VILLAGE OF FINDLAY - 631

CHAPTER XXXIII.

FINDLAY CONCLUDED

NATURAL GAS IN HANCOCK COUNTY-ITS DISCOVERY IN 1836 - FIRST NATURAL GAS FOUND AND USED IN FINDLAY-NUMEROUS EVIDENCES OF ITS PRESENCE- DR. OSTERLEN'S BELIEF IN ITS PLENTIFUL EXISTENCE, AND HIS EARLY INVESTIGATIONS OF THE SUBJECT-THE GAS ON THE FOSTER LOT UTILIZED BY JACOB CARR-OIL. EXCITEMENT IN FINDLAY-ATTEMPTS TO FIND OIL AND THEIR FAILURE - DR. OSTERLEN'S PERSISTENT ADVOCACY OF A GREAT NATURAL GAS DEPOSIT-ORGANIZATION OF THE FINDLAY NATURAL GAS COMPANY-THE MEN WHO FIRST RISKED THEIR MONEY IN THE ENTERPRISE - THE FIRST WELL DRILLED, AND GAS DEVELOPED IN PAYING QUANTITIES - TO WHOM THE CREDIT IS DUE - MAINS LAID AND GAS PIPED INTO FINDLAY - OTHER WELLS PUT DOWN-CONSOLIDATION OF THE OLD AND NEW COMPANIES- SUBSEQUENT ENTERPRISES, AND NUMBER OF WELLS NOW DRILLED-THEM CAPACITY, PRODUCT AND PERMANENCY -LATER COMPANIES IN THE FIELD-DESCRIPTION OF THE GREAT KARG WELL-ABUNDANT SUPPLY OF GAS, ITS SUPERIORITY AS FUEL, AND COMPARATIVE SAFETY - COST TO THE CONSUMER -A FEW CASES ILLUSTRATING ITS WONDERFUL CHEAPNESS-WHAT NATURAL GAS HAS ACCOMPLISHED FOR FINDLAY.

NO event in the history of Findlay has given the town such a wide reputation, an conferred upon its people such material benefits, as the recent development of its great natural gas deposits. The history of natural gas in Hancock County goes back to the fall of 1836, when a small vein was tapped by Richard Wade while digging a well on his farm, on the southeast quarter of Section 6, Jackson Township, about two miles and a half south of Findlay. Plenty of water was found at a depth of ten feet, but the flow of gas was so strong that the well had to be abandoned, as the water was unfit for use. The escaping gas was subsequently conveyed from the well through a wooden box, to the end of which Wade attached a piece of iron tubing, and he would sometimes light it in exhibiting the phenomenon to visitors. Very little attention, however, was paid to it at the time, for

632 - HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.

the ample reason that the pioneers were then struggling to establish homes, and possessed neither the knowledge nor means to investigate the subject.

In the autumn of 1838 Daniel Foster, a brother of Jacob Foster, of North Findlay, put down a well on the lot now owned by Jacob Carr, on Main Street, in the village of Findlay. At a depth of eight feet he struck a very strong vein of gas and had to suspend operations. Covering it over he placed a pump tube. extending under his house. from an opening in the well covering to the vicinity of the chimney, and then boring a hole through the floor attached a musket barrel to the pump tube. through which the gas teas conducted to near the mouth of the open fire-place, and first used in Findlay. Foster utilized the gas to light his house, and his wife would often boil her coffee in the summer time on top of the gun barrel, and thus this primitive contrivance, first constructed as a curiosity, became a source of great convenience to the family. Soon after the discovery of gas by Foster, a well was Sunk by Jesse George on the southwest turner of Main and Hardin Streets. a sycamore gum put down to prevent caving in, and a loose covering of pantheons placed over the top. The water had a strong sulphuric taste, and the family soon began to amuse strangers by showing how the water in the well would burn. But an event finally occurred which gave them a wholesome respect for this strange fluid. While a party of young ladies were exhibiting the wonderful phenomenon to a Mr. Green, he jokingly thrust a torch into the well, when an explosion occurred, blowing off the covering and seriously burning the. experimenter. John H. Morrison then decided to nail down the top, and thus prevent further accidents. Two days afterward Henry Byal and Anthony Strother came in from the country to examine the strange well, and inserted a light under the covering. A loud explosion followed, blowing off the cover, which had been nailed down, and throwing both young men into the air. They were thoroughly frightened, and Mr. Byal, who is now a resident of Findlay. says: I have ever since had a very respectful opinion of the power which this fluid possesses."

The well on Daniel Foster's premises gave an unremitting flow of gas, and would burn until forcibly extinguished. Few persons thought much of the phenomenon after its novelty had worn off. but it was useful to the Foster family, and a source of amusement to the boos of the village. Findlay people bought wood for fuel, and lighted their houses with candles or whale oil, dreaming not of the strange fluid deep down in the bowels of the earth, where it had been stored by the great Creator, to be brought forth in due time by the developed skill and science of the nineteenth century. Within the limits of the village, north of the river, was a spring of water impregnated with sulphur, which tasted and smelled vilely. A lighted torch held above it would ignite the escaping gas, that burned with a blue flame, and threw out an intense heat. All these things were common knowledge and talk for many years, and similar indications of gas were found in scores of wells in different parts of the county, which were usually called " sulphur wells, "

Among the more thoughtful people of the county there was one man upon whom these natural phenomena made a deep impression at an early day, viz. : Dr. Charles Osterlen, then a young German physician, of Findlay. Being something of a geologist, he became earnestly interested, and, after careful investigation, concluded that underlying the village was a great nat-

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oral gas deposit which could be developed by drilling through the supervening rock strata. The more incredulous people laughed at what they designated as "the Doctor's wild theories," some going so far in their ridicule as to intimate that he was crazy. During his investigations he discovered many strong indications of gas, all of which strengthened his belief still more in the plentiful existence of the fluid. In 1850, while passing by Robert S. Mungen's quarry, located in the east part of Findlay, the Doctor remarked to Mr. Mungen, " I smell gas very strong:" to which the latter replied, " Yes, I am almost suffocated by it," Dr. Osterlen at once mixed some clay and constructed a small hollow mound over a fissure in the rock, on the top of which he placed a wooden bucket. In a few moments he touched a lighted match under the edge of the bucket, which was followed by an explosion, throwing the vessel into the air, and the gas burned for a short time. Some years afterward he observed on his farm, east of the village, a small patch of ground upon which nothing grew. He employed a boy TO dig a funnel-shaped hole on the site, six feet deep, from which the gas began escaping, and upon applying a match the fluid ignited and burned for several hours. Dr. Osterlen continued to advocate his belief in an underlying natural gas or oil-bed, which the foregoing investigations had developed into an absolute fact, so far as h© was cone©rued, until many thinking men agreed with him. The subsequent discoveries of oil and gas in Pennsylvania and New York did much; no doubt, to strengthen his position and convince the most incredulous that there was a method in the Doctor's madness.

With the death of Daniel Foster, in 1849 or 1850, the property upon which the first natural gas in Findlay was found and used by that gentleman, passed into other hands, and in the spring of 1863 was purchased by Jacob Carr, a dentist of the village, and previous proprietor of Carr's Hotel, which stood on the southwest corner of Main and Crawford Streets. In speaking of the purchase, Mr. Carr says: " When I bought the place, the tube and gun-barrel arrangement, which Foster had used TO conduct the gas into his house, had been removed, and I found the water in the well so unpleasant to the taste that I dug a cistern, intending to run rainwater into it for family use. When the cistern was finished and lined with boards it would not stay in place, as the escaping gas would keep forcing it up. I removed the boards and digged deeper, until reaching the limestone rock, six feet and a half below the surface. I then found that the gas came up very strong through the rock crevices, and I concluded to try and utilize it, as Foster had done years before. I made a sheet-iron pipe, larger at one end than at the other, and, placing the larger end on the bottom of the well, fixed a connecting pipe to the small end sticking out of the ground, and conducted the gas into the house, where I afterward used it for lighting and cooking. I subsequently had a mechanic construct a short iron drum, about six feet in diameter and six feet deep, and used this as a gasometer in which to collect a supply for my own consumption."These evidences of Mr. Carr's ingenuity and thoughtfulness are still in his yard as when constructed, though he has not used them since the great development of natural gas, but gets his supply from the company's mains.

In the meantime the development of petroleum in paying quantities in western Pennsylvania, in 1859-60, caused a flurry of excitement in Findlay over the supposed presence of oil-bearing sand underlying Hancock

636 - HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.

County ; and as the real indications of the existence of petroleum were but little understood at that time, every sulphurous odor and gaseous exudation from mother earth was looked upon as a sure precursor of oleaginous wealth below, Among the places where the signs of the coveted fluid were supposed to be most strongly marked, was an old abandoned well on the north side of Sandusky Street east of Main, near the southeast corner of Frey & Son's drug store. This old well had long been dry, and was half filled with rubbish. But one winter morning in 1859-60. Daniel Dixon, an old time merchant of Findlay, since deceased, while passing by noticed a strong gaseous odor coming from it. The oil excitement was then at fever heat all over the country, and thinking that perhaps he had found a sign of the much sought for article, Mr. Dixon procured an iron bar and began forcing it through the debris. Through the opening thus formed the gas poured out abundantly, and raised the old gentleman's hopes to a point of enthusiastic anticipation. While thus engaged. a citizen of Findlay, now living, passed by and very naturally inquired the meaning of the vigorous probing of the old well. Mr, Dixon turned to the interrogator, and with a smile and a merry twinkle of his eye, replied, "It's oil, Squire, oil!" The next day Mr, Dixon had the old well cleaned out, and being a man of intelligence, soon found that the flow of gas resulted from natural causes which he did not understand. The matter caused no little excitement, however, and it was some little time before it entirely died out.

A well on the premises now occupied by D. D. McCahan, on South Main Street, which is strongly charged with sulphur, caused some excitement soon after Mr, Dixon's explorations. Several experts examined this well and pronounced the sulphurous condition of the water to be from underlying petroleum. The same notions prevailed abort the sulphur spring north of the Blanchard. Nothing was done, however, toward testing this theory and the matter was soon forgotten by the great majority of the people. With the light of recent developments we now know that the escaping natural gas was the cause of these petroleum evidences, and also that petroleum does exist under the superincumbent strata through which the gaseous odors were then pushing their way to the surface.

Early in 1861 a company was organized in Findlay, with the intention of prospecting for oil, in which the following citizens were stockholders: William H. Wheeler, Robert S. Mungen, L. G. Baker, C. A. Croninger, Albert Langworthy, David Goucher, H. P. Gage, E. M. Buckle, William Mungen, J. B. Horn &, Co., William Vanlue, Jesse Wolf, Frederick Henderson, George H. Crook, Israel Green, Jesse Guise, Henry Brown, Isaac Davis, Dr. Bass Rawson and William C. Cox, The company was organized by electing Israel Green, president; Robert S, Mungen, secretary, and E, M, Buckle, treasurer. The spot selected for the well was a few rods southeast of the Presbyterian Church, but the preliminary operations were suspended through the breaking out of the war and were never resumed.

The subject again began to be agitated in the fall of 1864, and with some show of vigor toward determining if oil existed in this county. In that year a party of gentlemen, who claimed a thorough knowledge of the business, came from the East, and, after an examination of the territory, declared that oil could be found here in paying quantities. In the winter of 1864-65 a derrick was rigged up on the premises of Jacob Carr by two men from Gallipolis, Ohio, and an oil-well drilled by a kind of spring pole

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method to a depth of 141 feet, when the drill stuck fast in the bottom of the well, which was then abandoned. Of course no satisfactory results were obtained, and it looks strange, from our present knowledge as to the great depth at which oil has since been found in Findlay, that any could have been expected from such a primitive mode of drilling.

The Hancock Oil Company was incorporated February 9, 1865. by Messrs. Hanks P. Gage, William Anderson, Robert S. Mungen, K. S. Baker, C. A. Croninger, William H. Wheeler, J. J. Wheeler, W. B. Taylor and Squire Carlin, "for the purpose of engaging in the business of digging and boring for oil, salt and other vegetable, medicinal and mineral fluids in the earth, and for refining and purifying the same; and mining coal ores and other minerals." The capital stock was placed at $100,000, in shares of $10 each, and all operations were to he carried on within the counties of Hancock and Wood. Though the company was organized to prospect for oil, their charter was sufficiently broad to cover any valuable substance they might find. A well was sunk at Waterville, on the Maumee River, to a depth of 700 feet, and a little gas found, but the project was then abandoned as a failure, and all further operations discontinued.

The same year (1865) Hon. Parlee Carlin, of Findlay, in company with William H. Ijams & Co., from the East, leased a large amount of property in this county "for the purpose of mining and excavating for petroleum, coal, rock or carbon oil, or other valuable mineral or volatile substances." As an equivalent for the use of his land the party was to receive "one full equal eighth part of the petroleum found at the well." The person from whom the land was leased was also required to furnish barrels in which to store his share of the oil. Messrs. Carlin, Ijams & Co., leased ground from Solomon Slupe, H. B. Wall, Allen Wiseley, Henry Burman, Addison Hardy, Robert L. Strother and others. A huge derrick was erected on the ground now included in Gage & Carlin's addition to Findlay, but nothing was ever done with it. With the exception of the well sunk on the premises of Mr. Carr no efforts were made to determine whether oil could be found or not. This last excitement soon died out, and belongs to the unprofitable enterprises of the past.

Through all these years Dr. Osterlen remained firm in his belief that natural gas existed here in paying quantities, and a few others accepted his opinion on the matter as probably correct. We find strong evidence of this growing belief in the franchise granted in 1867, to Robert S. Mungen and associates, to erect gas works and light the town. In that franchise the following clause relative to natural gas appears: "That nothing heroin shall be so construed as to prevent said village or the citizens thereof from using and laying pipes for conducting all natural gas found in the wells or public cisterns within the corporate limits of said village." When the gentleman who built the artificial gas works in Findlay was commencing the enterprise, Dr. Osterlen told him to sink wells for natural gas instead of building works. But his predecessors in the enterprise had consulted the State geologists, who informed them that natural gas did not exist in the State of Ohio to paying quantities, and, therefore, gave the matter no further attention. So a costly plant to manufacture gas from coal, brought hundreds of miles, was established, while all the time the vast deposit of natural gas under the town was making itself obnoxious to the nose and disagreeable to the palate of the man who was putting his money

838 - HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.

into the enterprise. Dr. Osterlen while Serving in the Legislature had also called on the State geologists and informed them that in his opinion their survey of northwestern Ohio was superficial, and that a mighty bed of natural gas lay undeveloped in that part of the State. The geologists learnedly replied that whatever natural gas existed at Findlay came from Michigan underneath the bed of Lake Erie, and there was not sufficient gas here-to pay for sinking wells. The Doctor bluntly told them they were all mistaken, and time would prove the correctness of his opinion. We now know that Dr. Osterlen was right and the geologists wrong, and the venerable physician was the main instrument in organizing the company which put down the first well, and proved to the world what every one now concedes-that a great. natural gas bed underlies Findlay, sufficient to supply light and fuel for a city of metropolitan dimensions.

Early in.1884 Dr. Osterlen determined to make an effort to organize a company to prospect for natural gas, and approached Charles J. Eckels and Fred H. Glessner on the subject, both of whom agreed to join him in the enterprise. Henry Porch, George W. Kimmel, Peter Kunz, Jason Blackford and Vincent H. Coons were next seen and secured as supporters of the proposed project, April 18, 1884, articles of incorporation under the name of "The Findlay Natural Gas Company," were drawn up, signed and acknowledged by Dr. Charles Osterlen, Charles J. Eckels, Fred H. Glessner, Henry Porch, George W. Kimmel and Peter Kunz, in the presence of Jason Blackford and Vincent H, Coons, and three days afterward filed in the office of the Secretary of State. The capital stock was $5,000, divided into 100 shares of $50 each. On the 30th of April the eight citizens of Findlay previously named, together with U. K, Stringfellow and John H. Decker, entered into a private agreement, " to prospect for natural gas, petroleum, coal, minerals and artesian wells (all of which the charter covered), in and about the village of Findlay, Ohio," and share all profits arising therefrom, The subscription book for stock opened July 19, and on the 25th Dr. Charles Osterlen took fifteen shares; Charles J, Eckels, ten; Fred H. Glessner, five; George W, Kimmel, five; L'. K, Stringfellow, five; Jason Blackford, two, and Henry Porch, two. Vincent H. Coons and Peter Kunz subscribed to the capital stock soon afterward, and the following persons were also subsequent stockholders in the enterprise: A. C. Heck, John Ruthrauff, J, W, Zeller, W, H. Haven, W, T, Platt, Edward Dietsch, W. B, Porch, Ernest Bacher, William Edwards, J, W. Gassman, Lemuel McManness, G, L. Cusac, Dr. Anson Hurd, John M Hamlin, Frank Karst. Sr. , Isaac Hershey, Brownyer & Martin, Mrs. Harriet Detwiler, Mrs. E. H. Young and B. F. Bolton, some of whom, however, took very little interest in the progress of the work, as the enterprise was not then looked upon with much favor, outside of curiosity, by the great majority of the people.

August 22, 1884, Dr. Charles Osterlen, Charles J, Eckels, Henry Porch, Vincent Ii, Coons, George W. Kimmel, A, C, Heck and L, K, Stringfellow, were chosen directors of the company for the ensuing year, and at once organized by electing Henry Porch, president; A, C. Heck, vice-president; Fred H. Glessner, secretary; George W. Kimmel, treasurer, On the 5th of September the contract for drilling the well was let to Brownyer & Martin, of Bradford, Penn. , at the following prices : $2,200 for 1,200 feet; $2,800 for 1,600 feet, and $3, 200 for 2,000 feet, to which depth they intended to

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sink the well if necessary to a thorough prospecting of the territory. Messrs. Eckels, Coons and Stringfellow were appointed to select a location for the well, and chose a site in the eastern suburb of the village, on the land of Dr. Osterlen. Work was soon after commenced by the drillers and pushed vigorously. The first gas vein was tapped at 314 feet, the second at 516 feet, the third at 618 feet, oil at 718 feet, and the general gas bed was struck at 1,092 feet. They, however, drilled on to a depth of 1648 feet, which was reached December 5, 1884, and operations were then stopped. Salt water was found in great quantity, and to shut off the flow the hole was subsequently filled up a few hundred feet. The drilling of this well cost the company $2,825, while the whole expense exceeded $3,000. But what of that in comparison with the great result. It had now been demonstrated beyond any doubt that natural gas existed here in paying quantities, and only a few months more were required to develop it to an apparently inexhaustible degree.

During the period that the company were engaged in sinking this well, many wiseacres condemned the scheme as a chimerical idea of Dr. Osterlen's; but to ! when gas was found, it was very strange, indeed, how many there were who exclaimed, " I told you so ! I always said there was plenty of natural gas in Findlay." Numerous "original discoverers" of this wonderful fluid have since appeared, but if ever a man deserved whatever honor attaches to the persistent advocacy for years and belief in the plentiful existence of natural gas in Findlay, as well as to its first development, Dr. Charles Osterlen is certainly that man.

Though the well was finished and plenty of gas found, thousands of dollars were yet needed to push the enterprise to a successful completion, and in January, 1885, $5,000 of eight per cent bonds were issued to lay mains and pipe the gas into the town. A new board of directors was chosen for 1885, consisting of Dr. Charles Osterlen, Charles J. Eckels, Fred H. Glessner, Vincent H. Coons, George W. Kimmel, A. C. Heck and U. K. Stringfellow. This board elected Fred H. Glessner, president; A. C. Heck, vice-president; U. K. Stringfellow, secretary; George W. Kimmel, treasurer. On March 23, 1885, the capital stock was increased to $50, 000, and an effort was made to dispose of some of it among the business men of Findlay, but though quite a number were called on the effort proved a failure. No one wanted to invest money in the natural gas business at that time, and all seemed yet to view the enterprise with distrust. The company also tried to sell some stock to capitalists of Bradford, Penn., and Columbus, Ohio, but they, too. held aloof. Money was then borrowed by the company on their individual notes, and the work of piping the gas into Findlay carried forward through the spring of 1885, with Vincent H. Coons as superintendent of construction, and in May the gas from the - Osterlen well began to be used in the village.

Natural gas was now a demonstrated fact to the Findlay people, and in the meantime other parties had concluded to profit from the experience of those who risked their money when it required very strong faith to do so. A well was drilled near the gas works on East Sandusky Street by the old Findlay Gas Light Company, who shut. down 'their works February 1, 1885, and began using the natural fluid; and another well on East Front Street was put down by W. K. Marvin, in which also plenty of gas was found. Three more wells were drilled in the summer of 1885, viz. : the

640 - HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.

Adams, Lima Street and Barnd, and all proved successful enterprises. The first and last mentioned were owned by the old Findlay Gas Light Company, and the Lima Street well by the Findlay Natural Gas Company. By this time it had become plainly evident to both companies that they were pursuing a very unwise business policy, under which neither would make any money. So conferences were held, and September 1, 1885, they consolidated as the Findlay Gas Light Company. Since that event the company has put down four wells, which, with the Marvin well, previously leased from the owner, W. K. Marvin, makes a total of ten wells controlled by the Findlay Gas Light Company. In July, 1885, the Findlay Drilling Company was organized, composed of a large number of local stockholders, and the Putnam Street well was sunk. The Kirk, McManness, Cory and Jones wells were private enterprises, while the Briggs well was put down by public subscription and donated by the citizens to the Briggs Edge Tool Company. The Firmin well was drilled by the Trenton Rock Oil Company, the Matthias, No. 2, by a local syndicate, and the 'Taylor by a Pennsylvania firm. The following table gives the names, date of completion and depth of each of the nineteen wells put down in Findlay or vicinity up to the close of April, 1886:

Depth. In feet

1 - Osterlen, December 5, 1884.. ..... ........ .............1648

2 - Gas Works, January 20, 1885. . . . .. . . .. . . . . 1200

3 - Marvin, March 5, 1885.. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . . . 1155

4 - Adams (oil), June 1, 1885.. . . .. . . .. . . . .. . . . .. .1207

5 - Lima Street, August 1, 1885...........:.....................1215

6 - Barnd, August 15, 1885.. .. . . ... . . .. . . .. . . .. . .1225

7 - North Findlay, September 19, 1885.. . . .. . . . . . ..1171

8 - Matthias (oil), November 18, 1885.. . . .. . . .. . . .. 1321

9 - Putnam Street (oil), November 18, 1885......... ......1312

10 - Kirk, December 9, 1885. . . .. . . . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. 1171

11 - Aultman. December 20, 1885......................... ......1142

12 - Briggs, January 17, 188(1.. . . .. . . .. . . .. .. . . ...... .1175

13 - Great Karg, January 20, 1888. . . . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. 1144

14 - McManness & Seymour, February 20, ]880............1144

15 - Firmin (oil), March 5, 1886... . ... .. .. . . .. .. .. . . .. . 1334

16 - Cory, March 17, 1884... . . .. . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . .. . . ..1185

17 - Jones, March 25, 1886. . . .... . . .. .. .. .. .. . .. . . .. .. .1180

18 - Matthias, No. 2 (oil), April 12, 1886. . . . . .. . . .. . . .1314

19 - Taylor (oil), April 28, 1884. . . ... . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. ..1280

In drilling these wells the following strata are usually found: From 10 to 25 feet of drift, 245 to 450 feet of upper limestone, 800 to 900 feet of shales and slate (wherein is located a. layer of . from 40 to 60 feet of red rock) and then comes the Trenton limestone in which the gas and oil is found at a depth of from 20 to 50 feet. The flow of gas from thirteen of the wells mentioned in the foregoing table ranges from 200,000 to 2,000,000 cubic feet every twenty-four hours; white the estimated daily product of the great Karg well is 10,500,000 cubic feet. The Adams, though a good gas well, also produces about twelve barrels of oil per day. The two Matthias and Taylor wells are solely oil producing, No. 1 now averaging about thirty barrels per day, while the product of No, 2 and the Taylor has not yet been gauged. This oil readily brings from forty to sixty per barrel at the well. It will thus be seen that Findlay possesses what now appears to be an inexhaustible supply of natural gas. But a cloud of uncertainty has always hung over its permanency, and the general idea heretofore encouraged by the State geologists has been that the gas was simply in "pockets,"

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and it was only a question of time when such reservoirs world be exhausted. But we have already shown in this article that the learned geologist has been wrong upon every point connected with the existence of natural gas in northwestern Ohio, and if his ipse dixit had been followed, Findlay world still be using wood and coal for fuel, and the great underlying storehouse of nature would have remained undeveloped for perhaps another generation. Scientific and unscientific opinion appears to be about settled down to the belief that the supply of natural gas is produced by continual generation, and though wells may give out, and local supplies may fail here and there, like the great natural product of spring water, it will keep flowing from the earth forever, So far the supply from the Findlay wells seems to be on the increase, and with the sinking of new wells the gas pours forth with added force and denser volume.

In addition to the companies previously mentioned, several others have been organized for the purpose of prospecting for oil and gas, or to pipe the latter fluid to less fortunate towns. These are " The Findlay Oil and Gas Company," incorporated November :3, 188; " The Hancock Oil and Gas Company," January 20, 1886; "The Findlay Pipe Line Company," February 3, 1886; "The Wood and Hancock Oil and Gas Company," March 11, 1886; and "The Limestone Oil and Gas Company." A large amount of land has been leased by these companies in Hancock and Wood Counties, the right of way for a pipe line from Findlay to Toledo obtained by "The Wood and Hancock Oil and Gas Company," and two have commenced active drilling operations Tall derricks are springing up in every part of the county, and ere this article goes to press many more wells will, doubtless, be sending forth valuable streams of oil or gas.

The first feature that strikes an observer is the great supply of gas, as evidenced by its tremendous pressure. It comes not with a flow as ordin arily understood, but in force like a mighty rushing wind. The gas from the great Karg well leaps and roars from itS mouth night and day-a semi-volcanic pyramid of flame. The company has so far been unable to utilize the flow from this well, and, therefore, as a matter of safety allow the millions of feet of escaping gas to burn from an iron pipe extending from the mouth of the well to the bank of the river. Thousands of visitors have been attracted to Findlay during the past year to view her wonderful gas wells, and numerous articles relating thereto have appeared in the leading papers of the country. A special correspondent of the Toledo Bee gives the following graphic account of his visit, in February, 1$86, to the great natural gas town of Ohio:

"Five or six miles before reaching Findlay a brilliant light is seen in the heavens, and a mile or two further on discloses to the vision a great cloud of fire. This was the great Karg well. Its proportions, intensity and grandeur increase as the town is neared, when the church steeples and house tops are brought out with the distinctness of day. Unexplained, the phenomenon would be awful and fearfiil. Passing into the main street of the town the light from the burning Karg is somewhat modified by the bright flames from the immense jets of gas shooting upward from the tops of the lamp-posts. These jets are three or four feet in height, and under their glare, a pin in the street, which is 100 feet wide, can be readily picked up, and the finest print can be read as easily as in a parlor in Toledo lighted by the best gas our company can produce. It is impossible to give a correct idea of the impression made

642 - HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.

upon a stranger as he stands in the center of this wide, level street, with long vistas of light north and south of him; the house fronts are as clearly defined as if the king of day were pouring the noon-day light upon them, and the pedestrians on the street readily recognized blocks away, The effect was peculiar and inspiring.

"To obey the impulse to visit the monster who was shedding a light which, to unused eyes, exceeded anything before imagined, beyond the gun itself, though tired and hungry, a carriage was called, and with the artist of the Bee we drove at once to it, more than half a mile from the hotel. As we neared the spot, sounds like the rushing waters of a great fall struck the ear, and in the houses where the windows looked in that direction, the interior was as light as day. Passing through several streets. the hack brought up suddenly 100 feet from the well, The sounds of the escaping gas from the stand-pipe now forcibly reminded me of Niagara, and as I looked up at the great cloud of flame shooting upward as if angry that there was not something for it to destroy, the feeling of the sublime called up by the great cataract forced itself still stronger upon me.

"The scene is one of indescribable grandeur, The well is located on the south bank of the Blanchard River, which passes through the north part of the town. It is 1,144 feet from the surface to the gas-bearing rock below, and the hole is five and five-eighths inches in diameter, From the top of the ground it is conveyed about 100 feet from the well in a six-inch iron pipe, and from this a stand-pipe fifty-seven feet high is connected, which is three inches in diameter at the top where the gas escapes. A cut-off above the ground at the well is placed to shut off the flow, but for some time the gas has been allowed to have its way and' millions of feet are wasted to satisfy the curiosity of the throngs of people who visit it daily . As far as the eye has uninterrupted scope, the landscape is illuminated by this monster light, and persons could be distinctly seen more than half a mile away, and the color of their clothing readily discerned, Within 100 feet of the flame, with a cold crisp atmosphere outside, it was uncomfortably hot. On the opposite side of the river and for a considerable distance all about the well, the grass was growing with the luxuriance of May, and the water in the river below, everywhere else covered with ice, was as blue and limpid as a lake."

The stand-pipe alluded to by the correspondent has recently been taken down and placed upon the ground, with its mouth extending over the bank of the stream. In this position the scene is, if anything, grander and more awe-inspiring than before, the water in the river fairly boiling from the intense heat thrown out by the constantly burning fluid, The flame licks the surface of the water, and leaps at intervals almost across the stream, and, in close proximity, the noise made by the escaping gas is indeed bewildering to the average visitor,

While the number of wells already sunk, and the quantity of gas produced would seem to be more than sufficient to supply the wants of Findlay and its 6,000 inhabitants, and even ten-fold that number of people, wells are still being sunk to meet the demand of the increasing number of manufacturing establishments attracted to the town by the abundance and cheapness of the gas as a fuel. There has been no perceptible decrease in the product of the wells except in instances where a flow of oil has interrupted the flow of gas. The discovery of the great Karg well, which of itself

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VILLAGE OF FINDLAY. - 645

pours out more than enough gas to light and heat the town, and supply all of its manufactories, justifies the belief that the Findlay gas territory is almost inexhaustible, and from it enough of the valuable fluid could be obtained to supply two or three cities the size of Toledo. The gas supplies all the purposes for which coal is used-heat and light-and is readily, cheaply and safely applied to all purposes of lighting the streets, and lighting and heating halls, theaters, churches, stores and dwellings, and for all manufactories where power is used. Its capacity to heat steam generating boilers is demonstrated beyond question, and there does not seem to be any purpose to which fuel can be applied that it is not the best, most convenient and cheapest.

The superiority of the Findlay gas in the amount of heat which it produces is one of its most valuable features. It is doubtful if any other article known to use as fuel can produce as high a degree of heat in so short a time. Burned from simple perforations in an ordinary gas-pipe, which can be introduced into any Stove or grate, in a brief time the stove will be come a cherry red. A little valve regulates the. supply and pressure, and in the morning, if you do not want the fire burning all night, you turn the valve, thrust in a lighted match, and at once your fire is booming. Firebuilding, of a cold winter morning, has lost its terrors for the fortunate people of Fituilay, and wood-sheds, coal-bins and ash barrels are to them merely an unpleasant memory. Another important advantage is the fact that it is characterized by a strong odor, more pungent than artificial gas even, which is a great safe-guard against explosions and accidents. The Pittsburgh gas is nearly or quite odorless, and there is nothing, consequently, to give warning when there has been an escape, The use of gas greatly lessens the danger of loss by fire and so reduces rates of insurance. Burnt with air as it is, the combustion is complete. and there is no soot and no chimneys to burn out. In a thousand different ways this new factor in the affairs of the world adds to the wealth. the convenience. the comfort and pleasures of existence.

Aside from all the remarkable advantages the new fuel and illuminator possesses, its cheapness is, however, the main thing in its favor. The gas company now charges $12 per year for cooking stoves, and $1.50 per month for seven months, for the average heating g stove; the larger heaters in the busi ness houses run as high as $3 per month during the winter season. Gas burners for lighting purposes cost from I5 to 30 cents per month each. In this respect, as in the item of fuel, a great saving is made. Many of the stores light up at night with scores of blazing jets and on short winter days light them early in the afternoon, for there is no stingy measurement of the gas through meters, the use of which is discarded. It is, however, proper to state that the light is not so good as that furnished by the manufactured gas or coal oil, as the powerful pressure makes it unsteady, and the least draft or puff of air affects it badly. It is, therefore, not a pleasant light for reading or other close work, and is very trying to the eyes . But Findlay possesses the cheapest fuel in the United States, and here the manufacturer may build immediately over his supply of fuel and light. The cost of sinking a well averages from $1,200 to $2, 000, and that is the end of all expense and trouble to light, heat and furnish power to the establishment. This is marvelous, and makes a reduction in the running expense and cost of production that is nothing less than a revolution.

646 - HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.

Very little fuel outside of gas is now used in Findlay, and the wood and coal trade has fallen off to a comparative insignificance. A few cases will serve to illustrate the wonderful revolution that natural gas has brought about in the cost of lighting and heating. The proprietors of the Joy House claim a saving of about $400 per annum on light and fuel, and this hotel is one of the best heated and lighted country houses in the State. The proprietor of one of the principal stores of the town says that it used to cost him $360 per annum to light and heat his establishment, Now it costs him not quite $60 or a saving of $300, besides being rid of all the dirt, trouble and inconvenience of wood and coal, Elijah Barnd, proprietor of the limekilns, south of town, pays the gas company $200 per annum for all the gas he can use in his kilns, It used to cost him $1,800 per year for wood, with which to burn the same amount of lime. Adams Bros. & Co., foundry and machine shops, with a precious fuel capacity of $1,000 per annum, are supplied with fuel and light from a well on their premises at no cost, such being the con tract with the company when the well was sunk. W. B. Marvin & Sons, foundry and machine shop, owners of the Marvin well, run their establishment at a saving of $2,000 a year in fuel, and, besides, supply a planing mill and furnish a large surplus to the gas company, which pays them a considerable profit. The planing-mill supplied from this well saves $1,000 a year in fuel. The most striking example, however, in the saving of fuel in manufacturing is furnished by the Eagle Roller Flouring-mills. This establishment consumed $1,500 worth of coal a year, and employed two stokers, which, with the handling of the coal, made the cost about $2,000. At a cost of $1,600 for boring a well, gas has been obtained which furnishes all the fuel and light for the mills, And, in addition, the well supplies a woolen-mill with fuel and light, for which they get $100 a year, also thirteen families with fuel and light. The results in these cases illustrate the value of natural gas as a fuel-saving element to a remarkable degree. And yet with all this, the capacity of the wells is by no means heavily drawn upon, and millions of feet of gas go to waste every twenty-four hours.

Capital is eagerly investigating matters here, and the attention of manufacturers is turned in this direction. There is a noticeable increase of visitors, the hotels are full all the time, and there has been a general advance in valuation all along the line, But those proposing to locate and establish any kind of manufacturing institution may be sure of generous treatment. That the development of natural gas in such large quantities is the beginning of a new era in the history of Findlay is now plainly evident. No one feels any doubt about that. From the handsome, quiet capital of one of the richest agricultural districts in the State, she will become a busy manufacturing center, with mills and factories, foundries and glass-works. The present wells can furnish an unlimited supply of fuel, available at an instant when wanted, for every conceivable use to which fuel can be applied, at a reduction in cost so great that it is hard to realize, working a moat important saving in domestic economy, and a veritable revolution in the coat of running large manufactories, Real estate has advanced and is advancing in value, business confidence has been restored, and everybody and everything is aroused to the impetus of a new life and fresh activity, It has not been our fortune to witness or hear of, in a town the size of Findlay, since the beginning of the existing period of financial depression, so revived an activity in all general business, nor so buoyant a spirit Among the people as

VILLAGE OF FINDLAY. - 647

is now prevailing here, Hotel keepers, merchants, grocers, clothing dealers, boot and shoe people, butchers. bakers and tradespeople generally, are making money and feeling good. The place has already a goodly number of manufacturers of various sorts, all of which have been prompt to utilize the benefits of cheap fuel and light; while many more industries of like nature are seeking locations in the town to share in the seemingly assured prosperity. These are bringing in their train more people to Findlay to live, swelling the volume of trade in every branch, insuring yet better prices to farmers for their products, to the mechanic and workman for their labor, etc. ; in short, simply following the law of general prosperity that uniformly marks a thriving industrial community.