Why was Titusville such a hot spot?
When examining and leafing through the centuries old Moore House register, we decided to look at just who was coming to Titusville at the time, where they were coming from, and why? These three bits of information truly helped us to look into the lives of the individuals and determine what was motivating them to come to Titusville.
After Edwin Drake successfully drilled for oil in 1859, Titusville, Pennsylvania transformed from an average town to a prosperous location involved in the spike of the oil industry. His discovery had an immense impact on the evolution of oil throughout America. As a result of this, the Moore House became a popular destination for travelers to stay at when visiting the area. The Drake Well Museum was able to provide us with some of the motel's register pages from many years ago to reveal information about who was staying there and where they were coming from.
The Moore House register contained data such as the guests' name, hometown, spouses and the year in which they visited Titusville. We decided to focus mostly on the locations that the visitors were coming from to get a sense of how far they were willing to travel to become involved in the oil industry.
The graph to the right was made by Hannah McElrath to help us demonstrate the trend of immigration to Titusville. As we projected, Pennsylvania had the highest turnout of travelers. These results can be assumed due to the locality of Drake''s discovery. Many neighboring states such as New York and Ohio revealed a decent amount guests as well.
Meet The Team
My name is Alexis Wagner. I am currently a junior at Clarion University. I am majoring in Political Science with a concentration in Criminal Justice, minoring in History and certifying in Paralegal Studies. I hope to attend law school after graduation at the University of Pittsburgh to study Criminal law. I took this class to learn more about how history can be communicated with the general public. In my free time, I enjoy reading, hanging out with friends, and anything to do with trivia.
My name is Jonathan Williams. I am a proud member of the men’s basketball team at Clarion University. I’m a Liberal arts major with a minor in Social Work. I also have my Associates Degree in Business. I am currently a junior. I plan to graduate from Clarion and attend a University in Pittsburgh to get my Master’s Degree in Social Work. I’m a huge fan of sharks and I find underwater life very interesting.
My name is Andrew Gilara. I am a senior majoring in Ed Secondary Social Studies, with minors in History & Political Science. I’ve always been in love with history of all types. My favorite though, is American political history. In my spare time, I love everything and anything sports related. I’m a volunteer firefighter, play multiple instruments, am a member of the Clarion University Math Club, and I’m currently working on publishing my first paper on sustainable development with Clarion University faculty member, Dr. Valentine Udoh James.
My name is Asia Smith and I am 20 years old. I am an Anthropology major with a minor in Women and Genders Studies. In my free time I like to learn new languages. I am fascinated by different cultures and practices in their societies. After I graduate from college, I would like to spend some time working for the Peace Core and then pursue a masters in linguistics with a concentration in Southeast Asian cultures.
My name is Hannah McElrath. I am a junior Environmental Biology major with an English: Writing minor at Clarion University. I am the president of the university’s chapter of the Wildlife Society and a co-leader of Clarion Cru’s Women’s Ministry. I am originally from Mercer, PA and I enjoy traveling and photography. I am interested in pursuing a career in Environmental Education or something to do with plants/conservation.
My name is Rachel Hutchison. I am a senior History major at Clarion University. I am interested in focusing on National Parks after I graduate and maybe go to Grad School. I am originally from Beaver Falls, PA. I enjoy nature and I love going to Cooks Forest with friends. I hope to be able to reach the community while I am here, and inform the public about the history of Clarion.
Hannah McElrath
Jonathan Williams
Andrew Gilara
Alexis Wagner
Rachel Hutchison
Asia Smith
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The motivations behind the immense immigration were employment and investments. Oil completely dominated over the industries of timber and iron and had drastic impacts on the economy.
It was interesting to identify some of the names on the register. We discovered that some of the guests shared the same name and location but had different spouses. This revealed potential marital affairs occurring at the time.
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Businessmen that later controlled the industry had been frequent visitors, specifically John D. Rockefeller. He established the Standard Oil Company while exporting sales to foreign nations. His business was later found to be in violation of monopoly policies stated in both Ohio and federal laws. However, Drake's discovery formed Rockefeller into one of the most successful and wealthy men throughout history.
The map below is an extended representation of the pie chart displaying the distance that visitors traveled. The plots are pinned on areas that visitors came from with their names or initials attached. Some plots host more than one person and can be viewed by clicking the next arrow on the bottom of the dialogue box for that specific plot. The black pin represents the Moore House. As the map displays, California was the farthest state traveled from. Many towns surrounding Titusville were home to a great majority of those coming to Titusville. Major cities such as Philadelphia, Erie and Cleveland were some of the most popular when touring to become involved in the newly established industry of oil.