Conroe Oil Field

Strake's discovery followed a long run of failures. Amateurs leased land around gas seeps in 1919 but could not pay for a test. A 1924 well found only gas, and a 1929 well two miles west of Conroe went to 3,662 feet dry. Major companies ran seismograph and torsion balance surveys and let their leases lapse. Short of money, George Strake spudded a poor-boy well in August 1931, then in March 1932 assigned six leases to Humble for $100,000 and four wells. His second well, in June 1932, proved the field.

What the plaque says

Conroe Oil Field One of the great petroleum areas of the Texas coastal region. Opened December 13, 1931, by the discovery well of George Strake (No. 1 South Texas Development Company), about 1.4 miles west of here. Initial daily flow: 15,000,000 cubic feet of gas, along with white gasoline. Strake's second well, a 900-barrel-a-day producer, and the Heep Oil Corp. No. 1 Freeman (both coming in during June 1932) proved existence of a large field. Fast-paced drilling ensued. In January 1933 Madeley No. 1, of Kansas Standard, came in as a wild well and on fire. TNT charges and tons of earth did not smother the fire; it burned about three months. Cratering spread to Harrison and Abercrombie well nearby, and that gushed out of control. In January 1934 a driller for Humble "killed the blowout," by using directional drilling for first time in coastal Texas. This saved the field. (The crater is 600 feet deep.) The Conroe field was the first in Texas to adopt 20-acre spacing, before this was mandatory under conservation rules. It has yielded over 400,000,000 barrels of oil; now produces at the yearly rate of 5,300,000 barrels. After the dramatic discovery here, Montgomery County developed eleven other oil fields, and has reserves for continuing production. (1967)

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• The Isaac Conroe Property — 4.3 mi
• Conroe Fire of 1911 — 4.5 mi
• Montgomery County Courthouses — 4.6 mi
• Conroe — 4.6 mi