The Discovery of Petroleum.
Petroleum, and its manifold products, was first discovered in the tiny' Derbyshire village of Biddings. It w’as but a small, insignificant exudation from the earth, aggregating some 300 gallons per day. An uncommercial scientist pointed out to the working carpenter in the village the possibilities in that little stream from the Derbyshire mine. James Young, the carpenter, made himself a millionaire from the hint. His lead was followed in America, Bussia, and elsewhere, and to-day Rockefeller, the billionaire oil king, is hawking his wares in the streets of Biddings itself, the cradle of the petroleum trade, the greatest industry- the world has ever known. Biddings yet possesses two priceless relics of its wonderful discovery. These are the stumps of two candles, which, at a cost of a sovereign apiece, were the first ever made from petroleum.
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/NZGRAP19121016.2.79
Bibliographic details
New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVIII, Issue 16, 16 October 1912, Page 56
Word Count
140The Discovery of Petroleum. New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVIII, Issue 16, 16 October 1912, Page 56
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Acknowledgements
This material was digitised in partnership with Auckland Libraries. You can find high resolution images on Kura Heritage Collections Online.
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