Map of the Northwest Extension Burkburnett District [Texas]

An early map of the Northwest Extension Oilfield.

The small Texas community of Burkburnett became an oil boomtown almost overnight when a huge strike occurred on the property of the Fowler Farm Oil Company in July of 1918. Another ‘gusher’ erupted nearby in April of 1919 on R. M. “Bob” Waggoner’s land, eventually leading to the discovery and development of the Northwest Extension Oilfield. The town’s immediate success even inspired a 1940 film starring Clark Gable titled Boom Town!

This blueprint map is dated June 1920 and was originally drawn by J.B.K. and traced by R. Brown of the U.S. Bureau of Mines Petroleum Division. It highlights the mind-blowing expansion enjoyed across the region in the previous few years.

Dozens of wells are scattered across the image, attributed to a myriad of firms ranging from massive operators like Gulf, Pioneer, and Humble to smaller companies and syndicates. Property owners and leaseholders are named in most circumstances.

Scarce, with only two entries in OCLC at the University of Michigan and the USGS Archives. The entry notes the date as 1921 that the map was reproduced as part of the ongoing border dispute between Texas and Oklahoma. A third example identified in the Texas State Archives Map Collection reinforces this notion.

Sources: Texas State Library; OCLC#: 37104479