Archibald Dingman and the Canadian Oil Boom
by Matt Badiali
October 3, 2006

Archibald W. Dingman tapped Alberta’s first “gusher” on May 14, 1914, at Sheep Creek, a desolate patch of ranchland at the foothills of the Canadian Rockies…

The crude from Dingman’s well was so light and sweet that, later on, visitors to the well site would put it directly into their gas tanks for the drive home.

In the 1910s, there were only a few cowboys and not much else in that part of Canada. Seeping gas ruined Sheep Creek for drinking, but it was a natural place to drill Canada’s first oil well.

Dingman was a veteran of the American oil fields. He was in charge of drilling and knew the value of experience when it came to drilling wells. In 1912, after founding the Calgary Petroleum Products Co., he brought experienced drillers and equipment in from the oil patches of Indiana and Pennsylvania.

Dingman’s partner, a local rancher named William Herron, is credited with first “discovering” gas in the region, when he observed gas bubbling up from the ground along the edge of Sheep Creek.

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But, the truth is, western Canadian settlers and natives alike knew about the oil and gas long before they knew what to do with it. Native people used the oil to seal their canoes and made an ointment for wounds from it. It wasn’t until the advent of kerosene and the Pennsylvania oil boom that Albertans noticed the wealth beneath their feet.

By the late 1930s, Sheep Creek and the surrounding Turner Valley were booming. With all the new drilling rigs, pipeline crews, truckers, and workmen, the population had mushroomed by 700%.

In 1947, the boom ended as fast as it began. They made a new oil discovery in Leduc, near Edmonton. The find drained the Turner Valley of men and equipment nearly overnight. The parade of oil discoveries moved on after that, leaving the Turner Valley as a footnote in Canadian oil history...

The Turner Valley never recovered. But Alberta, as a province, is currently enjoying a massive resurgence. Right now, there are over 360 conventional drilling rigs in Alberta, up from an average of 330 in 2005.

Today, Alberta produces 70% of Canada’s crude oil and 80% of its natural gas. About 75% of industry spending takes place there as well. I’m sure you’ve heard of where the bulk of this money goes: The trillion-barrel-plus deposits located in the Athabascan tar sands.

As an oil speculator, figuring out ways to profit from Alberta’s oil boom is an integral part of my strategy.

I currently have two high-yielding energy trusts in my portfolio with exposure to Alberta… and I’m looking for more. If you’re interested in padding your retirement with these inflation-proof investments, I recommend you do the same.

Good investing, Matt Badiali

P.S. My friend and master resource investor Rick Rule describes Athabasca’s spectacular energy potential as “Persian Gulf-style.” I agree. If you’d like to learn my number one investment in this area, consider a risk-free trial subscription to the S&A Oil Report. Click here for more details.