The Legend of William G. Skelly
William G. Skelly, also known as Bill Skelly, made waves in the oil and aviation industry with his many accomplishments and contributions. From founding the Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology to organizing the first International Petroleum Exposition Skelly has carved his name in history as being one of the giants in the oil industry as well as a great leader and entrepreneur. From early on Skelly showed tremendous dedication and work ethic to become the man that he was. With the anniversary of his passing vastly approaching, I would like to honor him by talking about his life and some of many accomplishments he made to both the aviation and oil industry.
William G. Skelly was born to Irish and English
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Paul Getty. Due to the Great Depression, Skelly fell into hard times. The company, in efforts to cut cost, transferred some of their employees to Tidewater Associated Oil Company, under the control of J. Paul Getty. The employees were later transferred back to Skelly, but the Getty’s made a cash loan, giving Skelly Oil, held stock, and some of Mr. Skelly’s stock as collateral for the loan. The company was unable to repay the loan, so the stock was transferred to Mission Corporation. Coincidently, the holding company that the stocks were transferred to were the same company that controlled Tidewater, owned by the Gettys. Skelly remained CEO until his untimely death in 1957. The Skelly Oil Company was later merged into the Getty Oil Company in 1977 and soon after the Skelly brands were discontinued. All of the Skelly gas stations were renamed to Getty.
Although the Skelly Oil Company had its hard times, it wasn’t all bad. Skelly Oil was one of the early leaders in off shore drilling and a pioneer of LPG products which established a role in conversion and fuel fabrication in the nuclear power. They also were among the first to develop a network of truck stops along major highways and, uniquely, offered a credit card to its female customers, in the shade of light
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In 1928 he purchased the Mid-Continent Aircraft Company and reorganized it as the Spartan Aircraft Company. Located near Tulsa Municipal Airport in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Spartan Aircraft Company operated until 1961 manufacturing aircrafts, aircraft components, and recreational vehicle trailers. The Spartan aircrafts were known for their stable and sturdy construction. The company hit hard times in the 1930s because of the great depression, but that didn’t stop the company from flourishing. In the 1930s and 1940s the company started manufacturing several models of aircrafts including the Spartan Executive. Most notable for its sleek, low-wing cabin designed, this aircraft was designed as a corporate aircraft. The Spartan Executive would be an augury for business aircrafts for later
Rockefeller was America’s first billionaire, and he was the true epitome of capitalism. Rockefeller was your typical rags-to-riches businessman, and at the turn of the twentieth century, while everyone else in the working class was earning ten dollars max every week, Rockefeller was earning millions. There has been much discussion as to whether Rockefeller’s success was due to being a “robber baron”, or as a “captain of industry”. By definition, a robber baron was an industrialist who exploited others in order to achieve personal wealth, however, Rockefeller’s effect on the economy and the lives of American citizens has been one of much impact, and deserves recognition. He introduced un-seen techniques that greatly modified the oil industry. During the mid-nineteenth century, there was a high demand for kerosene. In the refining process from transforming crude oil to kerosene, many wastes were produced. While others deemed the waste useless, Rockefeller turned it into income by selling them. He turned those wastes into objects that would be useful elsewhere, and in return, he amassed a large amount of wealth. He sold so much “waste” that railroad companies were desperate to be a part of his company. However, Rockefeller demanded rebates, or discounted rates, from the railroad companies, when they asked to be involved with his business. By doing so, Rockefeller was able to lower the price of oil to his customers, and pay low wages to his workers. Using these methods,
Fifth Edition Vol 2, New York: Longman, 1999. Hidey, Ralph W. and Muriel E. "History of Standard Oil Company (New Jersey), Vol. 1" Pioneering in Big Business" " Taking Sides Clashing Views on Controversial Issues in American History" eds.
The oil industry began to expand because of the use of kerosene lamps. Rockefeller renamed the business to Standard Oil Company when his brother William, Andrews, Henry M. Flagler, S.V. Harkness, and others joined his partnership. The company reached a capitol of $1million.
Airmen: An Illustrated History: 1939-1949.” Oct. 2012. Vol. 65 Issue 4, pg. 316-319. 4p. Ebsco Host. Tucker, Phillip Thomas, 1953. Web.2014.
Doolittle was the most accomplished aviator of his generation, from his PhD in aeronautics to his daring stunt flying ca...
Growing up in McKinney, Texas, Lewis did many odd jobs before he was in the Texas National Guard. He was a bread truck driver for a bakery and worked on cars, to name a few . The life in Texas at the time of Lewis’ high school years was about economic expansion, with petroleum being the basic regional builder in the south west. Oil made the region’s economy different, where as it used to depend on agriculture and timber. But oil fueled the growing automobile industry, with every 4.3 Texans having a car by 1929. By 1930, Texas...
In March of 1924, Lindbergh enrolled in the Army Air Service Cadet Program in San Antonio, Texas. Determined to make aviation his career, he dedicated himself to the studies of aeronautics in March, 1...
the blues were a type of black folk song little known beyond the southern United
Pratt, Joseph A. “Exxon and the Control of Oil.” Journal of American History. 99.1 (2012): 145-154. Academic search elite. Web. 26. Jan. 2014.
Born in Niles, Ohio in 1843, William McKinley attended Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania and had planned to become a Methodist minister. Sadly, McKinley was only able to attend for one term because of illness and financial disabilities. When the Civil War began, McKinley was teaching at a country school; he enlisted as a private in the Union Army, McKinley quickly rose up in ranks to become a brevet major on the staff of Rutherford B. Hayes, who eventually became a lifelong friend and a mentor. (Cite) After the Civil War, McKinley returned to Ohio to begin studying law and politics at Albany Law School. McKinley passed the bar exam in 1867 and began his legal practice in Canton, Ohio. In 1869, when he began his career in politics, he met his future wife Ida Saxton at a picnic in Canton and wed two years later.
This is especially obvious within the context of the lower Mississippi Delta, where for many Louisianans; oilrigs provide them with jobs. Humans are dependent on oil as one of Earth’s limited resources, and it is central to our way of life: transportation, heating fuel, electric generation, common materials, and even plays a role in making our food (Catherine Gautier). The economic profits of oil are many; new technologies and innovations with oil as a key contributor are making for a prosperous future.
Many have heard of the Tuskegee Airmen and their accomplishments. They were a group of African American fighter pilots. They proved to be quite vital to the success of World War II. What many people may not know is the Tuskegee Airmen had several squadrons which fought throughout Europe during the war. The most famous squadron was the 332nd fighter squadron, they were commonly known as the Red Tails. Charles McGee was among those men apart of the Red Tail squadron. Charles McGee is one of most notable men in the Red Tails due to his accomplishments throughout the war. I will be explaining his life and all of his accomplishments throughout this paper on famous individuals in aviation.
...o chance of competing with Standard Oil due to all the tactics they employed to keep their prices low. This ravished small town families and had a similar effect as to what Wal-Mart does to family run shops nowadays. Numerous families living in small town America lost their income because of Standard Oil and forced hardship upon many.
In the 1870’s, J. D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company was established as a monopoly in the petroleum refining industry in the United States. How he managed to achieve this has always been an economic puzzle because the refining industry, at that time, had many small firms. Moreover, there were minimal barriers to entry into the industry. By 1879, Rockefeller was in control of more than 90 percent of the US’s refining capacity and “maintained a dominant share of refining, in spite of the fact that entry into refining remained easy” (Granitz and Klein 1996, p. 2). Over time, there have been many efforts to explain the Company’s growth; the most sophisticated economic discussion of the monopoly creation is by Elizabeth Granitz and Benjamin Klein in their 1996 article. In 2012, George Priest from Yale University offered an alternative theory for the success of Standard’s refining monopoly. This paper will provide a critical summary of the key issues raised in both the articles.
Stimson, Richard. "Wright Brothers Tribute at Woodland Cemetary." Wright Stories Wright Brothers Inventing The Airplane History of Flight Kitty Hawk Wright Contemporaries Military Airplane RSS. Wright Stories, n.d. Web. 13 May 2014.