CUMBERLAND COUNTY'S GREAT
OIL FIELD
Thai Cumberland County, though small,
has a great oil field is not generally known to the world. It is a
fact, nevertheless, that
within the borders of Union Township, the northeastern corner township
of this county, there is an oil pool whose area is about four by four and one-half miles square
and which territory has now 233 producing wells and more are being
brought in every week and it
would not be surprising should there be a total of 1,000 oil wells in
this pool within the next year.
The apparent reason for this county's
failure to be credited with oil seems lo be because the field is
located not far from the eastern line of the county, only a few miles
from Casey, which town is
about one and one-half miles east of the Cumberland County line and a
pipe line has been laid to Casey and the Union Township oil is pumped to near that place
and thus Clark County and Casey are credited with the oil production.
Casey, from its location near
the Union and Westfield pools and upon the Vandalia Railroad, has
reaped enormous benefits from the finds and has quite a boom, but the finding of oil
in Union Township is that which made Casey the established center.
We do not envy our neighbor s good
fortune, but only hope the next few months may place us in an oil
field. Casey, before the oil
boom, was a dead one, but she has a new life now. We do not seek to
take any of the laurels from her brow, but are only insisting that the world know that Cumberland County has
one of the greatest oil pools in the world. The Beaumont, Texas, oil
field has only 225 acres while
Union Township has over four square miles. Union Township farmers who
are in the oil pool are getting rich quick, cashing their monthly checks for several
hundred dollars and their prosperity is making people oil crazy.
In order that all may know the extent
of the development of the field in this county, we secured from our
Vevay Park correspondent,
who is very reliable person, statistics of the producing wells. The
field is located just north of Vevay and the gentleman who sends the information has opportunities
for knowing and his investigations are given below
(listed first are names and then number of wells):
| Clark Cochonour - 19 |
Scott Emrich -
19 |
L. Dunn - 17 |
Taylor Emrich - 29 |
| Hays - 6 |
Will Miller - 4 |
L
Larue - 5 |
Otis Collins - 1. |
| Suffle - 2 |
Smoyer -4 |
Sam Black -1 |
Wyat Wood.- 2 |
Will Black
- 2.
|
O. Owens - 3.
|
Wm. Chrysler - 9 |
Mr.
Hayworth- 11 |
| A. L Chrysler - 9 |
Mrs. Kite -3 |
Mrs. Sanford - 3 |
Charlie
Queen - 9 |
| H. Middleton - 12 |
Clark Lacey - 6 |
Amos Lacey - 2 |
Wm.
Jacobs - 2 |
| Goodman
Bros. - 16 |
Frank Walker - 6 |
Chrysler Bros. - 5 |
Frank Lacey - 3 |
| Amos
Redman - 4 |
Hayworth Bros. - 18 |
Mrs. Underwood - 8 |
J. Gardner - 17 |
| W M. Woodburo - 12 |
Mrs.
Sidwell - 10 |
I. Strockbine - 2 |
Mrs. Miller - 1 |
| Munsey -1 |
M. S.
Stulz -21 |
Eli Hann
- 1 |
H. Middleton - 9 |
| Mrs. Rimmerman - 2 |
H.
Howe - 3 |
S. Rooks - 3 |
Gosseit - 2 |
| Mrs. Kilburn - 2 |
Long Point Chapel - 3 |
D. Chrysler - 4 |
Total number of wells -
233 |
As
my time was limited, it was
impossible to obtain anything accurate about the production. It is
thought that a tank a week is a
fair estimate.
Last month L Dunn received $1,500;
Charley Queen, $435; Clark Lacey. $484; Eli Kaun. $85; he has only one
well.
Taylor Emrich has the
most productive farm. This
list only includes wells that are completed.
There are a number more to
come in this week.
From July 1906 newspaper clipping
OLD ROUTE 130 BETWEEN
CHARLESTON AND GREENUP
Before I returned to Florida prior to
our retirement in Arkansas. Mr. Cutright was very courteous in allowing
me to "pick his brain" regarding Old Route 130 between Charleston and
Greenup. Mr. Cutright traversed Old Route 130 many a time via horseback
in order to visit his sister while they were attending Eastern Illinois
State Teachers College (now Eastern Illinois University! The original
Route 130, prior to being paved, went due south from Route 16 at
Charleston, Illinois, and on due south past Wrightsville to a "T" road.
Then, turn east to just north of present-day Route 130 where the old
Route 130 curved, crossed the bridge, and came up over the hill to the
Five-Mile House. You can still turn off today's Route 130 and travel a
fraction of the old road. Watch though as it surely does have some
"square" curves.
Note: Per the research of Ruth Tippett the Five-Mile House was at one
time a stagecoach stop.
Old Route 130 again continued due south to the Hurricane
Church, then on due west to Diona and again due south from the center
of Diona (Dogtown) past where Nancy and Tad Hutton currently reside.
Now, go back east to Bill Jones' place—1 reckon, about a quarter of a
mile. Here you will pick up today's Route 130. Go south to the Union
Center Road, then east to Jack Oak Church and again south for about one
mile lo where Caleb Decker lived. From there go west to where Everett
Decker lives now. (This is across today's 130 to the road that runs by
Everett Decker.) Go due south to the Timothy Road, then east to
Timothy, then south to the first road west, and then west past where
Susie Callahan lives. Originally, Cliff Carr lived there plus—at one
time—a sawmill was there. Continue on for about another one-quarter of
a mile (total of about one-half mile) to Molasses Mill corner. (This is
Sportsman's Club Road today.) Proceed south about one-quarter of a mile
then section line jogs for about five rod toward the west and then
south past the while house the west side of today's 130 until you are
about half-way down the hill. This is where the Hard Scrabble
Schoolhouse was.
The old bridge over Lost Creek is just west of the current bridge
across Lost Creek.
Continue across the bottom land to where today you go up over the hill.
The old road angled around the hill past where Bill Jobe lives now.
(This is another part of the old road that you can still drive.)
Continue due south to the Cutright Hatchery where the horse barn and
trailer are now.
Start anglin' southwest to about where Marietta Street in Greenup is
today. This is also near the present-day nursing home. Today's Route
130 was built between 1933 and 1936, using horses. Per Mr. Cutright,
the hard work killed a lot of horses.
Submitted by Clenna Ruth Tippett Mullen after interviewing
A. B. Cutright on June 3, 1991
ELECTRIC LIGHT JUBILEE
Greenup held an "Electric Light
Jubilee" on November 16, 1899. It was hailed as a "howling success with
a tin horn accompaniment!" Over 3,000 people gathered to witness the
turning on of the lights.
