Blackland TX · Historical markers
The Birthplace of the Petroleum Industry
In Corsicana · Directions →
The marker
West of the Mississippi River. In this well, drilled by H. G. Johnston, E. H. Akin, and Charles Rittersbacher under contract for a water well for the city of Corsicana in 1894, the first oil in commercial quantities in the mid-continent area was discovered at 1035 feet.
Where it stands
Source: Texas Historical Commission, Texas Historic Sites Atlas, record 5349011622, read 17 September 2026.