Edwin Drake becomes the first American to strike oil while drilling in Titusville, Pennsylvania, finding the first productive oil well in the United States. Drake's well had been nicknamed "Drake's Folly" because of the methods he devised to overcome the difficulties he encountered. In the end, at 69.5 feet (21 m), Drake was successful.
His pioneering work led to the growth of an oil industry that made many people very rich, Drake failed to patent his drilling invention, lost all of his savings in oil speculation and ended up broke. In 1872, Pennsylvania voted an annuity of $1,500 to the "crazy man" whose determination founded the oil industry. More
