Well, Alamitos 1

The hill was chaparral and truck farms being subdivided for houses when Shell spudded a wildcat here on March 23, 1921. It blew in before dawn on June 23 at 3,114 feet, over the top of a 114-foot derrick, and a crowd of a few hundred was fifteen thousand by daylight. The hole caved and had to be cleaned out; the well was flowing about 590 barrels a day by the 25th. People who had bought lots to build on leased them for drilling instead, and the derricks went up with their legs crossing.

What the plaque says

One of the world's most famous wells, Alamitos No. 1, was started on March 23, 1921, and was completed June 25, 1921, at a depth of 3,114 feet, flowing 590 barrels of oil a day. This discovery well led to the development of one of the most productive oil fields in the world and helped to establish California as a major oil producing state. This monument commemorating Alamitos No. 1 is a tribute to the petroleum pioneers for their success here, a success which has, by aiding in the growth and expansion of the petroleum industry, contributed so much to the welfare of mankind. Dedicated May 3, 1952 Shell Oil Company The Petroleum Production Pioneers State Registered Landmark No. 580 Alamitos No. 1 Discovery Well recognized as an official Bicentennial Landmark. Placed by Signal Hill City Council, Signal Hill Bicentennial Commission, Mayor Keaton R. King, Vice-Mayor Nick A. Mekis, Councilman William F. Mendenhall, Councilman J. Ennis Neff, Councilman Gertrude A. Beebe, Commissioners Doris M. Miller, Marjorie E. Posner, William F. Mendenhall. Dedicated January 1976.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Mission San Gabriel Arcangel — 21 mi
  The fourth Alta California mission, built on Tongva land with Tongva labor, rebuilt after arson and now telling that story straight.
• Colorado Street Bridge — 24 mi
  Beaux-Arts concrete arches curving 150 feet above the Arroyo Seco, opened in 1913 and later a link in Route 66.
• Santa Monica Pier — 24 mi
  Where the Mother Road runs out of continent, and where the End of the Trail sign gives the drive somewhere to finish.

More markers nearby

• Long Beach Marine Stadium — 3.2 mi
• Rancho Los Cerritos Historic Site — 3.6 mi
• Drum Barracks — 5.7 mi
• Banning Park — 5.8 mi