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Our region is legendary because of our claim to fame as the birthplace of the modern petroleum industry. But what does that really mean? Similar to the California gold rush of the mid-1800s, the Oil Region was once teeming with people from every walk of life who flocked here to either try to get rich drilling oil or to make a new life in one of the industries that sprang up to support the oil industry. Rockefeller, Tarbell, Heisman, Coal Oil Johnny, John Wilkes Booth, Ben Hogan and French Kate. Grand old estates, historic factories, and boomtowns that busted like Pithole City; once with a population of 15,000, it came and went in 500 days.
Get a better understanding of how this place and this period in time changed the course of history and every day since.
Take a walking or driving tour. Visit a museum. Attend a lecture or workshop and learn more about this fascinating time in American history.
Walking Tours are available in each community.
Franklin Area Chamber of Commerce,
1255 Liberty St., Franklin, PA
Perry St. Station,
Oil Creek & Titusville Railroad
409 S. Perry St., Titusville, PA
(open seasonally)
The Oil Region Alliance manages the Oil Region National Heritage Area. As a program of the National Park Service, National Heritage Areas preserve the history of significant places in our nation’s past similar to how National Parks preserve rugged landscapes and natural wonders. The Oil Region Alliance interprets the history of the area in a multitude of ways including development of reference materials such as brochures, books, lectures, workshops, programming, and interpretive panels, those table-like signs depicting people and places of interest. There are more than 80 throughout the ORNHA!
Learn more at: https://oilregion.org/heritage/
This site is a project of the Oil Region Alliance, designated marketing organization for Venango County, Pennsylvania, and funded by Venango County Hotel Tax.
Website Development by Blue Canopy Marketing