Joiner No. 3 Daisy Bradford

East Texas Oil Field Discovery Well. Discovery genius was C. M. (Dad) Joiner, 70-year-old Oklahoman who for years believed there was oil in Rusk County. Driller was E. C. Laster. Crew: Dennis May, Dave Cherry, Glenn Pool, Jim Lambert and Dave Hughes. Joiner's 2 early efforts failed-- one with a jammed bit, one with the drill pipe stuck. The rig was next skidded 300' down slope. "This is as good a place as any," said Laster. Then on May 8, 1929, Joiner No. 3 Daisy Bradford was spudded in. Equipment consisted of an old rotary rig powered by a single-cylinder engine; one 45 hp boiler; one old cotton gin boiler fired with soggy oak and pine chunks by roustabout Dan Tanner. The depression was on, and money scarce. The crew often went without pay. Joiner sacrificed much of his 10,000 acre block of leases. Finally, on Sept. 5, 1930, a drill stem logged at 3536' into the Woodbine Formation showed oil. A better rig had to be brought in. On Oct. 3, 1930, the well blew in and oil went over the crown block. The boom was on. Cars were bumper-to-bumper on all access roads. Derricks rose in all directions. In its first 30 years, this great field produced more than 3.5 billion barrels of oil. It now covers some 200 square miles-- the largest in the world.

Joiner No. 3 Daisy Bradford is a historical marker in Henderson, Rusk County, dedicated in 1965. It is one of 72 historical markers documented in Rusk County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 184 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.1796, -94.9230 near Henderson. The nearest cataloged historic site is Gaston Public School (historical marker), about 1.8 miles away. Others within a short drive include Mt. Hope, Pleasant Hill, and Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Church.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5401010980. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.