Misplaced Pages

The Trenton Gas Field is located in east central Indiana and the most western portion of west central Ohio. The field was discovered in 1876, but the size and magnitude of the field was not known until the 1880s. The field was the largest natural gas discovery up to that time, with an area of 5,120 square miles (13,300 km), somewhat smaller in area than the state of Connecticut, containing over 1 trillion cubic feet (28×10^ m) of natural gas. The field also contained the first giant oil reserve discovered in the United States, with an estimated 1 billion barrels (160×10^ m) of oil. The discovery led to the Indiana Gas Boom.

Almost all of the natural gas was removed from the field by 1910, but only about 10% of the oil had been removed at that point. The lack of pressure caused by the removal of the gas led to a complete stoppage of oil production, even though an estimated 900 million barrels (140,000,000 m) of oil remained in the field. Beginning in the late 20th century, oil production resumed at a slow pace after advances in artificial lift technology.

Oil and gas production from this field led the Standard Oil Company to establish refinery operations in Indiana. The firm's production and refinery interests led, in turn, to Standard's Indiana interests being grouped together after the 1911 breakup of the firm due to antitrust action, leading to the formation of the Standard Oil Company of Indiana.

See also

• Trenton Limestone
• Petroleum industry in Ohio

Notes

1. Gray, p. 187
2. Glass, p. 11
3. Gray, p. 189

Sources

• Glass, James A. & Kohrman, David (2005). The Gas Boom of East Central Indiana. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7385-3963-5.
• Gray, Ralph D (1995). Indiana History: A Book of Readings. Indiana: Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-32629-X.

v t e History of Indiana
Early history	Clovis Adena Hopewell Mississippian Beaver Wars European contact La Salle Expeditions French Rule
1700–1799	Vincennes Fort Miamis Ouiatenon French and Indian War British Rule Pontiac's War American Revolution George Rogers Clark Illinois campaign Clark's Grant Northwest Territory Wabash Confederacy Northwest Indian War Petit Fort
1800–1816	Indiana Territory Buffalo Trace Treaty of Vincennes Johnny Appleseed Treaty of Grouseland Indiana Rangers Tecumseh's War Battle of Tippecanoe War of 1812 Abolitionist movement Harmony 1st Indiana Canal Company Constitutional Convention
1817–1899	Statehood Polly v. Lasselle Mary Clark v. G.W. Johnston Treaty of St. Mary's Indian Removals Fall Creek massacre Bank of Indiana 2nd Indiana Canal Company Whitewater Canal Wabash and Erie Canal Public Works and Bankruptcy Underground Railroad Mexican-American War New Constitution Civil War Golden Age Eli Lilly & Company Reno Gang Gas boom Black Day of the General Assembly Indiana pi bill Golden Age of Literature
1900–1999	White Caps Elwood Haynes Indianapolis Motor Speedway World War I Indianapolis strike and riots Samuel Woodfill Indiana Klan Great Depression John Dillinger World War II Freeman Field mutiny Shipp & Smith lynchings Flood of 1937 1963 Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum gas explosion Supreme Court Reorganization
Since 2000	Flood of 2008 Indiana State Fair stage collapse
By topic	Auto racing Battles Disasters Economy Elections Ghostlore General Assembly Governors Historic sites People Historical political strength Native Americans Slavery
By city and locale	Evansville Fort Wayne Gary Hartford City Indianapolis Lafayette Lake Wawasee South Bend Terre Haute
See also: History of the United States, History of the Midwestern United States and Portal:Indiana WikiProject Indiana's History Department

40°0′N 85°30′W / 40.000°N 85.500°W / 40.000; -85.500

• Energy in Indiana
• Oil fields of the United States
• Energy in Ohio