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 Texas Petroleum in World War II
N 31° 58.242 W 102° 04.979
13R E 775668 N 3540906
Texas Historical Marker in front of the VisitMidland Information Center at 1406 I-20, Midland, TX, noting Texas's vital role in providing for America's oil needs during World War II, both on the battlefield and at home.
Waymark Code: WMVGYX
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 04/18/2017
Views: 1
Marker Number: 15180
Marker Text:
The growing West Texas petroleum industry found itself destined to play a significant role during World War II. By the late 1930s an intrastate pipeline system moved crude oil east to refineries and shipping points. In 1940, Texas produced almost 37% of the domestic oil in the United States and was the largest producer of natural gas in the nation. When the U.S. entered World War II in December 1941, West Texas reserves and the construction of new pipelines in the eastern portion of the state placed Texas in the pivotal position of supplying a large share of U.S. energy during the war.
After the U.S. entered the war, German submarines moved into coastal waters along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico and shipping suffered. Therefore, one of the first major duties of the Petroleum Industry Council for National Defense (created in Nov. 1941 and later renamed the Petroleum Industry War Council) was the safe transport of Texas oil to the U.S. East Coast. Major disruptions in shipping in 1942 resulted in construction of a cross-country pipeline from Texas to the East known as the Big Inch (built to transport crude oil) and Little Big Inch (built to deliver refined oil byproducts).
World War II could not have been fought and won on a global scale without readily available petroleum supplies. In addition, the byproducts of Texas petroleum –- gasoline and diesel fuel for trucks and tanks, lubricants for machinery and fuel oil for heating –- proved equally essential to the war effort. Therefore, it can be said that the Texas petroleum industry, then the nation's largest producer of oil, was key to the Allied victory and the World War II experience presaged dramatic industry growth in West Texas after the war.
Texas in World War II – 2009
Marker is Property of the State of Texas
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