T&P No. 1 - W.H. Abrams No. 1 Discovery Well of the Permian Basin
Westbrook, Mitchell County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(2.4 miles north) The first commercial discovery oil well in the Permian Basin was named for W.H. Abrams, leasing agent for the Texas and Pacific Land Trust. The well first produced oil in February 1920 at a depth of 450 feet; but in June 1920, a better showing of oil was found at 2345 - 2410 feet. On July 16, 1920 the well was "shot" with nitroglycerin. As a crowd of 2,000 people looked on, a great eruption of oil, gas, water, and smoke shot from the mouth of the well almost to the top of the derrick. Shortly after, the well flowed at a rate of 129 barrels daily, but soon settled down to 20 barrels per day. From this well and a well nearby the Rio Grande Oil Company laid the first commercial oil pipeline in the Permian Basin. The first load of oil went through the pipeline on April 3, 1922. W.H. Abrams No. 1 was redesignated on May 1, 1968, as Westbrook Southeast Unit No. 701, formed to increase oil recovery from the Westbrook Oil Field by water flooding. This enhanced oil recovery technique has produced 67 million barrels of the more than 100 million barrels of oil recovered from this field. Designated as major fields, only a small number produce 100 million barrels of oil or more. Fifty-six major fields are located in the Permian Basin, the fourth largest oil producing area in the U.S. (1967, 1996)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1920 the well named for leasing agent W. H. Abrams struck oil, the first commercial discovery in what became the vast Permian Basin. When the well was "shot" with nitroglycerin that July, a crowd of 2,000 watched oil and gas erupt nearly to the top of the derrick. The strike opened one of the greatest oil regions in the United States, later revived through water-flooding to recover tens of millions more barrels.
Why it matters
This discovery launched the Permian Basin, one of America's most productive oil fields, transforming West Texas and helping fuel the nation's twentieth-century industrial rise.
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Related people
- · W. H. Abrams
Related events
- · Discovery of the Permian Basin oil field
Themes & tags
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