Joseph S. Cullinan
| Joseph S. Cullinan | |
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| Born |
Joseph Stephen Cullinan December 31, 1860 Pulaski Township, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania |
| Died | March 11, 1937 (aged 76) Palo Alto, California |
Joseph Stephen Cullinan (December 31, 1860 – March 11, 1937) was a U.S. oil industrialist. Although he was a native of Pennsylvania, his lifetime business endeavors would help shape the early phase of the oil industry in Texas. He founded The Texas Company, which would eventually be known as Texaco Incorporated.
Cullinan was born to John Francis and Mary (Considine) Cullinan on December 31, 1860, in Pulaski Township, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, not far from Sharon, Pennsylvania. His first experience in the oil industry was when he was 14, working as a hand in the Pennsylvania oilfields. He was responsible for various oil-related duties including an oil distribution station in Oleopolis, Pennsylvania. This familiarity with all the aspects of the industry would later on be beneficial for his wisdom and sound judgment in the oil business. On April 14, 1891, he married Lucy Halm. Together, they would later have 5 children. When he was 22, he began to work for an affiliate of Standard Oil and for the next thirteen years, he performed various managerial duties. In 1895, he decided to venture into the business of manufacturing steel storage tanks and started his own company under the name Petroleum Iron Works located in New Castle, Pennsylvania.
The previous year, oil was discovered in Corsicana, Texas by accident when a water-well company encountered the resource while attempting to establish a water source for the city. By 1897, the production was so great that this prompted the mayor of the town to invite Cullinan to advise on the development of the oil production facilities there. The lack of refining facilities often resulted in the dumping of the crude oil. The wasteful and polluting practices of some irresponsible prospectors prompted Texas legislators to enforce regulations on the industry. Cullinan (who was also against this wasteful practice and was a key person in the development of the state's first petroleum-conservation statute) took such an interest in the potential of refining there that he agreed to build a refinery. Using out of state funds for backing, the J. S. Cullinan Company was established which would have a facility online by 1900, processing 1,500 barrels per day (240 m3/d). His refinery there was the first of its type west of the Mississippi. This company later became part of the Magnolia Petroleum Company.
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