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Modern oil field, West Texas, circa 1940

Subjects
AutomobilesManufacturing
Card type
Linen
Date
c. 1930 (White Border)
Front of Modern oil field, West Texas, circa 1940, c. 1930 linen postcard
Front
Back of Modern oil field, West Texas, circa 1940, c. 1930 linen postcard
Back

About this postcard

A panoramic view of a West Texas oil field crowded with steel derricks, storage tanks, pipelines and refinery equipment, with a single tall derrick sending up a heavy plume of black smoke; the printed caption names it "Modern Oil Field in West Texas" and promises "Fuel for a Million Cars a Day!" The scene reflects the massive Permian Basin and West Texas oil boom of the 1920s-1940s, when dense forests of wooden and steel derricks transformed the plains around towns such as Odessa, Midland and Wink. The card's linen texture and Curt Teich-style number (5A-H1010) place it in the late 1930s to 1940s, when petroleum production was being promoted as the fuel of American motoring.

Postcard Details

Message

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PublisherMcCormick Co.
Fuel for a Million Cars a Day! Modern Oil Field in West Texas 5A-H1010 --- The three major and several minor oil and gas fields of West Texas include the world's largest natural gas and second largest crude oil pools. DISTRIBUTED BY MCCORMICK CO., PHOTOGRAPHERS, AMARILLO, TEXAS GENUINE CURTEICH-CHICAGO "C.T. ART-COLORTONE" POST CARD (REG. U.S. PAT. OFF.) POST CARD PLACE ONE CENT STAMP HERE
Addressed to

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Postcard record

Series5A-H1010
ConditionVery good
Place depictedWest Texas, TX
PublisherAmarillo, TX
NotesLinen-textured stock with a white border; printed card number 5A-H1010 at lower right, typical of Curt Teich linen issues. No handwriting or address on the front. No postmark. Divided-back C.T. Art-Colortone linen card with white border; printed caption and McCormick Co., Amarillo, Texas imprint; pencil dealer/price mark "FC 100" at top left. No address or message.

Cite this card

Modern oil field, West Texas, circa 1940, postcard, c. 1930. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/modern-oil-field-west-texas-circa-1940. Accessed October 14, 2026.