xt78w950gm56 https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt78w950gm56/data/mets.xml https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt78w950gm56/data/61m273.dao.xml McGee, Curtis, Mrs. 1829-1959 0.23 Cubic Feet 1 box The Old American Well collection (dated 1829-1959; 0.23 cubic feet; 1 box) contain information documenting the first commercially operated oil well in the United States. collections English University of Kentucky This digital resource may be freely searched and displayed.  Permission must be received for subsequent distribution in print or electronically.  Physical rights are retained by the owning repository.  Copyright is retained in accordance with U. S. copyright laws.  For information about permissions to reproduce or publish, contact the Special Collections Research Center. Old American Well collection Petroleum -- Therapeutic use. Historical markers -- Kentucky -- Burkesville. Oil wells -- Kentucky -- Burkesville. Old American Well collection text Old American Well collection 1829 1829-1959 2016 true xt78w950gm56 collection false 61m273 Old American Well collection Old American Well collection, 1829-1959  61m273 Greg Seltzer University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center 2011 March 22 Special Collections Research Center Margaret I. King Building, North Lexington 40506-0039 SCLREF@LSV.UKY.EDU URL:  This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on  2016-05-23 14:46:00 -0400 . Describing Archives: A Content Standard 2015 November 3 Description and EAD updated by Megan Mummey 
   
     
       English 
     
     
       University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center 
     
     Old American Well collection 
     
       McGee, Curtis, Mrs. 
     
     61m273 
     
       0.23 Cubic Feet 
       1 box 
     
     1829-1959 
     The Old American Well collection (dated 1829-1959; 0.23 cubic feet; 1 box) contain information documenting the first commercially operated oil well in the United States. 
   
   
     Conditions Governing Access 
 Collection is open to researchers by appointment.    
   
     Conditions Governing Use 
 The physical rights to the materials in this collection are held by the University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.    
   
     Preferred Citation 
 61m273: [identification of item], Old American Well collection, 1829-1959, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.    
   
     Historical note 
 The Old American Well was the first commercial oil well in the United States. It was discovered by William Beatty in 1829 as he drilled for salt brine on a farm near Burksville, Kentucky. The oil was bottled and marketed medicinally as a cure-all under the name  American Rock Oil . The oil well was operated until the Civil War when its output ceased to be oil and instead was mainly salt brine. Kentucky's Great American Oil Well.   American Oil & Gas Historical Society . Accessed November 3, 2015. http://aoghs.org/states/kentuckys-great-american-well/    
   
     Scope and Contents 
 The Old American Well collection (dated 1829-1959; 0.23 cubic feet; 1 box) contain information documenting the first commercially operated oil well in the United States. The materials were gathered by Mrs. Curtis McGee as part of an effort to commemorate the discovery of the well. There are letters concerning the centennial celebration in 1929 and the installation of a historical marker in 1934, magazine articles on the history of the well, and some photographs of the area. Also included are short articles about the well and about Kentucky's geology; these articles were written by Geologist Willard Rouse Jillson.    
   
     Arrangement 
 Collection is arranged by format.    
   
     Immediate Source of Acquisition 
 Gift, 1959.    
   
     Burkesville (Ky.) -- History. 
     Petroleum -- Therapeutic use. 
     Historical markers -- Kentucky -- Burkesville. 
     Oil wells -- Kentucky -- Burkesville. 
     Jillson, Willard Rouse, 1890-1975 
     McGee, Curtis, Mrs. 
     McGee, Curtis, Mrs. 
   
   Correspondence 1829-1959 1 1 Photographs 1926-1951 1 2 Magazine and published articles 1929-1953 1 3