Archival Collections
The Petroleum Museum’s Library & Archives Center collects, organizes, and maintains collections of personal papers from leaders in the oil and gas industries and prominent individuals of the Permian Basin. While the Center has been collecting for over 40 years, not every collection has been fully processed and catalogued. We are currently working on addressing this need. Below are the collections that have been fully processed thus far.
In an effort to make its collections available to researchers, the Petroleum Museum has participated in two digitization projects, University of North Texas’ Portal to Texas History and Texas State Library & Archives Commission’s Train to Share project. Check out the Photographic Prints and Negatives page for more information.
Archive Reference Policy (pdf file)
Following is a list of catalogs of collections available in the Petroleum Museum Archives:
(All are Adobe PDF files -The actual contents are not available on line).
Partial List of Periodicals
Periodical Inventory
Single Periodicals & Newsletters Inventory
Biographical & Historical Files Finding Aid
Annual Report and Stock Pamphlet Inventory
George H.W. Bush Collection
This collection consists of photographs, news clippings, magazine articles, and correspondence covering President George H. W. Bush and his time in Midland. The collection includes information about his career in the oil industry, family, visits to the Petroleum Museum, election to the Hall of Fame and political career.
George W. Bush Collection
This collection consists of photographs, news clippings, magazine articles and other materials that cover President George W. Bush’s political career, especially the 2000 presidential election as well as information about the familiy’s homes in Midland and his wife Laura Bush.
Calvin J “Red” Davidson Collection
The collection consists of drilling contracts, well completion records, well logs, and maps related to wells of the Davidson Drilling Company located in Ector, Yoakum, and Dawson Counties, Texas, as well as other locations. The documents are dated from 1925 to 1970 and undated.
Richard Donnelly Collection
This collection consists of oil company annual reports, quarterly reports, proxy statements, newsletters, and investment updates for Parker Drilling, Rowan Industries, Halliburton Company, and Exxon.
John David Grissett Collection
This collection is comprised of news clippings, company magazines, photographs, typed stories and memories about Texon and the people who lived there.
E.H. Griswold Collection
This collection is comprised of mineral and field maps of the Permian Basin as well as maps of oil and natural gas pipelines in the United States.
Berte Haigh Collection
This collection consists of research materials and gallery prints for Haigh’s book Land, Oil, and Education (1986), as well as information on University Lands and miscellaneous papers, reports and articles on geology. Materials date from 1881 through 1979.
Eugene Holman Collection
This collection consists of correspondence between J. Conrad Dunagan, Eugene Holman and Carl Coke Rister. Additional biographical information can be found in the collection along with newspaper clippings referencing Eugene Holman.
Carl B. King Collection
This collection consists of documents and other records related to the Carl B. King Drilling Company. The records pertain to the company’s drilling operations in Texas and other states, dated from the early 1920s through the 1960s.
Mitch Mayborn Collection
This collection contains prints, clippings and other documents related to the publication of the New Literature and New Tools sections of the magazine Drilling from 1981 through 1983. It also contains drawings, manuscripts and other documents related to the oil industry.
Samuel Myres Collection
This collection consists of oral history transcripts, county histories, biographical files, maps, newspaper clippings, and a variety of miscellaneous and unidentified materials. Documents in this collection were used to produce the two volume set entitled, The Permian Basin, by Samuel Myres.
Jerome O’Brien Collection
This collection pertains to Jerome O’Brien’s personal and professional life, particularly relating to the oil and gas industries in West Texas and for the nation.
Bruce Partain Collection
This collection consists of photographs and slides taken and collected by Bruce Partain of the oil industry and life in the Permian Basin.
Frank T. Pickrell Collection
This collection consists of news clippings, photographs, company annual reports, correspondence and other materials related to Frank T. Pickrell and/or the Texon Oil & Land Co.
Randolph Rubin Collection
This collection contains letters, article clippings, photographic prints and negatives, certificates, and other documents relevant to Randolph Rubin’s professional photography career in Midland, Texas, from the 1940s to his death in 1990.
Mike and Pat Smith Collection
This collection consists of 32 photographs depicting Jim Hall and the Chaparral 2E, 2G, and 2H at Riverside Raceway between 1966 and 1969.
W.T. Schneider Collection
This collection contains correspondence, manuscripts, prints, schematics, photographs and maps related to the development and planning of the Permian Basin Petroleum Museum, Library and Hall of Fame. Some materials date between 1968 and 1974; however, most are undated.
Robert Stine Collection
This collection consists of publications, pamphlets, photographs and other documents related to Alyeska Pipeline Company in Alaska and ESSO in Libya. Most material dates from the late 1960s and 1970s or undated.
Billy Glenn Thompson Collection
This collection includes periodicals, reports, newspaper articles, correspondence, and maps related to Thompson’s work as a journalist covering the petroleum and energy news of Texas. Most material dates from the 1970s, with dates ranging from 1963 through 1987.
Gilbert C. Thomspon Collection
This collection contains oil supply company catalogues and brochures, photographs and other advertising materials. The focus is on companies from Texas as well as Oklahoma.
Jake Wells Collection
This collection contains published and unpublished manuscript materials related to the petroleum industry, including electrical logs, supply catalogs and documents related to the Texas Railroad Commission. Most are dated from the 1960s and 1970s; however, there are some items dated earlier and later.
Phil Yeckel Collection
This collection consists of correspondence to and from Phil Yeckel concerning the business of King, Warren & Dye in Midland, Texas, and surrounding areas from 1945 through 1958.
Oral History Inventory
The museum’s holdings of oral histories were collected by Samuel Myres and/or Betty Orbeck in preparation for the two volume set entitled, The Permian Basin. Oral histories prepared by museum staff to augment the Hall of Fame collection are also included in this collection. Oral histories are on magnetic cassette tapes and may have a transcript available.
Hall of Fame Collection
This collection is comprised of institutional documents, including correspondence, scripts, transcripts, notes, biographies, contracts, budgets, photographs and videos covering the Hall of Fame nomination and election process, candidates and honorees, and induction dinners from 1968 through the present. Materials relating to the creation of the Hall of Fame and its procedures, communication between honorees and museum officials, and the logistics of the induction ceremony including the celebration, video/AV presentation, biographies of honorees, press for the event and the Friday brunch are also included in this collection.
Institutional Documents Finding Aid
This collection consists of correspondence, notes, contracts, budgets, public relations materials and media and other materials related to the Permian Basin Petroleum Museum, its personnel, programs and events. These materials are divided by museum departments and filed alphabetically by subject and within each subject, filed chronologically if necessary. This collection of institutional documents has been collected by the archives and is not accessioned into the permanent collection. These files are active and are still accruing. Some material may be restricted and may be withheld from researchers.
Institutional Photos Inventory
This collection contains slides, photographs, negatives, digital prints and photos of the Petroleum Museum, its personnel, programs and events. Photos are divided into series by media: slides, prints and negatives and filed alphabetically by subject and within each subject, filed chronologically if necessary. These files are institutional documents and are not accessioned into the permanent collection. Material was collected by volunteers and the museum over the life of the archives and continues to grow. These files are active and still accruing, and are for institutional use only.
For more information, contact the Collections Manager.
