Washington oil field

The Gantz Sand, named after Washington's Gantz Oil Well, is located in the upper Devonian/lower Mississippian strata.[2][3] Its clean pebbly sandstone stretches from Washington County into north central West Virginia and produces oil and gas at depths greater than 1,700 feet (520 m).[2] The Gantz sand is frequently misidentified.[4]

The Washington oil field was first tapped by Washington County Eureka Oil Company in 1861.[5] The well, which was drilled to a depth of 900 feet (270 m), was located at the Mannon farm, located at the West Amity station along the Waynesburg and Washington Railroad.[5] Other short-lived exploratory efforts were subsequently undertaken at Prosperity, Lone Pine, and South Strabane Township.[5]

In 1880, the Morgan Oil Company drilled a well at Alexander V. McGugin's farm in South Strabane Township.[5] The second well attempt, reaching a depth of 2,247 feet (685 m), hit a large pocket of natural gas.[5] It was the largest flow of natural gas in the world.[5] The rush of uncaptured gas could be heard for miles.[7] Historian Earle Forrest described the event, saying that "one of nature's marvels had been uncorked".[7]

A year of wasted gas flow passed before the flow was tapped into a 6 inches (150 mm) pipe to Pittsburgh.[5] By 1885, 5 wells in the Canonsburg area had been drilled, growing to 17 by November 1, 1886.[5] The success of this well initiated the beginning and development of the great oil and gas fields in southwestern Pennsylvania.[6]

In 1967, the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission erected a historical marker in honor of McGugin Gas Well well along Pennsylvania Route 18 northwest of Washington.[6] The marker has since gone missing.[6]

Gantz Oil Well

Pennsylvania Historical Marker
Location	W. Chestnut St. at Brookside Ave., Washington
Coordinates	40.17119°N 80.25546°W / 40.17119; -80.25546
PHMC dedicated	October 3, 1953[8]

In 1884, Citizens Natural Gas Company drilled a well 2,191 feet (668 m) deep on the Gantz mill property, near the Chestnut Street station of the Pennsylvania Railroad.[5] The well hit a sand formation, now known as the Gantz Sand, that produced oil, surprising the company.[5] That sand formation is known as the Gantz Sand.[5] This was the first oil well in Washington County and set off an oil boom in the area.[5][9]

Within 3 months, 21 wells were drilled throughout the county.[5] One well at a depth of 2,392 feet (729 m) by People's Light and Heat Company on the Gordon farm north of Washington was the deepest producing oil well in the world.[5] Production levels exploded in 1886; May production levels were from 4,000 barrels per day, rising to 10,120 barrels per day in June, and peaking at 17,549 barrels per day in October.[7] Contemporary reports indicate that over 100 derricks were visible from the LeMoyne well on Prospect Avenue.[7] The boom was especially notable in Murdocksville, Burgettstown, Cross Creek, and Cherry Valley.[7] This increase in oil production signaled a shift in the center of the Pennsylvania oil industry from Northwestern Pennsylvania (home to the Drake Well) to Southwestern Pennsylvania, particularly Washington County.[10]

Map of Washington, showing the Old Fairgrounds in 1897. Note the oil wells.

Washington & Jefferson College also owned oil wells; in 1885 the college purchased the old Washington Fairgrounds and transformed it into a college athletic facility (eventually Cameron Stadium) by erecting oil wells on the grounds.[11]

The boom and subsequent development lasted around 20 years, dropping significantly around shortly after the turn of the century.[7] The last oil was shipped around 1916.[8]

In 1953, the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission erected a historical markers in honor of the well along West Chestnut Street in Washington.[8][nb 1] The West Virginia Division of Culture and History erected a historical marker noting the Gantz Sand in Aurora, West Virginia.[2]

In the mid 2000s, Washington County would become central to the rebirth of the resource extraction industry, with the development of the hydraulic fracturing in the Marcellus Shale.

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  Oil derricks in Finleyville
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  A gusher in Taylorstown

Washington, Pennsylvania