1959 Midcontinent Map Co. Plat Map, Map of Oil Wells in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma

New Extraction Methods After the Oil Boom.

This is a c. 1959 plat map of Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, noting the location of oil wells produced by the Midcontinent Map Co. It demonstrates the state of the oil industry in the county at a time when primary and secondary extraction methods had been exhausted, prompting a move to tertiary methods for extracting oil.

A Closer Look

The map depicts Okmulgee County, east of Oklahoma City and south of Tulsa, today part of the Tulsa metropolitan area. The county is located entirely within the lands of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. Based on the survey lines, this map corresponds to an area in the southwest part of the county, just west and north of the city of Henryetta. Survey and property lines are traced throughout, with property owners' names and, in some cases, places of residence recorded along with dates which may refer to the date of the property's acquisition (though many of these postdate the stamp on the map). The location and owners of oil wells are also recorded in great detail.

History of Oil in Okmulgee County

Though less well-known than nearby Tulsa, which became known as the 'Oil Capital of the World' in the early 20th century, Okmulgee County nevertheless saw a similar oil boom. The first significant discovery occurred near the town of Okmulgee in 1904, when relatively shallow, early wells were dug by independent 'wildcatters'; afterwards, larger operations with more sophisticated drilling techniques moved in. In the late 1910s, as known reserves elsewhere were being exhausted, many operators moved into Okmulgee to tap into the Bald Hill and Morris fields. Since Okmulgee was the capital of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, leasing rights involved complex negotiations between tribal members and oil speculators, often mediated by the federal government.

By 1919, Okmulgee County was the leading oil-producing county in the state, and the town of Okmulgee became a bustling city of 'oil mansions,' refineries, and supply companies. Unlike many boomtowns that simply shipped oil away, Okmulgee built a considerable refining infrastructure and also experimented with secondary recovery methods ('waterflooding') that allowed it to sustain the gains of oil production beyond the initial boom years. By the time this map was produced, the county had become a leader in enhanced oil recovery (tertiary) methods as well.

Publication History and Census

This map was produced by the Midcontinent Map Co. around the year 1959 (the date of registration and sale stamped in two places). As mentioned above, the map includes what appear to be dates from after 1959, and it may be that this is an updated edition that buyer's could exchange their old map for, as explained at top-right. In any event, the map with any date does not appear in institutional collections, while a handful of institutions hold maps of other counties in Oklahoma and neighboring states produced by the Midcontinent Map Company.

Cartographer

Midcontinent Map Company (c. 1900 - 1970) was a map publisher based in Tulsa, Oklahoma and later with offices in several states that specialized in county plat maps and abstract maps relating to the oil and gas industry. Founded in Tulsa at the dawn of the great oil boom of the early 20th century, the company both produced its own maps and republished those of others, especially the U.S. Geological Survey, that were useful for oil prospectors. Their maps consistently focused on the middle part of the country, including Oklahoma, Missouri, Mississippi, Illinois, Iowa, and Kansas (though not Texas, which was already well-covered by other map publishers).   Further Details...

Condition

Very good. Light wear along original fold lines. Light dampstaining. A few manuscript annotations.