Stunning Photos From The Time When Oil Derricks Loomed All Over California Beaches 1910 1955
When Europeans finally arrived in California, petroleum had already been in use by Native Americans for about 13,000 years, and they relied on its utility albeit not for energy sources. Natives used oil primarily as a lubricant, but they also used it as a sealant to waterproof canoes. The first Californian well was drilled in 1865 in Humboldt County. The state’s first gusher arrived in 1876 in the Pico Canyon oil field located north of Los Angeles and launched a statewide industry....