![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Spearheaded by the American Petroleum Institute, they constructed a dike and 2 buildings, acquired 219 acres of adjacent land, and landscaped the site. In anticipation of the Drake Well’s 75th anniversary, local oil producers began raising funds to build the first museum and library located at the well site. Still standing as a private residence in West Titusville, the museum displayed a collection of oil industry memorabilia from 1913 until Bell’s death in 1923. Bell built and operated the first museum dedicated to the history of the Drake Well and Pennsylvania’s oil industry. Bell and the Drake Memorial Museum, 1911 (DW5479)Įdwin C. The DAR memorial was dedicated on August 27, 1914, safeguarding the Drake Well site as a public history space for future generations. Emery, widow of one of the petroleum industry’s early pioneers, and hired Ida Horner, owner of the granite and marble works in Titusville, to erect a natural sandstone monument. They acquired the well site and 1 acre of surrounding land through a donation from Susan A. The Daughters of the American Revolution, Canadohta Chapter, were among the first to mobilize to preserve the site of Drake’s accomplishments and memorialize the oil well that launched a global industry. Drake Well Museum and Park preserves and interprets the site of the Drake Well, educating the public about the oil and natural gas industries in Pennsylvania, their founding, development, and growth into global enterprises. On August 27, 1859, the Drake Well struck oil at 69½ feet, giving birth to an industry that has forever shaped our modern world. With the help of salt well driller and blacksmith William (Uncle Billy) Smith, Drake adapted and used salt well technology to drill for oil. His mission was to find and produce crude oil in quantities that would make it commercially successful for refining into kerosene. Drake traveled to Titusville, Pennsylvania, in 1857 as an agent of the Seneca Oil Company of Connecticut. Ida Horner standing in front of the boulder she found for the DAR Monument, 1913 (DW2010.1.1g)Įdwin L. ![]()
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