History of Oil

History of Oil

The documentary series History of Oil gives context for the American industrialist and oil merchant John D. Rockefeller and the rise of the standard oil company. The documentary illuminates on the earliest forms of oil and its drilling methods during the ancient times. It also covers the early dependence on oil and how refining came to happen. During that era, kerosene was widely used in lamps to provide lighting at night. John D. Rockefeller is described as the founder of the standard oil company, and was among the wealthiest men in the world. Rockefeller ventured into the non-fully fledged oil business in the early 1860s and made a wide range of investments into the oil industry. He established the standard oil company in the 1970s, and by early 1880s, the company had gained control of over 90 percent of oil refineries in the United States, in addition to its pipelines. To attain its monopoly status, the standard oil company bought rival refineries, developing distribution, and marketing entities to foster a global presence.

However, Rockefeller’s growing wealth became the focus of the press and political debates with numerous accusations levelled against his wealth acquisition procedures. Other oil companies such as gulf oil came to existence and as America introduced cars in the early and mid-20th century, the demand for oil increased. This prompted the country to rely on oil imports in the 1960s to supplement their domestic production. In the early 1970s the Organization for Petroleum Exporting Companies (OPEC) was formed. Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990 and the US sent troops to protect the oil fields. This led to stabilization of oil prices and the American economy was on its feet again.