Allis-Chalmers Pumps
Kilgore, Gregg County, Texas
Marker Inscription
These two early pumping units serve as historic reminders of Kilgore's development as an oil boom town. The boom era began on Dec. 28, 1930, when the well known as the Lou Della Crim No. 1 blew in. With it, Kilgore became part of the great east Texas oil field. These reciprocal pumps, manufactured by Allis-Chalmers and first used in west Texas, were brought here in 1931 by the Shell Pipe Line Corp. to move crude oil to Houston area refineries. In service until 1985, it is estimated they pumped a combined total of over one billion barrels of oil. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836 - 1986
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
These twin Allis-Chalmers reciprocating pumps stand as relics of Kilgore's transformation into an oil boomtown after the Lou Della Crim No. 1 well blew in on December 28, 1930, opening the vast East Texas field. Brought here in 1931 by the Shell Pipe Line Corporation to push crude toward Houston-area refineries, the pumps ran until 1985 and are estimated to have moved over a billion barrels.
Why it matters
The East Texas field was one of the largest oil discoveries in American history, and equipment like this powered the pipeline network that fueled the nation's twentieth-century economy.
The story behind this marker
AI contextThe era
When the Great Depression set in, East Texas was mostly a land of small farms, piney woods, and struggling towns. Then, in the fall of 1930, wildcatters struck oil near Henderson, and a few months later wells around Kilgore confirmed something astonishing: the region sat on top of one of the largest oil fields ever found in the United States.
The boom came fast and wild. Thousands of people poured in looking for work, and towns like Kilgore swelled almost overnight. Derricks went up in backyards, churchyards, and downtown lots, packed so tightly that in places their legs nearly touched.
So much oil flooded out that prices collapsed, at one point falling to pennies a barrel. The chaos led Texas officials to step in with production limits, and in 1931 the governor even sent troops into the field to enforce order. Out of that turmoil came the rules that would govern American oil for decades.
People & events
Kilgore's boom began on December 28, 1930, when the well known as the Lou Della Crim No. 1 blew in. Its success showed that the oil found near Henderson stretched much farther than anyone had guessed, and Kilgore suddenly found itself in the middle of the great East Texas field.
Finding oil was only half the challenge. The crude had to get to refineries, and the biggest ones were far to the south around Houston. In 1931 the Shell Pipe Line Corporation brought these two pumping units here to drive oil down the pipeline toward the coast. They were not new; they had already worked in the oil fields of West Texas before being moved east.
The pumps were built by Allis-Chalmers, a major American maker of heavy machinery. They are reciprocating pumps, meaning pistons moved back and forth to push the oil along, steady as a heartbeat. They kept that rhythm for more than half a century, staying in service until 1985. By one estimate, together they moved more than a billion barrels of oil.
Its place in the American story
The East Texas field was a national event. Its sheer size reshaped the oil industry, drove prices down during the Depression, and pushed state and federal governments to regulate production in ways that lasted for generations. The Texas Railroad Commission's power over oil output grew directly out of the effort to tame this field.
Pipelines like the one these pumps served turned raw crude into a national resource. Oil moving to Gulf Coast refineries became gasoline, fuel oil, and lubricants for cars, factories, and farms across the country. During World War II, East Texas crude helped fuel the American war effort, and the region's pipeline experience fed into the long-distance lines built to carry oil to the East Coast.
These two machines are a reminder that the boom was not only gushers and fortunes. It also depended on unglamorous equipment, running quietly day and night, that carried the oil where the country needed it.
If you visit
Take a close look at the pumps themselves. They are big, solid, industrial machines, built for decades of hard work rather than looks. Try to picture them running, pistons moving back and forth, pushing oil south toward Houston year after year.
Kilgore wears its oil history proudly. Steel derricks still stand around town as monuments to the boom, especially downtown, where the forest of towers once crowded together. Walking among them gives you a vivid sense of how packed and frantic the field once was, and the derricks are especially striking at dusk.
The town makes a great base for an East Texas oil-heritage road trip. Ask locally about the oil museum and other boom-era sites, and consider driving the back roads toward Henderson, where the discovery that started it all was made. Together, those stops tell the full story from first gusher to the pipelines that carried the oil away.
Written by AI to add context, grounded in the marker’s inscription and the historical record. The inscription above is the original, unaltered text.
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Related events
- · Lou Della Crim No. 1 discovery
- · East Texas oil boom
Themes & tags
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