Karg Well put Findlay on the map 140 years ago

FINDLAY — Tuesday may be just another day this year, but on Jan. 20, 1886, all eyes were on Findlay. The great Karg Well came in 140 years ago along the bank of the Blanchard River, at Liberty Street. The natural gas well launched the start of Ohio's first major natural gas boom. It was one of the major events in the city's history, according to Joy Bennett, curator and archivist at the Hancock Historical Museum. "This was the thing that started the boom," she said. "Everyone had heard of it. That was the thing they used to get people to come to Findlay." The village saw its population of 4,000 residents grow to 18,000 almost overnight. Cheap or free natural gas was offered to factories. And in 1887, 31 businesses and factories had relocated here, lured by the Chamber of Commerce's advertisement of "Free Fuel! Free Light! Free Sites! For the Manufacturers who will locate in Findlay, Ohio." It all started with Dr. Charles Oesterlen, a German homeopathic physician who moved to Findlay in 1836. Bennett said he was an amateur geologist who became convinced that a great natural gas deposit was beneath the town. "He owned basically where the fairgrounds are," she said. "He had a house and farm there off of Lye Creek. But he thought it was strange that there were areas where nothing grew. There was no grass or weeds, it was just dirt. And he wanted to find out why." She said her favorite story about Oesterlen occurred when he found a fissure in the ground. "He thought it smelled funny and kind of dug around it a little bit. Then he put a bucket over it, upside down, and then he lit it on fire. And of course it boomed because it was natural gas," she laughed. "This is an intelligent man. He has education. He's a doctor. Why would you do that?" He was fine afterwards, but he was convinced there was something down there, said Bennett. The state geologist offered his opinion, saying it was altogether unlikely that that gas would be found here. Oesterlen convinced Jason Blackford and several other influential businessmen to put up some money to dig a well on his farm. On Dec. 5, 1884, they struck gas. The state geologist happened to be lecturing in Findlay that day. Word of the success of the Oesterlen Well was announced at the meeting before he was finished speaking. "That was the first well that was the proof that there was something there," Bennett said. "They realized there was something going on. Maybe we should do something about it. A lot of different companies were formed, and they started looking into where to dig, where to look for the natural gas." The Findlay Artificial Light Co., comprised of another group of gentlemen including Jasper Hull, who owned the Hull-Flater House which now houses a portion of the museum, got together and dug in several places. "I believe the 13th well that they went for was the Karg Well," she said. Bennett said the well was on land owned by Louis Karg, hence the well's name. "They started working on it, and then on Jan. 20, 1886 it came in and it came in big," she said. The men installed a pipe to control where the gas went so they could set it on fire, said Bennett. "The roar was so loud you could hear it five to six miles away. There was a description that said it was like being near Niagara Falls," she said. "And once they lit it on fire, the flame jumped up 100 feet and could be seen between 16 and 40 miles away depending on weather and conditions and atmosphere." Apparently it could be seen in Bowling Green, said Bennett. "With it on fire, it was so hot, and we're talking January and February in Findlay. They said it was like May around it. There was grass growing and flowers were blooming in the circle around it," she said. At one point a pipe was directed straight across the Blanchard River. "They did that and then the ice melted on the river. We're talking back when it used to actually freeze. The water was boiling. I mean it was so hot, it was boiling. It was like a hot springs," she said. The well became so well known, they had special excursion trains to Findlay. "It turned into a big booming tourist attraction," Bennett said. "It was a big deal. Findlay was really in the news. Twelve million cubic feet of gas was produced a day at its peak." She said the grade of gas Findlay produced was considered the best for heating and home purposes. "That's when they decided to heat houses with gas and provide gas for cooking," she said. Pipes were laid downtown, and gas lamps down Main Street ran day and night. "People heated their homes. They cooked with gas. They just kept it on because it was cheaper to just let it run than to turn it off," said Bennett. The one downfall was that Findlay gas had a sulfurous odor, she said. It took four months to bring the well under control. In the summer of 1887, a Gas and Oil Jubilee was held to encourage factories and business to move to town. The jubilee had 58 gas arches and banners over Main Street. Some of the banners read "Women split no wood in Findlay," "31 Factories Located in 1 Year," "It Costs $1.05 per year to keep warm" and "Findlay the Gas Centre of the World." By May of 1889, Findlay had added 17 churches, 15 school buildings employing 75 teachers, three daily and six weekly newspapers, four streetcar lines and around 1,600 buildings. "It was very much like a Wild West gold rush kind of thing," said Bennett. "They seemed to have gotten paid pretty well, but Findlay just boomed. You had a building boom. You had housing. You had crime and prostitution." She said the glass, pottery and mask manufacturing companies were the three businesses that needed a lot of gas to make their products. They received it for free. "What most of them did, at least the glass companies were able to have a well on their property. So they made sure they purchased property that had gas under it so they just had a well. Most of them were on the north end of town. They had their own wells and they could just pump it straight in," she said. Everyone seemed to think the natural gas would last forever. There was a quote. This is one of my favorite quotes that I've seen," she said. "We could imagine the Blanchard River drying up before we could imagine the gas of Findlay being exhausted." "So 15 years later, there's no gas or very little, and the Blanchard River is still here," added Bennett. The gas ran out around 1900-1902. "I mean there was still a little bit. There's still some there. But the glass factories, the last one had left by 1902. And everyone was moving because Indiana had a boom," she said. Luckily, there was also oil. "They knew about the oil before they knew about the gas, but they really didn't know what to do with it," said Bennett. "There didn't seem to be a huge need for it." But they started refining the oil which became a big business, especially with the advent of automobiles. In 1887, the Ohio Oil Company was founded in Lima by independent producers. Two years later, Standard Oil purchased the company, and its headquarters were relocated to Findlay. The Standard Oil Trust was broken up in 1911, making Ohio Oil independent again A celebration commemorating Ohio's giant natural gas discovery was held in 1937. A plaque was dedicated at the site of the Karg Well, along with a historical monument. Bennett said there is also a historical marker on the Hancock County Fairgrounds, recalling the Oesterlen Well. "And there was one gas well left in town, and they capped it a couple of years ago," said Bennett. It was located by Carpets Direct at 328 E. Sandusky St. "With the gas history, aside from historical markers, there's not much left," Bennett said. The Hancock Park District will hold a program, "The 140th anniversary of the Great Karg Well," at 6 p.m. Tuesday in Brugeman Lodge, located in the Meadows Activity Area of Riverbend Recreation Area, 9250 Township Road 208. The program is open to ages 16 and older. There is no cost to attend, and registration is not required.