Description: 1974 photograph by Joe Munroe of an oil worker looking on during drilling in Texas. Texas is one of the leading producers of oil in the world, and leads the United States in oil production. This resource transformed the state from a largely rural and agricultural state to one full of large cities. Joe Munroe's career began in 1939 at the Cranbrook Academy of Art. He served in the Air Force during World War II and then joined Cincinnati-based Farm Quarterly magazine. Though raised in Detroit, agriculture became an important subject of Joe's photographs. He moved to California in 1955 and free-lanced, taking magazine assignments and selling his own work. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: P400_B33_F2374_JPG210
Subjects: Joe Munroe; Oil industry; Oil workers; Oil well drilling--Texas.
Places: Odessa (Texas)
 

Description: A group of men, most likely employees of an oil or drilling company, stand in front of a large oil derrick. This photograph was taken by traveling photographer Albert J. Ewing, ca. 1896-1912. Like most of Ewing's work, it was likely taken in southeastern Ohio or central West Virginia. Born in 1870 in Washington County, Ohio, near Marietta, Ewing most likely began his photography career in the 1890s. The 1910 US Census and a 1912-1913 directory list him as a photographer. A negative signed “Ewing Brothers” and a picture with his younger brother, Frank, indicate that Frank may have joined the business. After 1916, directories list Albert as a salesman. He died in 1934. The Ewing Collection consists of 5,055 glass plate negatives, each individually housed and numbered. Additionally, the collection includes approximately 450 modern contact prints made from the glass plate negatives. Subjects include infants and young children, elderly people, families, school and religious groups, animals and rural scenes. In 1982, the Ohio Historical Society received the collection, still housed in the original dry plate negative boxes purchased by Albert J. Ewing. A selection of the original glass plate negatives were exhibited for the first time in 2013 at the Ohio Historical Center. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV71_b05_f331
Subjects: Ewing, Albert J. (1870-1934); Portrait photography--United States--History; Laborers; Oil industry; Oil workers
Places: Ohio; West Virginia
 

Description: This photograph shows the town and oil fields of Cygnet, Ohio, in 1890. Cygnet experienced a population boom in the 1880s as the oil industry developed in Northwest Ohio, and the town grew from a few dozen people to over 3,000. During the late nineteenth century, Ohio became one of the top oil producing states in the country and was the leading oil producer from 1895 to 1903. This oil boom brought a significant amount of growth and affluence to Wood County. By the 1910s, Ohio's oil boom declined and Ohio dropped out of the top four oil producing states in 1917. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL07626
Subjects: Oil fields--Ohio; Oil industry; Petroleum industry; Ohio Economy--Science and Technology
Places: Cygnet (Ohio); Wood County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows a horse-drawn Standard Oil tank wagon in front of a building for a Standard Oil agent, or distributor. A man in a suit sits in the box seat, with a 350-500 gallon Standard Oil tank wagon behind him. The wagon's rear wheels are much larger to assist with bearing the weight of the oil tank, and the reflective metal tank has "STANDARD" on its side. In the background of the image, a long, low building with wooden siding has "AGENT FOR THE STANDARD OIL CO." painted on its side in white. The Standard Oil Company of Ohio established in 1862 by Cleveland oil baron John D. Rockefeller. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL04295
Subjects: Ohio Economy--Economy--Business; Milan (Ohio); Oil industry; Horse-drawn vehicles; Standard Oil Company
Places: Milan (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: The exterior of the Marathon Oil Co. building in Findlay. Marathon was originally known as the Ohio Oil Company until 1962. It's origin goes back to the late 19th century when Ohio was found to have oil of its own. The company would soon be taken over by the giant Standard Oil until Standard Oil was eventually dismantled. The company later decided to expand its operations, searching for oil further afield and eventually getting into the business processing oil, where previously it had simply sold crude oil to other companies. By the 1960s, the company had acquired its name of Marathon, and later it would merge with another oil company to become Marathon Ashland Petroleum. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06738
Subjects: Oil fields--Ohio; Oil industry; Findlay (Ohio)
Places: Findlay (Ohio); Hancock County (Ohio); Ohio
 

Description: The exterior of the Marathon Oil Co. building in Findlay. Marathon was originally known as the Ohio Oil Company until 1962. It's origin goes back to the late 19th century when Ohio was found to have oil of its own. The company would soon be taken over by the giant Standard Oil until until Standard Oil was eventually dismantled. Eventually the company decided to expand its operations, searching for oil further afield and eventually getting into the business processing oil, where previously it had simply sold crude oil to other companies. By the 1960s, the company had acquired its name of Marathon, and later it would merge with another oil company to become Marathon Ashland Petroleum. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06739
Subjects: Oil fields--Ohio; Oil industry; Findlay (Ohio)
Places: Findlay (Ohio); Hancock County (Ohio); Ohio
 

Description: 1974 Joe Munroe photograph showing an oil tanker train rolling through a Utah desert that has been blanketed with snow. Trains remain one of the most efficient way of moving large quantities of products across the United States, especially oil. Joe Munroe's career began in 1939 at the Cranbrook Academy of Art. He served in the Air Force during World War II and then joined Cincinnati-based Farm Quarterly magazine. Though raised in Detroit, agriculture became an important subject of Joe's photographs. He moved to California in 1955 and free-lanced, taking magazine assignments and selling his own work. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: P400_B33_F2375_JPG204
Subjects: Joe Munroe; Petroleum refineries; Trains; Oil industry
Places: Utah
 

Description: In 1898, a prolific oil pool was discovered. The town of approximately 900 people grew to 12,000 in about two years as about 1,000 oil wells were drilled. The local college attendance dropped from 300 students to 25, as the students rushed to the oil field for jobs. The oil boom lasted for about two years and town decreased to the previous size. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL07625
Subjects: Oil fields--Ohio; Oil wells; Oil industry; Harrison County (Ohio)
 

Description: J.C. Connell was born on April 20, 1854, in Ireland, and when he was two years old, his family moved to Waterford, Pennsylvania. As a young man, he travelled to Titusville, Pennsylvania, and started in the oil business. In 1887, he moved to Findlay, Ohio, and was key in the organization of the Ohio Oil Company in Findlay, Ohio. In 1911, Donnell became the president of Ohio Oil until his death in 1927. In the 1962, Ohio Oil changed its name to Marathon Oil. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL07686
Subjects: Oil industry; Findlay (Ohio); Business--Ohio
 

Description: Dated January 8, 1941, this photograph shows the Alexander McDonald estate in Cincinnati, Ohio, in Hamilton County. Alexander and his brother James settled in Cincinnati in the late 1860s and played a prominent role in the petroleum industry by establishing the Consolidated Tank Line Company. In 1890, they exchanged their stock in the Consolidated Tank Line Company for stock in the Standard Oil Company and Alexander McDonald became president of the Standard Oil Company of Kentucky. In the nineteenth century, mansions with set in extensive park land, woodlands, and gardens were built in this area. The McDonald mansion was designed by Samuel Hannaford in the later part of the nineteenth century. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B03F05_028_001
Subjects: Mansions--Ohio; Estates; Photography--Ohio; Federal Writers' Project; Oil industry
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph taken by Joe Munroe depicting the raising of an Isomax tower at a California Chevron oil refinery, 1965. The isomax tower uses hydro cracking to boost the quality of petroleum products, including gasoline, diesel, and kerosene. It also removes contaminants. Joe Munroe's career began in 1939 at the Cranbrook Academy of Art. He served in the Air Force during World War II and then joined Cincinnati-based Farm Quarterly magazine. Though raised in Detroit, agriculture became an important subject of Joe's photographs. He moved to California in 1955 and free-lanced, taking magazine assignments and selling his own work. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: P400_B31_F2232_JPG196
Subjects: Joe Munroe; Construction; Petroleum refineries; Oil industry
Places: California
 

Description: This photograph depicts a smiling employee wearing a Humble cap and uniform, likely at a service station along Route 23 south of Columbus, Ohio. Founded in 1911, the Humble Oil and Refining Company later consolidated with Standard Oil of New Jersey to become Exxon. The High Street Photograph Collection is comprised of over 400 photographs of High Street in Columbus, Ohio, taken in the early 1970s. These photographs were taken primarily at street level and document people and the built environment from the Pontifical College Josephinum on North High Street in Worthington through Clintonville, the University District and Short North, Downtown and South Columbus. The photographs were used in a television photo documentary that aired on WOSU called "High Street." Photographers that were involved in this project were Alfred Clarke, Carol Hibbs Kight, Darrell Muething, Clayton K. Lowe, and Julius Foris, Jr. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV254_B02F038_01
Subjects: Columbus (Ohio)--History--20th century; Street photography; Oil industry; Service stations
Places: Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)