Densmore Tank Cars
Cherrytree Township, Venango County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
The first functional railway oil tank car was invented and constructed in 1865 by James and Amos Densmore at nearby Miller Farm along Oil Creek. It consisted of two wooden tanks placed on a flat railway car; each tank held 40-45 barrels of crude oil. A successful test shipment was sent in Sept., 1865 to New York City. By 1866, hundreds of tank cars were in use. The Densmore Tank Car revolutionized the bulk transportation of crude oil to market.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
In the frenzied years after Colonel Drake's 1859 strike, Pennsylvania's Oil Creek valley became the cradle of the world petroleum industry — but moving crude in leaky wooden barrels by wagon was slow and wasteful. In 1865 brothers James and Amos Densmore mounted two large wooden tanks on a flat railway car at nearby Miller Farm, each holding dozens of barrels, and shipped a successful test load to New York City. The design spread almost overnight, with hundreds in service within a year, and it set the template for the steel tank cars that still carry oil today.
Why it matters
This crude wooden contraption solved the bottleneck between the oil field and the market, helping turn a regional boom into a national industry that reshaped the American economy.
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Related people
- · James Densmore
- · Amos Densmore
Related events
- · First railway oil tank car, 1865
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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