Collection: Standard Oil Discovery Well Collection

May 24, 1920, the first oil well to prove the Huntington Beach Oil Field as a viable source of oil, was struck near the intersection today of Goldenwest and Clay. At nearby Discovery Well Park today, a marker commemorates this historic event that changed the city overnight.

As the Orange County Register reported, “The well produced 70 barrels a day. Then on Nov. 6, 1920, Bolsa Chica 1 blew a gusher, making 1,742 barrels of oil. Oil flowed into the lowlands from the mesa, and 500 men with mules and scrapers hurried to build a dike to hold back the black gold. Land increased from $20 to $1,000 an acre. The city’s population jumped from 1,500 to 5,000. The city expanded overnight with pool halls, restaurants, clothing stores and neighborhood corner stores. Housing was scarce and oil companies rented entire hotels and constructed camps for housing. Recreation opportunities were down at the pier. A dance hall was built inside a large tent. there was a two-lane bowling alley. The plunge was a swimming pool that folks could use year-round.”

Our collection design incorporates the original Standard Oil logo from the 1920s.