The Oil Weekly: Expanding coverage from Gulf Coast to the entire world
In the April 20, 1918, edition, Gulf Publishing Company announced The Oil Weekly as the new name for the magazine. “It is because of the feeling and because we’re not the organ of a particular locality,” explained Editor Dudley. “The name Gulf Coast Oil News did limit us in the minds of many oil producers.”
Quick Service.The Oil Weekly went to press late Friday. “It is on the desks of oil men in Texas, Louisiana and Southern Oklahoma by Saturday afternoon,” reported Editor Dudley. “That is quick service—but we find that it is service that pays.”
Growth in circulation. Gulf Publishing Company grew its circulation via sales from retail newsstands as well as subscriptions via mail. The magazine was available in Wichita Falls at now-exotic locations, such as Eagle’s Cigar Stand, Morris Drug Store and Martin Book Store.
From the Aug. 5, 1922 issue forward, The Oil Weekly experimented with a smaller, pocket size and reduced the annual subscription rate from $4 to only $1. The compact size failed to take off, due to the desire of advertisers to produce standard size ads. As such, the magazine returned to a standard size, beginning with the April 21, 1933, issue. On the other hand, the drop in the subscription rate achieved a significant increase in circulation, from 3,400 on Aug. 4, 1922, to 10,018 by June 30, 1923. The Oil Weekly was also proud to announce its membership in the Audit Bureau of Circulation.
International coverage. In 1930, Associate Editor R. H. Leigh was dispatched around the world to report on the oil “situation” in diverse locations from Roumania (sic) to Arabia and Burmah (sic). In 1931, The Oil Weekly conducted an interview with the first Chinese petroleum engineer, Dr. Chun Young Chan. Dr. Chan described drilling in China to 1,000 ft, using bamboo casing, and drilling by jumping on a springboard.
Documenting drilling records. “Deep drilling developments are of great importance to the oil industry,” stated The Oil Weekly in 1938. “Thus, we will continue our editorial leadership of having presented feature articles on all world-depth breaking wells since the first 10,000-ft was drilled way back in May 1931. That well was Penn-Mex Fuel Company’s Jardin 35 well, which reached TD of 10,585 ft. The article did not report on hydrocarbons encountered, but mentioned that 300,000 bpd of hot salt water as well as “obnoxious gas at great pressures,” had to be handled. The article was accompanied by advertisements from a series of vendors, who had contributed to the success of the well.
Support for technology conferences. Long before the SPE and OTC conferences seized the initiative, the American Petroleum Institute (API) conference included presentations on technology advances. The Oil Weekly published numerous technical articles on topics, such as electrification of the oil field and artificial lift, which were based on API presentations.
Publisher Dudley lent his support to the technology expositions of the day. The first one, founded in 1923, was the International Petroleum Exposition (IPE) in Tulsa, Okla., which was then regarded as the oil capital of the world. Mr. Dudley was on the exposition’s board of directors since its inception. In its heyday in 1930, the IPE ran for 10 days and drew 120,000 visitors.
The success of the IPE in Tulsa drew competition from similar expositions in Los Angeles and Houston, Houston’s Oil Equipment and Engineering Exposition was first held in 1929 at the newly built Convention Hall (later named Sam Houston Coliseum).
Industry at a glance. By the 1930s, The Oil Weekly was publishing detailed industry statistics. These included charts showing the number of daily U.S. well completions, U.S. rigs in use on a monthly basis, and tables of crude oil production, compiled both by The Oil Weekly and the API.
Personal mentions. This regular feature recorded historical milestones, as well as quite a few innocuous events. Here are some examples:
- W. H. Lyne, superintendent of the South Texas division of the Texas Company, was at West Colombia during the week at the birth of Texas Company’s first producer there.
- John R. Suman, superintendent of the Roxana Petroleum Company in Texas, has been in Wichita Falls on business.
- Between Hooverizing and Pulverizing at the Rice Hotel in Houston, one guest says they are getting excellent war training in that hostelry.
Attacking with a velvet glove. Editor Dudley introduced a new column in August 1918 titled, “Letters of Paul Peebles, P.S.G.”. Addressed to “My dear Cleopatry” and signed “Paul”, the column provided an opportunity for Mr. Dudley to take swipes at his peeves in the industry under a pseudonym. One of the column letters was on the issue of oil conservation during President Calvin Coolidge’s term. “Since I am the originator of the idea that oil and gas should be conserved,” Paul Peebles intoned, “I was figuring then on turning Republican and may be getting me a job on the conservation board, but Cal was too saving and give them jobs to men he already had on the payroll.”
Harbinger of offshore activity. The May 25, 1936, issue carried an article by Associate Editor Brad Mills titled “Development of submerged leases along Coastal Belt.” The article described drilling barges used along the Louisiana Gulf Coast, pier development in the Elwood field, Calif., a geophysical survey that the Texas Company conducted in Lake Pontchartrain, La., and acquisition of leases in Galveston Bay. Ironically, the article was subtitled “No pollution problem.” 
