Petroleum found along Oil Creek was known to
Native Americans for hundreds of years through natural
seeps. Europeans became aware of the existence of petroleum in the 1600s. At the time, this "mineral-oil" was used primarily for medicinal purposes and was reputed to cure many ailments, including
rheumatism and
arthritis. Around 1848,
Samuel Kier realized the potential of the medicinal oil as an illuminant. Kier
distilled the oil to make it more suitable in lamps by removing the odor and impurities that created
soot when burned. A sample of oil was brought to
Dartmouth College by
Francis B. Brewer from the Watson, Brewer and Company Farm on Oil Creek around 1853. The sample was acquired by
George Bissell who, along with
Jonathan G. Eveleth purchased the farm for $5,000. Bissell and Eveleth took another sample of oil to
Benjamin Silliman at
Yale University in 1855 for further investigation. Silliman's report confirmed the quality of the petroleum and described the distillation processes needed to produce
kerosene. The Pennsylvania Rock Oil Company was incorporated and the farm transferred to the company.
Construction and operation Edwin Drake, a former conductor for the
New York and New Haven Railroad, invested $200, his entire savings, into the Pennsylvania Rock Oil Company. Drake became more involved in the company and traveled to
Titusville,
Pennsylvania and the Brewer and Watson Farm in December 1857. His report prompted Bissell and Eveleth to organize the Seneca Oil Company in
Connecticut in March 1858 and to place Drake in charge of producing petroleum. Because Drake decided that drilling in the manner of
salt wells would yield more petroleum than conventional digging, he hired William A. Smith, a
Tarentum, Pennsylvania, blacksmith and salt-well driller, to aid in the endeavor. An engine house and
derrick were constructed, and Drake purchased a , horizontal
steam engine. The steam engine was used to ram the drill through the soil until it reached
bedrock down. After it was found that
groundwater would cause the walls of the hole to collapse, Drake acquired of
cast iron pipe to stabilize the hole. After reaching bedrock, Drake and Smith were able to drill at a rate of per day. Drake's colleagues back in Connecticut gave up on finding any oil by April 1859 and after spending $2,500, Drake took out a $500 loan to keep the operation going. The drill reached its maximum depth of on August 27, 1859. Smith visited the well the next day and found oil visible on top of the water from the top of the well. The original structures at the well caught fire in October 1859 and were rebuilt by Drake a month later. The well produced a day, but, after the price of oil plummeted from the resulting boom, it was never profitable. It was designated a
Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark by the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers in October 1979. Authentic reproductions of the steam engine and boiler were purchased in
Erie and installed in 1986. The
American Chemical Society designated the Drake Well a
National Historic Chemical Landmark on August 27, 2009, the 150th anniversary of the strike. == Museum ==