Pattillo Higgins
| Pattillo Higgins | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
December 5, 1863 Sabine Pass, Texas |
| Died | June 5, 1955 (aged 91) San Antonio, Texas |
| Occupation | Businessman, geologist |
Pattillo Higgins (December 5, 1863 – June 5, 1955) was a businessman as well as a self-taught geologist. He earned the nickname the "Prophet of Spindletop" for his endeavors in the oil business, which accrued a fortune for many. He partnered to form the Gladys City Oil Gas and Manufacturing Company and later, established the Higgins Standard Oil Company.
Pattillo Higgins was born to Roberto James and Sarah (Raye) Higgins on December 5, 1863, in Sabine Pass, Texas. His family moved to Beaumont when he was at six years old. He attended school until he reached the fourth grade, after which he apprenticed as a gunsmith under his father’s direction. In his youth, he was a violent troublemaker, pulling pranks and harassing African Americans. When he was seventeen, he pulled a prank on a black Baptist church that got the attention of a sheriff deputy. The deputy fired a warning shot over Higgins' head, after which Higgins fired back and delivered what would later turn out to be a fatal hit. The wounded deputy managed to fire again, striking Higgins lower left arm. Higgins' arm would later become severely infected, requiring amputation from the elbow down. Higgins was put on trial for the murder of the deputy, but he would be found not guilty by a jury that perceived his act as self-defense. After his acquittal, he worked as a logger along the Texas-Louisiana border, apparently unhindered by his lack of an arm. It was in 1885 that he attended a Baptist revival meeting where he made the decision to become a Christian. Realizing that the lumber camps were not the ideal place to maintain a good morality, he decided to return to Beaumont, Texas to establish himself as a businessman.
Higgins ventured into real estate at first, and with the money that he saved as a logger, he started the Higgins Manufacturing Company to manufacture bricks. The business sparked his interest in oil and gas, as he used it for his kilns to burn the bricks evenly. He decided to travel to Pennsylvania to learn about these fuels and study the geographical features that give signs to the presence of underground oil. Studying geology on his own, he dedicated himself to finding these clues by reading all the United States Geological Survey reports and books that he could find. The details he learned reminded him of what some Beaumont locals back home referred to as "Sour Hill Mound", a place where he frequently brought his Sunday school students for outings. This mound was described as "sour" due to the unpleasant sulfur smell that came out of the springs around it. Convinced that this salt dome mound had oil below it, Higgins first partnered with George O'Brien, George Carroll, Emma John, and J.F. Lanier to form the Gladys City Oil, Gas, and Manufacturing Company in 1892. It was during this time that other formally trained geologists dismissed the idea of finding oil along the gulf coast region of the United States. Higgins' personal integrity was even challenged by the local newspaper. However, his informal training in geology influenced his belief that the Spindletop field contained oil below due to the presence of mineral water and gas seepage, and he managed to convince the partners to proceed with the venture. Work began the following year, but all three of the shallow drilling attempts failed to locate oil due to the shifting sands and unstable clay under the hill. Higgins held onto his ownership and leases of land over the salt dome, but resigned from the company.
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