~1870, Oil Regions of Pennsylvania

Historic 3D image adapted for VR. Image from the Getty Museum Collection. This image includes a barge loaded with barrels. Oil is of course priced by the barrel, and that's how it travelled. Note also - oil at this time was used for lighting. This image is from a couple decades before the invention of the automobile, and at this time gasoline was just a waste product you would dump. Some oil derricks visible in the distance in addition to the closer one. I think I learned most of what I know about the oil regions from the book "Titan - The Life of John D Rockefeller, Sr." by Ron Chernow. This image does a good job of illustrating the proliferation of oil wells that Rockefeller saw the need to consolidate in order to keep the business profitable. This image is of interest to anyone curious about historic headwear in Pennsylvania. Quite a variety in one photo. Stereograph image source: https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/107FTF