Postwar Ups and Downs

Postwar Ups and Downs. . Oil Boom, In the 1940s, Mattoon became a hub for the oil industry. Companies large and small opened offices here, attracted by the developing oil fields, the business environment, and the quality of life. The oil business brought new people and ideas. The vocabulary in shops and bars expanded to include words like "Devonian, McClosky, and Aux Vas," technical terms describing the geologic formations where they found oil., Rise of Industry, Several oil companies began leasing land southwest of Mattoon as early as 1936. A wildcat venture in 1939 fueled speculation. In 1940, a small field opened. By 1946, 415 wells were active, with more than half of those still pumping ten years later., (photo captions:), The advent of the diesel freight train, pictured here, put an end to Mattoon's founding purpose - servicing the railroad and its travelers., Young Radiator purchased the Atlas Diesel factory after the war. Young produced oil field equipment and heavy duty radiators, as shown here, throughout the 1950s. Prominent manufacturers such as General Electric, Kal Kan and R.R. Donnelley arrived in the following decades., Decline of a Rail Era, Development of diesel engines made trains more efficient and economical, but it also eliminated the need for railway shops that played a prominent role in the Mattoon economy. Shop closings hit Mattoon hard in 1953, with significant job losses as an era came to an end., (photo caption:), The Big Four Roundhouse in northeast Mattoon was torn down in the 1960s. Remnants of the old shops stood for many years, a reminder of what had been a bustling industry., Alternate Transportation, The Checker Top Cab Company, shown here in about 1950, was started by Albert J. Hunt in the mid-1940s. At its peak he owned a fleet of 12 cabs., (photo captions:), ·Other modes of transportation came to Mattoon in the 1940s and 1950s. These airport buildings were built in 1942 and used for private service until 1951. The Coles County Airport was constructed soon after., ·Illinois Route 16 between Mattoon and Charleston was constructed in the late 1950s. Interstate 57 opened in Mattoon in 1966 as the automobile became a predominant mode of transportation., ·Paved roads arrived in Mattoon in the 1920s. Although Mattoon has preserved some original brick streets, most were paved over in the 1950s. In 1954, the Howell Asphalt Company resurfaced Western Avenue between 19th and 21st Streets., ·Harold and Grace Gill opened Gill's Drive Inn in 1949 at 12th Street and DeWitt Avenue. Cruising became a popular pastime in the postwar years, and Gill's was a headquarters for mobile teens., Taking to the Road, As production shifted from the war effort to consumer goods, America's car culture came of age. Already a symbol of modernity and a sign of affluence, the road replaced rail as the prevalent means of moving people and things around the country.