Volume 1 Issue 4, September 2008 of The Pipeline

The Pipeline
Your Conduit for Information about Oil 150
P.O. BOX 128; OIL CITY, PA 16301-0128
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 4
September, 2008
Oil Region Dedicates New Community Gateway
Inside this issue:
by Kim Harris
Community Gateway Dedication 1
Oil 150 Documentary Update
1
Pennsylvania Brine Plant
2
Oil 150 Event in Emlenton
3
PA Geology Reprint
4
Thank You to Donors
5
Oil 150 Sales Locations
5
Featured Events
September 20, Picnic In the Park.
Enjoy a relaxing lunch and period
games from noon to 5:00 p.m. in
Hasson Park Oil City, PA, 814-6765785.
September 20, Drake Well Museum
Fall Gas Up. View restored antique
gas engines from 9:00 a.m.-5:00
p.m. on the museum grounds in
Titusville, PA, 814-827-2797.
September 20, Venango Museum of
Art, Science and Industry—Dinner
Theater. Enjoy dinner and presentations of “Oil on the Brain” and “A Dialog with Rattlesnake Pete’s Bartender” at Clarion University, Venango Campus, Oil City, PA. Call 814676-2007 for reservations.
September 25, Environmental Film
Series. View A Crude Awakening, a
film that examines the worldwide
implications of “peak oil” at 7:00
p.m. on the University of Pittsburgh,
Titusville, PA Campus, 814-8274429.
October 3-4, Lantern Tours of Pithole.
A ghostly tour by lamplight through
the streets of the vanished Pennsylvania boomtown, 814-827-2797.
(Continued Page 3)
On Wednesday, August 27, 2008,
the Oil Region Alliance of Business,
Industry & Tourism sponsored a dedication ceremony to celebrate the completion of the “Titusville Community
Gateway.” A crowd of over 60 people
including community members and
elected officials attended the event to
hear the speakers’ remarks about the
gateway, the Community of Titusville,
and the Oil Region National Heritage
Area.
“We are pleased that the Alliance
could be a part of this collaborative
effort,” remarked Randy Seitz, President of the Oil Region Alliance. He
continued, “The oil derrick is very fitting, reminding everyone of the events
that took place here during the oil
boom years. Soon along Interstate 80
in Barkeyville the second derrick of
this size will be built to denote to travelers that they are in the Oil Region National Heritage Area.”
(Continued Page 4)
Editor’s Column-Column--Mark’s
--Mark’s Remarks
Oil 150 Documentary Update
As part of the Oil
150 celebration, the
Oil Region Alliance
contracted WQED TV
Pittsburgh to create a
new PBS film documenting the birth of
the oil industry in
Mark Heim northwestern Pennsylvania. Work began
in November 2007, and almost a year
later, the filming is complete, the script
has been drafted, and the production
team is moving forward with the film’s
first rough cut.
According to Pierina Morelli and Iris
Samson, two members of WQED’s pro-
duction team, the new documentary is
not just about Drake's initial well.
Rather, it is about the birth of the oil industry. Samson says they have broadened the scope by focusing on "the innovation and the ingenuity of the people who
started the industry
and how subsequent
people built on that
and basically built
what is probably considered the largest
industry in the world.
An industry that impacts people's lives every day."
(Continued Page 3)
PAGE 2
T H E PI PE LI N E
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 4
Regional Brine Plants See Increase in Productivity
by Mark Heim
Steering Committee
CoCo-Chairs
U.S. Congressman John E. Peterson
Bruce Wells, American Oil & Gas Historical
Society
Lynn Cochran, Franklin Area Chamber of
Commerce
Members
Janet McClintock Aaron, Legacy Family
Carol Baker, Pennsylvania Independent
Petroleum Producers
Brenda Barrett, Bureau Director, PA DCNR
Hon. Ronald Black, Retired Legislator
Dr. William Brice, Petroleum History
Institute
Richard Castonguay, Municipal Leader
U.S. Congressman Phil English
Pamela Egbert Forker, Legacy Family
Harvey Golubock, American Refining
Group, Inc.
Mark Heim, News Director, WKQW Radio
PA Representative Scott Hutchinson
Gary Hutchison, Educator and Area
Historian
Barbara Ives, Field Representative, U.S.
Congressman Peterson
Steve Kosak, Kosak & Associates
Thomas Lopus, Quest Eastern Resource,
on behalf of the Independent Petroleum
Association of America (IPAA)
Lois McElwee, Senior Project Manager and
Oil Historian
Carolee Michener, Venango County
Historical Society
Dr. Christopher Reber, Clarion University
of Pennsylvania
Rhonda Reda, Ohio Oil and Gas Association
Stephen W. Rhoads, Pennsylvania Oil &
Gas Association
J. Mickey Rowley, PA Department of
Community and Economic Development
Roger L. Sigworth, Retired Oil Industry Sales
Dr. Donald B. Smith, Physician
David Waples, National Fuel Gas and
Natural Gas Author
Frank Weltner, Master Mariner
Commissioner Troy Wood, Venango County,
Pennsylvania
Larry D. Woodfork, West Virginia Geologist
PA Senator Mary Jo White
Barbara Zolli, Drake Well Museum
Newsletter EditorEditor-inin-Chief
Mark Heim
Recent increases in oil and natural
gas production and drilling have also
increased the workloads of Pennsylvania’s brine treatment plants. Saltwater (a by-product of new drilling and oil
and gas production) must go somewhere. Enter firms like Pennsylvania
Brine Treatment.
This particular plant, located outside Franklin, PA, is permitted to pump
205,000 gallons of purified salt water
into the Allegheny River daily, nearly
1.8 million barrels annually. The plant
manager, Elton “Sparky” DeLong, Jr.,
says the plant is applying to increase
its output to 300,000 a day in order to
cope with the
recent increase
in brine production.
According to
DeLong, companies drilling the
Marcellus Shale
are keeping the
present plants in
southwestern
Pennsylvania
humming.
A
newer plant located about halfway between Pittsburgh and Erie near
the Ohio line helps take up the slack.
The plant along the Allegheny is the
only plant servicing the northern areas.
Another plant 60 miles up river is unable to handle any increase in brine
treatment.
DeLong says in 2007, his plant handled 37 million gallons of brine, about
101,000 gallons a day or about half
what the plant is permitted. Thus far,
the numbers for 2008 show only a
slight uptick in gallons treated. But
with drilling operations in north central
Pennsylvania only beginning, he sees
the need for the proposed capacity
increase. The parent firm of DeLong’s
operation is also planning expansion,
up to 10 new plants in the next 5
years.
At Pennsylvania Brine Treatment,
the brine is brought in by rail and truck.
When a truck arrives, the manifest for
residual waste carried by each driver is
reviewed by plant personnel who also
collect and test a sample of the cargo
brine in the plant’s lab. Occasionally, a
load is rejected for excessive solids or
oil.
Once accepted for treatment, the
brine is pumped from the trucks
through a strainer basket to a pit
where any remaining oil is skimmed
off.
After skimming, the brine is
pumped to a
holding
tank
where it is aerated to keep remaining solids in
motion and to
aid in the removal of undesirable elements.
After a period of
time the brine is
pumped to indoor tanks where
lime is added for
further treatment
and to dramatically raise the ph level.
At this point, the brine is tested again
in the lab.
The brine and lime mix makes a
slurry. Metals are precipitated out to a
polymer collection sludge and clarified.
The heavy metals, some radioactive, go
to a specialized landfill. According to
DeLong, the remaining sludge is now
reduced to a “normal, technically enhanced naturally occurring substance
shipped to a landfill equipped to handle it.” The brine becomes clean saltwater discharged under state regulation into the Allegheny River eventually
making its way to the sea. Twenty-four
to thirty-six hours pass from drop off to
discharge.
is an educational non-partisan celebration administered by the Oil Region Alliance of Business, Industry & Tourism (ORA). ORA is classified by the Internal
Revenue Service as a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. ORA is registered with the Pennsylvania Bureau of Charitable Organizations. ORA also administers the Oil Region National Heritage Area, as designated by Congress in 2004.
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 4
T H E PI PE LI N E
PAGE 3
(Continued from Page 1) Oil 150 Documentary
The ways in which oil affects everyone’s daily life will be one of the film’s
recurring themes. Morelli says, "One of
the points we put into the documentary
is to make sure people understand how
multifaceted petroleum really is.” According to Samson, “Unlike the refining
of many other raw materials, there is
not a drop of oil that is wasted in the
refining process. Every piece, every
ounce, every possible distillate is
used." She says oil is "in petrochemicals, it's in cosmetics, petroleum jelly
and medicines. So it’s really a vital part
of our consumer nation. A vital part of
everybody's everyday life.”
According to Morelli, the more they
learned about oil history the more they
found the story overwhelming. She
says, “We had to decide how we
wanted to approach the documentary.
We tried to correlate entrepreneurs
then with entrepreneurs today, so people can relate to the story."
In order to tell the story, Samson
began with primary source material like
Reverend S.J.M. Eaton's 1866 book
entitled Petroleum. She says, "I started
with something 150 years old and it
was as valuable if not more so than
most of the things I was able to find."
While Samson dug into books and files
(Continued from Page 1)
Featured Events
October 4, Oil Region Hand Bell Festival.
Enjoy workshops and rehearsals beginning at 9:00 a.m. The day will end with a
public concert at Titusville Middle
School, 814-827-2047.
October 11-15, AAPG 2008 Eastern Section Meeting. The American Association
of Petroleum Geologists will be discussing “APPALACHIA-Unconventional Since
1859,” at the Hilton Downtown, Pittsburgh, PA, www.aapgspe2008.org/.
October 25, French Kate Extravaganza.
Join in this character event at the Porter’s House in Titusville, PA, 814-8271012.
Check out www.oil150.com
for more 2008 and 2009 events.
and photos, Morelli cruised the information super highway and read Samuel T. Pees’ History of Oil website.
The research also included talking
with dozens of people in northwestern
Pennsylvania. Samson says, "One of
the challenges we had was to take a
potentially very dry
story, a historic
story and breathe
life into it. We tried
to do that by adding color." According to Morelli, "We
not only have a lot
of experts in the
story, but we balanced that with
everyday people.
We want the piece
to have a lot of
heart."
Making the oil story come alive with
the personalities of the oil fields resulted in some personal reward for
Morelli and Samson. Morelli says, "the
people we've met have been a lot of
fun…and very interesting. There's no
one like Bill Huber. He's the third generation oil man near Oil City who's
toughed out the busts. He had a laid
back view. He knows he's not going to
grow rich off his stripper wells."
The filmmakers also want to demonstrate what it was like to live in the Oil
Region during the birth of the industry.
Morelli was especially fascinated by the
stories of Pithole and Petroleum Centre
and the transportation or the lack
thereof. She says,
"People just couldn't run into town
for every little
thing. Everything
was rough and
muddy and the
roads weren't very
good. We don't
think about that.
That's one thing
I'm hopeful we can
translate in the
story."
According to
Samson and Morelli, the film ultimately
shows how the early oil industry sustained itself. Samson says, "Ingenuity.
That's a big part of our story. People
went from being farm hands and barrel
makers and fashioned drill bits and
came up with ideas for drive pipes.
Where did they get the know how to do
this? I guess that's what is called oldfashioned American ingenuity."
Emlenton’s Pumping Jack Museum Hosts Oil 150 Event
by Will Wingo
On September 6, 2008, the Pumping
Jack Museum in Emlenton, Pennsylvania
hosted an Oil 150 event entitled The
Sheffers – A Journey from the Rhineland
to Venango County.
A large group of local residents and
other interested guests enjoyed a program presented by Rick Sheffer on the
progress of his family from the Manheim
region of Germany in the mid-eighteenth
century to the wilds of western Pennsylvania during the Revolutionary War and
through to the present.
According to Mr. Sheffer, his family had a rich heritage in the oil business both
in Venango and Westmoreland Counties. Members of the family founded and operated several machine tool and oil well supply businesses in the Emlenton area.
Moreover, several generations were employed at the Quaker State refinery.
Mr. Sheffer’s program was based on the photo collection of his aunt, Hazel
Sheffer Crawford (1909-1983). The photos, dating from the 1870s through the
1950s, were collected in large albums and on display during the presentation. The
Sheffer family photos have been presented to the Pumping Jack Museum
(www.pumpingjack.org) for copying and permanent display.
PAGE 4
T H E PI PE LI N E
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 4
Special Edition of Pennsylvania Geology ReRe-released for Oil 150
by Will Wingo
As part of its Oil 150 celebration, the
Oil Region Alliance of
Business, Industry and
Tourism, has partnered with the Pennsylvania Department
of Conservation and
Natural Resources,
Bureau of Topographic
and Geologic Survey to
reprint and make available to the public Volume 29, No. 1, of
Pennsylvania Geology.
Pennsylvania Geology is a quarterly publication of the Bureau of
Topographic and Geologic Survey. The free
reprinted issue, is a
Special Edition featuring the Oil Heritage Region. While the
content remains the same, the issue
was reprinted with slight revisions to
the covers.
Randy Seitz, President of the ORA, said,
"The reprint of this special edition is a valuable resource for a
wide range of groups –
from school teachers
wanting to provide their
students with a basis
for understanding the
geologic history of the
region to interested
individuals who want
solid information on
the origin of the world's
oil industry in the Oil
Creek valley."
The 32-page magazine which was originally published in 1998, features articles such as "Why the Drake Well?" by
John A. Harper, "The Origin of Oil" by
Christopher D. Laughrey and "As the
Drill Bit Churns" by Kathy J. Flaherty. It
also contains an interesting article by
Samuel T. Pees entitled "Oil Creek's
Riparian Wells," which describes the
early efforts of drillers to recover oil
from the banks and even "off shore" in
Oil Creek.
An electronic version of the publication is available for downloading at
www.oil150.com. Look under
"Teachers" and then "Classroom Resources." Teachers will find this reprint
useful for supplementing basic science
and geology lessons at both the middle
and high school level.
Distribution of the Pennsylvania
Geology reprint is through the ORA,
206 Seneca Street, 4th Floor, P.O. Box
128, Oil City, PA 16301. Complimentary copies are available upon request.
Dial (800) 483-6264.
(Continued from Page 1) Gateway Dedication
Featured in the Media
Armstrong Cable
The Bradford Era
CFRB 1010 Toronto
The Clarion News
The Derrick
Erie Times-News
GBS Television
The Meadville Tribune
The News-Herald
Oil-Industry History
Pennsylvania Travel Guide
The Petroleum Age
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Preservation Magazine
Pursuits Magazine
The Titusville Herald
VisitPA.com
Where & When
WICU 12 Erie
WFRA 1450 AM
WKQW 96.3 FM
WOYL 1340 AM
WPXI 11 Pittsburgh
WQED PBS Pittsburgh
The gateway sports a 32-foot wooden replica oil derrick with an Oil 150 flag
flying from the top. The derrick was constructed by Gustafson General Contracting
of Oil City with lumber donated by community member Ken Nichols. Using green
technology, the gateway includes solar power to light the derrick throughout the
night.
“As we look at this structure, might it remind us to stand tall and be proud that
we are from the region of the birthplace of the oil industry, the valley that changed
the world,” stated Chris Fiely, President of Titusville Renaissance,Inc.
A distinctive feature of
the landscaping of the community gateway is an original wooden oil tank donated
by Mike and Paula Mahle of
Fryburg. Large rocks and a
variety of vegetation by Wilcox Greenhouse and Nursery of Titusville complete
the landscaping. Designating to travelers that they are
in Titusville the “Queen City”
and the Oil Region National
Heritage Area is a 4-foot by
6-foot sign fabricated by
Icon Screenprinting of Erie.
The ceremony concluded with an official ribbon cutting with all attendees invited to participate.
The Titusville Community Gateway was a cooperative project of the Oil Region
Alliance, Titusville Renaissance, Incorporated, and the City of Titusville, PA and was
financed in part by a Pennsylvania Heritage Program Grant from the Department of
Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Recreation and Conservation via
the Oil Region Alliance. Matching funds were provided by the County of Crawford
and the Crawford Heritage Foundation.
PAGE 5
T H E PI PE LI N E
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 4
Thank You, Donors!
American Refining Group
Baker Hughes
Joy Mining Machinery
County of Crawford
County of Venango
Universal Well Services, Inc.
Barr’s Insurance and James Hawkins
Edward Jones Investments
PA Department of Community and
Economic Development
Randy and Lupe Seitz
PA Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources
Pennsylvania Joint Legislative Air
and Water Pollution Control and
Conservation Committee
Anonymous
Betty Squire
Carolee Michener
Central Electric Cooperative
Pennsylvania Humanities Council
Dan and Darlene Twombly
Darl and Marilyn Black
Gary Hutchison
Scott and Mary Beth Hutchinson
Joanne Wolfe
Quentin and Louise Wood
Oil Region Alliance of Business,
Industry & Tourism
Pennsylvania Historical and
Museum Commission
Timothy Brooks, D.P.M.
John and Nicole Phillips
Clarion University Foundation
Elizabeth S. Black Charitable Trust
Orthopedics and Sports Medicine
Associates - Dr. Donald Smith, Dr.
Robert Woods and Dr. John Karian
Frank and Phyllis Weltner
National Park Service
Armstrong Cable
Janet McClintock Aaron
Appalachian Regional Commission
Linn Energy, LLC
National Fuel Gas Distribution Corp.
Petroleum History Institute
Kapp Alloy and Wire, Inc.
Oil Creek Railway
Historical Society, Inc.
Pennsylvania Oil and Gas Association
Philo and Sarah Blaisdell Foundation
American Oil and Gas Historical Society
Larry Woodfork
Moody and Associates
Neil and Lois McElwee
Ohio Oil and Gas Association’s
Energy Education Program
PA CareerLink
Edith Justus Charitable Trust
Ken and Joan Hanson
OMG Americas, Inc.
Independent Oil & Gas
Association of Pennsylvania
Show Your Support for the Oil 150 Celebration!
Staff
Visit www.oil150.com or the following sales locations to find Oil 150
apparel, oil history books and commemorative products.
More products are arriving each week!
William Wingo, Director
Melissa Mann, Deputy Director
Amy Nurss, Development Specialist
www.oil150.com
Randy Seitz, President/COO
Marilyn Black, Vice President for
Heritage Development
National Transit Building
206 Seneca Street, 4th Floor
P.O. Box 128
Oil City, PA 1630116301-0128
814814-677677-3152
800800-483483-6264
Fax: 814814-677677-5206
www.oilregion.org
Titusville Area
Chamber of Commerce
202 West Central Avenue
Titusville, PA 16354
(814) 827-2941
Coal Oil Johnny Eatery
117 East State Street
Pleasantville, PA 16341
(814) 589-5500
Drake Well Museum Store
202 Museum Lane
Titusville, PA 16354
(814) 827-2797
Franklin Area
Chamber of Commerce
1259 Liberty Street
Franklin, PA 16323
(814) 432-5823
Oil Creek &
Titusville Railroad
Perry Street Station
409 South Perry Street
Titusville, PA 16354
(814) 827-6228
Transit Fine Arts Gallery
206 Seneca Street
Oil City, PA 16301
(814) 676-1509
Oil Region Alliance
206 Seneca Street—
4th Floor
Oil City, PA 16301
(814) 677-3152
Pumping Jack Museum
603 Hill Street
Emlenton, PA 16373
(724) 867-2462
Venango Area
Chamber of Commerce
41 Main Street
Oil City, PA 16301
(814) 676-8521
Venango Museum
of Art, Science & Industry
270 Seneca Street
Oil City, PA 16301
(814) 676-2007
This newsletter is copyrighted to OIL 150 at the Oil Region Alliance of Business, Industry & Tourism. Brief excerpts may be quoted so long as
source is acknowledged. For longer excerpts, contact project staff. Articles and photos may be submitted for future editions. Authors and
photographers are recognized but not compensated. Deadline for each edition is the 15th of the preceding month. The Pipeline is distributed electronically via www.oil150.com. Letters to the Editor may be addressed to Editor, Oil 150, P.O. Box 128, Oil City, PA 16301-0128.