Spindletop and the Lucas Gusher paved the way for the automobile industry to develop.
In 1900, there were just 8,000 automobiles in the United States. These automobiles ran on
several types of fuel. Only a few ran on gasoline because the supply was limited.
After January 10, 1901, when the Lucas Gusher blew on Spindletop Hill,
the problem was solved because it made huge quantities of gasoline
available. As more gasoline
was produced, most of the automobiles used it for power. By 1904, the number of
automobiles increased to more than 22,000.
Now that gasoline was plentiful, several car manufacturers sprouted up across the
United States. One of these was the Ford Motor Company. In 1908, Henry Ford built the
Model T. This car was a success because it could cruise 25 miles per hour, and it
only cost
$850. The Model T was one of the first assembly-line vehicle produced in America. It became
the American dream to own a car.
Ford was not the only company making cars. In 1914, there were 1,700,000 cars on the
roads of America. The market for petroleum was growing because most of the cars were
powered by gasoline. In addition to cars, trains and ships changed to gasoline for their
source of power. Shortly after that, aircraft became powered by gasoline.
Registered Vehicles in United States
|
1900
|
1904
|
1905
|
1910
|
1915
|
8,000
|
22,000
|
77,000
|
460,000
|
2,330,000
|
Spindletop had a major influence on transportation.
The demand for petroleum was
increasing as America's appetite for gasoline grew. Even though Spindletop produced
huge quantities of petroleum, it could not support America's
growing need for gasoline. People continued to explore new sites for discovering and drilling for
oil. However, none of the other oil wells found matched the volume of oil that Spindletop produced.
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