AtoZ Letter Z~ Texas Oil Boom Zone...

 

 

Mother's Iowa Farmer Brothers and their families came for a visit in 1957.  It was definitely several days of Kodak moments for her...judging by the number of pictures taken as she took them on the 'Texas Oil Boom Zone' tour.

This group of 'Shoebox' photos also gives me the opportunity to include them as Letter Z...which is a bit of a reach, but nevertheless an interesting look at the Texas Mid-Century Oil & Drilling Bidnezz.

As indicated in this photo of my Uncles, having a 'Pump Jack' in your backyard was not all that unusual, and regardless of the warning signs and the threat of a whoppin',  kids of all ages could not resist climbing on the iron horse for a whooping good ride.

In the early 20th Century, the Texas oil boom, sometimes called the Gusher Age, was a time of dramatic change and economic growth in Texas.  After the Gushers, by the 1940's production stabilized in East Texas, and West Texas began to be more fully explored and the Permian Basin gradually became the top producing area of the state.  The Permian Basin became the Oil Service Capital of the nation as the influx of foreign oil depressed the price of oil and gas. 

Management of the petrochemical industry and the discovery of natural gas and it's bi-products of styrene, butadiene, polypropylene, benzene and quantities of synthetic rubber and ammonia kept the Oil Industry booming.  New installation Plants were built along the Gulf Coast and the Houston Shipping Channel.  The Odessa-Midland area was a hub of Oil Service Companies with branches throughout smaller communities like Monahans, Kermit, Ozona, Big Lake and others. 

As I have mentioned in earlier posts, my Dad was a Jack of All Trades and one of them was as a 'Roughneck' on 'Drilling Rigs'....like the one pictured bottom left.  On the 'Rig', he was a Jack of All Rig Jobs from Floor Hand to Derrick Hand...which was the one that caused Mother the most worry. 

In the bottom right picture, Dad and his brother MD are standing on a site where a 'Pulling Unit' is in operation.

 This piece of machinery was part of the 'Oilfield Service Industry', which flourished during the 1950's through the 1990's, and will again when the current Texas Oil Drilling Boom Rigs move to their next Drilling Sites.

As I look at these pictures of Dad as a 20th Mid-Century Texas Oilman, I wonder what he would think about the  21st Century Oil Bidnezz.  I imagine he would say,

"God Ahmighty, Thel, what will they think of next?

Thank-you Mom and Dad....I wouldn't change a thing...

Growing Up In The 1950's and 1960's

AtoZ Letter X & Y~ XOXO's From 1960's Yearbook...Part II

HEADLINE...First Female Elected President

The funny thing about being President is how it affected the rest of my life's interest in all things Presidental...including Politics.  First, my Presidential History list includes George Washington, Abe Lincoln, Lady Bird and The George Bushes.  Secondly, I never got or could follow Roberts Rules of Order and was more interested in banging the Gavel to END the meeting so we could get on with refreshments.  And finally, if ever you want to talk Politics with me, get ready for the most Politically Incorrect conversation you have ever had. 

Apparently my cabinet of fellow officers were not all that impressed with my leadership skills as Class President.  Not a one of them mentioned my high office in their XOXO comments...
~Vice President Luisa wrote...To a very sweet and cute girl which I have enjoyed being in the same room with.  Lots of Luck Always.
I don't know what I wrote in Luisa's book, but I hope I returned the 'sweet girl' and added how much I admired her brain....she was smart and without her...Roberts Rules would have gone right out the window.
~Secretary Treasure Nancy wrote...Dear Sue,  I would like to tell you what a sweet girl you have been.  We have had loads of fun this year.  Remember all those mean things we've done.
Did you notice that Nancy said she would like to tell me what a sweet girl I was, but in the next sentence reminded me about all the mean things I'd done?  At least she said we had fun!

Yearbook signing was a big deal in our small school where everyone from 1st Grade to 12th Grade was included in the Yearbook. 

Signing another's yearbook could take an hour or a couple of minutes, depending on how many times your picture was in the book and how much space was reserved for you as a VIP friend. 

Since I shared a book with my two siblings, space for XOXO's was limited to To a real sweet girl...Stay cute as you are...Best of Luck Always and right under that good wish my brother's XOXO message...NO LUCK, Tommy.  With that in mind, I chose this overly autographed basketball team photo to show why you should...

Be careful of the words you say.

Try and keep them clean and sweet.

For you never know from day to day

Which ones you will have to eat!

You will notice that everyone who personally autographed their picture did so in 'Blue Ink' which was the accepted color to use.  The names in 'Red Ink' are all my handwriting.  It was my way of denoting which girls were 8th graders..blue.. and which ones were 7th graders...red.  As I look at this photo now, I am glad I put names to faces...otherwise I might not have remembered their names today.

Oh, I guess you would like to know why Deanna has a Big Red X on her face?

We swapped words that were not clean and sweet.

We met in Sunbeam Grocery's alley that day.

I was tall and skinny.  She was not.

We fought!

Basically, it was a draw, but I have to say

A mouthful of dirt was not fun to eat!

 

To a real sweet girl who I think a lot of.  Love ya, Deanna

(I think she must have forgot)