Browse Items (10 total)

Town along the Genesee River has experienced the rise and fall of fortunes associated with extractive industries: initially lumber and tanning (using bark from hemlock trees), then the petroleum industry. In 1879 oil was discovered near…

Hyde & Egbert Farm alongside the creek shows derricks, pipes leading to wooden tubs, and the many barrels required to transport oil downstream to Oil City on the Allegheny River. Farm was the location of the "Jersey," "Maple Shade," and "Coquet"…

At the mouth of Oil Creeks, spectators watch rafts that have made it downstream after a so-called "pond fresh." The creek was too shallow for navigation much of the year, so dams held water then released it all at once--a chaotic process that often…

Looking northwest, major streets and features of a town whose growth was driven by America's first oil boom during the 1860s. Oil Creek is in the foreground, and the Oil Creek Rail Road is shown running south toward the oil region--although by this…

Collection of five maps shows in detail the buildings, oil companies, properties, and notable wells of America's first oil boom. The series begins with Oil City, a major depot on the Allegheny River, and moves (north) upstream toward Titusville.

A rusted sign advertising Sinclair Gasoline found just outside of Wellsville, NY--likely dates back to the 1950s. Sinclair Oil's refinery in the town was a major employer but also was beset by huge fires in 1938 and 1958, the latter of which shut…

These images document the devastating 1938 fire which broke out on the site of the Sinclair Refining Company in Wellsville, NY. The fire ultimately took over 200 volunteers from more than 20 different departments to quell, resulting in 3 deaths and…

Image incorporates 1940 map of the village of Wellsville and a photograph from the devastating 1938 fire at the site of the Sinclair Refining Company in Wellsville

A photograph looking south on the Genesee River towards the former site of the Sinclair Refining Co. in Wellsville, NY.