James C. Henry, Midland, TX

1934 –

Inducted 2009

Born in Colombia to American parents, Jim Henry grew up in Oklahoma City. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in petroleum engineering from the University of Oklahoma. Henry served two years in the Air Force researching liquid hydrogen at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Dayton, Ohio. After working for Humble Oil & Refining Company as an engineer in the computing group and for Skelly Oil Company as a reservoir engineer, Henry co-founded H&L Consultants in 1969 with partner Bob Landenberger. A few years later, they formed Henry & Landenberger, Inc. as independent operators, drilling their first well in August of 1971. The firm concentrated on exploration, drilling, and production in the Permian Basin with primary emphasis on the Spraberry formation. In 1977, Henry bought out Landenberger, renaming the company Henry Petroleum Corporation. By 1983, the company had 24 employees and 34 successful wells. Three years later, Henry sold his company’s assets to Concho Resources. He later started Henry Resources LP, where he still serves as CEO.