Louisiana Oil and Gas ParkThe birthplace of the Louisiana oil industry is looking to build a museum to commemorate the momentous event which took place in September 1901. The discovery well was located about five miles northeast of the south Louisiana town of Jennings. Drillers penetrated a high-pressure oil sand at 1832 feet on top of a salt dome and the resulting gusher signaled the beginning of the oil industry in the state. The city has long eyed the project ever since the state legislature dedicated 11 acres of land as the Louisiana Oil and Gas Park in 1975 alongside the Jennings exit on Interstate 10. The project languished for years until the city hosted the Louisiana Oil Centennial celebration in 2001. The successful centennial celebration produced a surplus of funds that was earmarked as seed money for the museum effort. Additional planning money was secured from the state and a separate foundation was established to oversee the effort.The Louisiana Oil and Gas Museum Foundation hired Burt Tietje as executive director and charged him with developing the project. The foundation has established its 501-c3 status with the IRS and has hired Southwest Museum Services of Houston as consultants to help write the master plan for the museum. “We have had the luxury of a well funded project and have taken the time to be very deliberate in our decision-making. We don’t want to make any mistakes in this process,” said Tietje. “We feel we will be successful raising funds for the museum project only if our plan is good enough. We have good local story to tell about the discovery of oil and hope to partner with those in the industry who want to tell the wider story of the oil industry.”“Our location in the park along side Interstate 10 offers unparalleled visibility and accessibility to the 14 million vehicles passing each year. We will partner with our parish Tourist Commission which already operates in the park and registers over 30,000 visitors a year with its mix of information and a live alligator exhibit. Those are very powerful numbers for any museum to begin with,” said Tietje. Exhibits about geology and history will, of course, will be central to our story,” said Tietje, “but I would like to explore other avenues like a geologist’s hall of fame to honor a portion of the industry that has produced many remarkable men and women whose stories have not been told. Most of today’s hope for the industry lies in advances in seismic technology and the geologist’s ability to use it.” Education will be central to the mission of the museum. Programs will center not only on history but also the physical sciences and even sociology and ecology. The group has received a lead donation from the Zigler Foundation of $500,000 and has raised some $1.3 million to date. Mr. Gene Gibson of Arizona, whose grandfather Elmer Dobbins was the driller on the discovery well, has been an early and enthusiastic supporter of the museum concept. When he ran across a restored 1918 Oldsmobile oil hauling truck for sale in Kansas, he just had to have it for the future museum. “Gertie,” as the truck is affectionately called, is on display temporarily in Oregon where it awaits the completion of its home in Louisiana. “This will be a great object to use in fundraising and publicity,” said Tietje “as well as a valuable addition to our exhibits.”