Here's a fun map of the East Texas Oil Field in 1933. Some would call it satirical. Others would say it's realistic. I say it's both.
The East Texas Oil Field: Myth vs Reality
It was called the Black Giant, and without the oil it produced, the United States would not have been able to fight Hitler and the Japanese.
You may know the myth about it's discovery, that old Dad Joiner just knew there was oil there and was down to his last dollar in the fall of 1930 when the Daisy Bradford No.3 came in.
That's not exactly how it went. A few years ago Michelle Haas dug up the details of that crazy story and wrote a book about it. It's here if your interested.
He Drew it as He Knew It
This map was drawn in 1933 by W. Edwin Ray.
Ed worked at a Tyler title company, which was a front row seat for the chaos. As luck would have it, Ed was an aspiring cartoonist.
He put pen to paper to create this landscape filled with derricks and refineries, receivers and lawyers, royalty buyers and escrow men, hitchhikers and hot oil runners, Texas Rangers and notaries, Bar B-Q joints and gas stations. There's also a hot dog stand, an outhouse, and a "bus loaded with suckers."
If you like some fun with your history, this is a map for you.
Physical Details
- 24 by 24 inches
- Limited Edition of 254 copies
- On heavyweight fine-art paper
This is a high quality fine-art print.
The paper is acid free, cold press cotton watercolor with an elegant lightly textured finish. This surface allows the inks to 'bite', reproducing the shading and tonality of the original map vividly, beautifully, and exactly.
The inks are guaranteed color-fast for 80 years, which means you won't need to lay out the extra money for UV glass. You can hang your map in direct sun and it will be just as bright when passed on to the next generation it is the day it ships.
It's an instant heirloom. Get yours before they're gone...and get one to give to a friend. He'll owe you!
