Sour Lake Case Study

While this is in fact a more recent study the same holds true for older boomtowns. Sour Lake experienced a huge influx of unmarried men to a town with little else to offer other than the work in the oil industry. The town had no bars, no theater, no stores, essentially no businesses other than the hotel. Many of these single men arrived with no shelter or food and no way to attain these things. Consequently, these men had a lot of time on there hands in which to get into trouble. As a result, a significant increase in thieves, murderers, and conmen arrived along with the discovery of oil in Sour Lake. Oil prospectors came to town with promises of future money to come, unfortunately those promises tended to end in failure for most. An …show more content…
The completion of the railroad and the telegraph coupled with the increase in population caused businesses in town to multiply exponentially. Business transactions occurred over long distances with ease and alacrity. The railroad made travel for business effortless. Consequently, in a town that previously had only one business, it suddenly had, within a year, many thriving businesses. These included restaurants, bakeries, hotels, a theater and many merchant’s shops, saloons, and gambling halls. This enormous influx of businesses made life for citizens of Sour Lake easier. Instead of having to travel many miles away to attain necessities they simply walked into town. It seems that all aspects of the oil boom have both positive and negative affects. The restaurants, bakeries, theater, and shops created positive economic growth for the town, on the other hand, the saloons and gambling halls introduced a level of vice to the town it had not known …show more content…
The first purchases made by these companies resulted in the sale of land by landowners in Sour Lake. This alone brought hundreds of thousands of dollars into the area. They also had to acquire wood to build their oil derricks. Nearby towns, known for their lumber industry, would have supplied the lumber for the construction of these derricks. Other parts of Hardin County and throughout Jefferson County had been known for their lumber industry for many years prior to the oil booms. The oil companies procured many of their essentials from local businesses that arrived during 1902. The oil companies employed many people who arrived in town empty handed. Consequently, after the businesses opened up in the business district, when these men received their paychecks they went straight to the local businesses for food, shelter, alcohol, and any additional necessities they needed. The addition of so many people so quickly helped locals and outsiders to create businesses like banks, general stores, clothing stores, restaurants, theaters, and the many, many saloons to cater to their many needs and wants. The oil industry coming to Sour Lake helped to boost the local economy to new heights and continues to do so