 million barrels of oil had been produced in the Corsicana field alone. This was not large by Pennsylvania standards, but it certainly pointed towards the possibilities of something bigger. Signal Oil and Gas
