Auxiliary Equipment from the Early Borger Oil Field

Auxiliary Equipment from the Early Borger Oil Field. . The business of finding, producing, refining and distributing petroleum products has always required a great deal of specialized equipment. In addition to drilling rigs, pump jacks and tanks, a great deal of equipment specific to particular tasks is needed to get the job done. , Moving heavy equipment and providing power for operation, repair and maintainance of critical machinery are still essential components of the industry. Equipment made during this time was built to last and due to this fact these pieces survive today., The examples shown here are among the last remnants of the early Borger oil field., Captions , Lower Left: Heavy Duty - Transport Dollies , One of the day-to-day jobs in the oilfield is moving very heavy equipment. Rough terrain, heavy loads and remote locations are just part of the job. In the early days of the Borger field, horses and oxen were often used to get the heavy machinery where it was needed. The dollies shown here were used together - often with many others, to enable oil men to transport their loads over rough ground., Lower Middle: Electric Generator , Powered by a gas or diesel engine, generators like this one had a big effect on how work was done in the early oilfield. Until electricity became widely available, animals, engines and manpower provided the power. Early drilling rigs were lit by oil lamps and torches at night because lights and electric tools weren't possible until generators such as this one arrived from manufacturers far away from this remote Panhandle oil field., Lower Right: Travelling Block , Travelling blocks are part of the block and tackle system on an oil drilling rig. The block and tackle system lifts the drill stem as well as other heavy components which are used to drill the well. The crown block is a heavy-duty pulley attached to the crown platform - a steel deck on the top of a drilling rig. Wire rope drilling line runs through the pulleys of the crown block to the traveling block. The traveling block moves up and down between the crown block and the rig floor , thus lifting the load., Upper Right: Schramm Air Compressor , Compressed air was used to power many pieces of early oil field equipment as well as for tools necessary to maintain machinery.