Arkansas Geography & Economics – Object #3

Drilling crew covered with oil in Smackover oil field

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<p>A group of 13 men pose for a photograph near a Smackover, Arkansas oil well that has blown open, blanketing the entire area with oil. All but 4 of the men are covered in oil from head to toe. The man to the right of the oil covered men is dressed in either white or very light clothing. The man to the left of them is in a darker suit. The clearing is surrounded by forest, with felled lumber and tree stump in the foreground and a steel oil well tower in the background.</p>

Workers are covered in oil from a well that has blown open in Smackover

Questions:

What might have happened in this photograph?

Why might this have occurred?

What were these men likely doing prior to the event?

Who might these more nicely dressed men have been and why were they there?

How might this economic activity impact southern Arkansas at the time?

Citations

Oil Industries of Arkansas Photograph Collection (UALR.PH.0059), UA Little Rock Center for Arkansas History and Culture.