World's Richest Acre

Part of fabulous East Texas oil field discovered in 1930. This 1.195-acre tract had first production on June 17, 1937, when the Mrs. Bess Johnson-Adams & Hale No. 1 well was brought in. Developed before well-spacing rules, this block is the most densely drilled tract in the world, with 24 wells on 10 lots owned by six different operators. This acre has produced over two and a half million barrels of crude oil; selling at $1.10 to $3.25 a barrel, it has brought more than five and a half million dollars. A forest of steel derricks for many years stood over the more than 1,000 wells in downtown Kilgore, marking the greatest concentration of oil wells in the history of the world. Dozens of these derricks still dot city's internationally famous skyline. Since 1930, the East Texas oil field has produced nearly four billion barrels of oil. It now has more than 17,000 producing wells, and geologists predict a future of at least 45 years for this "granddaddy of oil fields." Its development has attracted to the area many diversified industries and a progressive citizenship with a high degree of civic pride. (1966)

World's Richest Acre is a historical marker in Kilgore, Gregg County, dedicated in 1966. It is one of 81 historical markers documented in Gregg County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 124 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.3869, -94.8762 near Kilgore. The nearest cataloged historic site is Kilgore I&GN-Missouri Pacific Railroad Station (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Kilgore National Bank Building, Crim, Lou Della, and Alexander Institute.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5183010007. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.