Page 3 - nps1963pico

Form 10-317»
(sept. 1957) UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

NATIONAL SURVEY OF HISTORIC SITES AND BUILDINGS
SUPPLEMENTARY SHEET

This sheet is to be used for giving additional information or comments, for more space for any item on the
regular form, and for recording pertinent data from future studies, visitations, etc. Be brief, but use as many
Supplement Sheets as necessary. When items are continued they should be listed, if possible, in numerical order
of the items. All information given should be headed by the item number, its name, and the word (cont'd), as,
6. Description and Importance (cont'd) . . .

STATE NAME(S) OF SITE
California Pico Canyon, Veil No. "CSO" 4 ("Pico"

7. Continued:

years later became the first president of the Standard Oil Company of California, to
enter the company, and the firm thus underwent further enlargement. As more oil vas
found, it became clear that I^rons Station Refinery, by-passed by the railroad, "would
be inadequate. In 18TT a new site vas selected at Andrev Station (at the edge of
Nevhall today) on the Southern Pacific Line and a new and larger refinery (now called
the "Pioneer Refinery") was constructed during the summer. 0?his izsprovement was none
too soon, for in November, 1877> Mentry deepened Pico $4 to 5&0 feet, and oil spurted
to the top of the 65 foot derrick, and then flowed oil at about 70 barrels daily.
This production "was the most spectacular yet knovn in California and revived what
had "been a collapsing industry. To handle the increased production, the Nevhall
refinery and Pico field, located 7 miles apart, wre connected in 1579 by means of a
tvo-inch cast-iron gravity-feed pipeline, the first to be used in California.
From the Pico oil field in the vicinity of Nevhall, oil explorations -wore extended
to the Ventura fields in 1877-78. California oil production rose from 18,000 "barrels
in 1876 to 4l,98l barrels in i860.
In November 188^-, the second future giant of the California oil industry, the Union
Oil Company of California, then knovn as Hardison and Stevsxt Oil Ccaspany, also made
its start in Pico Canyon. Here they "brought in their first successful veil, "Star
Ho, 1," and vith funds obtained from this strike, they were able to secure land in
Ventura County around Santa Paula, inhere they "brought in a succession of successful
wells in 1885, thus launching the firm on a successful career.

Condition of Site

Pico Canyon includes about 850 acres of land on which are located the folio-wing
historical features:
1. Well Ho. "CSO" if ("Pico" #^). The 1876 discovery well of the Hevhall Field.
This well still produces about one barrel of oil a day and is marked as California
Registered State Historical Landmark Ho. 5l6.