DANIEL YERGIN: CHRONICLER OF GLOBAL ENERGY
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY February 6, 2026 DANIEL YERGIN: CHRONICLER OF GLOBAL ENERGY On February 6, 1947, Daniel Yergin was born, later becoming one of the most influential energy historians and analysts of the modern era. His work has traced the evolution of global oil and gas markets, the geopolitics of petroleum, and the economic […]
BRECKENRIDGE IGNITES THE NORTH TEXAS OIL RUSH
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY February 4, 2026 BRECKENRIDGE IGNITES THE NORTH TEXAS OIL RUSH On February 4, 1920, the No. 1 Chaney well came in inside the city limits of Breckenridge, Texas, striking oil at an initial rate of about 3,700 barrels per day. The discovery added another powerhouse to the rapidly expanding North Texas […]
WHEN OILMEN PUSHED BACK AGAINST AMERICA’S FIRST PETROLEUM TAX
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY February 3, 2026 WHEN OILMEN PUSHED BACK AGAINST AMERICA’S FIRST PETROLEUM TAX On February 3, 1868, petroleum refiners from the Oil Creek region gathered at Petroleum Center, Pennsylvania, passing a formal resolution calling for the repeal of the Civil War–era “war tax” on refined petroleum. The tax charged $1 per 42-gallon […]
THE FUEL ADDITIVE THAT CHANGED ENGINES – AND PUBLIC HEALTH
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY February 2, 2026 THE FUEL ADDITIVE THAT CHANGED ENGINES – AND PUBLIC HEALTH On February 2, 1923, the first commercially available anti-knock gasoline blended with tetraethyl lead (TEL) was sold at a service station in Dayton, Ohio. Developed by General Motors engineers, the fuel dramatically reduced engine knocking, allowing higher compression […]
FROM COLD WAR SECRETS TO ULTRA-DEEPWATER DRILLING
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY January 30, 2026 FROM COLD WAR SECRETS TO ULTRA-DEEPWATER DRILLING On January 30, 1998, the legendary Glomar Explorer was relaunched as an ultra-deepwater drill ship, beginning a second life in offshore energy exploration. Originally built in the 1970s for a secret CIA mission to recover a sunken Soviet submarine, the vessel […]
THE PATENT THAT LIT THE WORLD BEFORE OIL
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY January 29, 2026 THE PATENT THAT LIT THE WORLD BEFORE OIL On January 29, 1850, Canadian geologist Abraham Gessner received a U.S. patent for a gasification process that produced illuminating gas from bitumen, asphaltum, and mineral pitch. This work built on his earlier experiments that led to kerosene, offering a cleaner […]
SANTA BARBARA SPILL SPARKS AMERICA’S ENVIRONMENTAL RECKONING
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY January 28, 2026 SANTA BARBARA SPILL SPARKS AMERICA’S ENVIRONMENTAL RECKONING On January 28, 1969, a blowout on Union Oil’s offshore Platform A in the Dos Cuadras Field ruptured the seabed beneath the Santa Barbara Channel, unleashing one of the most influential oil spills in U.S. history. Over the next 11 days, […]
J. HOWARD PEW AND THE RISE OF SUN OIL
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY January 27, 2026 J. HOWARD PEW AND THE RISE OF SUN OIL January 27, 1882 marks the birth of J. Howard Pew, who would go on to become president of Sun Oil Company (Sunoco) and one of the most influential figures in mid-20th-century American oil. Under Pew’s leadership, Sun Oil expanded […]
DAMMAM NO. 7 SPARKS SAUDI OIL ERA
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY January 26, 2026 DAMMAM NO. 7 SPARKS SAUDI OIL ERA On January 26, 1938, the Dammam No. 7 well — famously called the “Prosperity Well” — struck commercial oil near Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. This discovery marked the beginning of Saudi Arabia’s rise as a global oil powerhouse and laid the groundwork […]
LEDUC NO. 1 LAUNCHES ALBERTA’S OIL ERA
TODAY IN ENERGY HISTORY January 23, 2026 LEDUC NO. 1 LAUNCHES ALBERTA’S OIL ERA On January 23, 1947, the Leduc No. 1 well near Edmonton, Alberta, struck oil, marking the official start of Alberta’s commercial oil industry. The discovery sparked a surge in exploration throughout the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, ultimately transforming Canada into a […]