Michel T. Halbouty
Encyclopedia
Michel Thomas Halbouty was an American geologist
, petroleum engineer
, and wildcatter
. Credited with discovering more than 50 oil and gas fields, he twice declared bankruptcy, but came back each time to regain wealth. He authored hundreds of technical articles on petroleum geology
, and two book-length histories of famous oil fields. Halbouty is often described, including in his New York Times obituary, as “legendary.”
oil field south of Beaumont.
He enrolled at Texas A&M University
at age 16. Although he was short of funds, the president of the university personally gave him a $50 loan to cover tuition. He was graduated in 1930 with a double degree in Geology
and Petroleum Engineering
. The following year he gained a masters degree from Texas A&M, again in both Geology and Petroleum Engineering. He always wore his A&M ring on his left-hand ring finger, and was instrumental in persuading George H. W. Bush
to locate his presidential library on the A&M campus.
He discovered his first oil field in 1931, only six weeks out of college, when as a wellsite geologist for the Yount-Lee Oil Co. he persuaded the owner not to abandon an apparent dry hole, but to drill deeper. Halbouty staked his job on the result, and drilled into the prolific High Island Field in Texas.
Halbouty served in the US Army during World War II
, as an infantry officer, instructor in military science and tactics, and as Chief of the Petroleum Production Section of the Army-Navy Petroleum Board. He attained the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel
by the end of the war.
Halbouty was an outspoken proponent of increased American domestic exploration for oil and gas, rather than reliance on foreign sources. He was highly critical of oil companies that cut back exploration efforts in the period of low oil prices during the 1980s and 90s, and especially of the efforts of T. Boone Pickens to dismantle exploration departments at various US oil companies. Halbouty was fond of citing Wallace Pratt
's dictum that "Oil is found in the minds of men", to encourage more creativity in oil exploration.
Halbouty died at age 95, while working on a West Texas oil project.
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
, petroleum engineer
Petroleum engineering
Petroleum engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the activities related to the production of hydrocarbons, which can be either crude oil or natural gas. Subsurface activities are deemed to fall within the upstream sector of the oil and gas industry, which are the activities of...
, and wildcatter
Wildcatter
A wildcatter is an American term for a person who drills wildcat wells, which are oil wells drilled in areas not known to be oil fields. A wildcatter notable for his success was Texan oil tycoon Glenn McCarthy....
. Credited with discovering more than 50 oil and gas fields, he twice declared bankruptcy, but came back each time to regain wealth. He authored hundreds of technical articles on petroleum geology
Petroleum geology
Petroleum geology refers to the specific set of geological disciplines that are applied to the search for hydrocarbons .-Sedimentary basin analysis:...
, and two book-length histories of famous oil fields. Halbouty is often described, including in his New York Times obituary, as “legendary.”
Biography
Halbouty's father, a Lebanese immigrant, ran a grocery store. Michel Halbouty got his first job in the oil business as a boy, bringing ice water to the drillers at the SpindletopSpindletop
Spindletop is a salt dome oil field located in the southern portion of Beaumont, Texas in the United States. The Spindletop dome was derived from the Louann Salt evaporite layer of the Jurassic geologic period. On January 10, 1901, a well at Spindletop struck oil . The new oil field soon produced...
oil field south of Beaumont.
He enrolled at Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
at age 16. Although he was short of funds, the president of the university personally gave him a $50 loan to cover tuition. He was graduated in 1930 with a double degree in Geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
and Petroleum Engineering
Petroleum engineering
Petroleum engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the activities related to the production of hydrocarbons, which can be either crude oil or natural gas. Subsurface activities are deemed to fall within the upstream sector of the oil and gas industry, which are the activities of...
. The following year he gained a masters degree from Texas A&M, again in both Geology and Petroleum Engineering. He always wore his A&M ring on his left-hand ring finger, and was instrumental in persuading George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
to locate his presidential library on the A&M campus.
He discovered his first oil field in 1931, only six weeks out of college, when as a wellsite geologist for the Yount-Lee Oil Co. he persuaded the owner not to abandon an apparent dry hole, but to drill deeper. Halbouty staked his job on the result, and drilled into the prolific High Island Field in Texas.
Halbouty served in the US Army during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, as an infantry officer, instructor in military science and tactics, and as Chief of the Petroleum Production Section of the Army-Navy Petroleum Board. He attained the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
by the end of the war.
Halbouty was an outspoken proponent of increased American domestic exploration for oil and gas, rather than reliance on foreign sources. He was highly critical of oil companies that cut back exploration efforts in the period of low oil prices during the 1980s and 90s, and especially of the efforts of T. Boone Pickens to dismantle exploration departments at various US oil companies. Halbouty was fond of citing Wallace Pratt
Wallace Pratt
Wallace E. Pratt was a pioneer American petroleum geologist.Born in Phillipsburg, Kansas, March 15, 1885, Pratt began his career in geology as an assistant with the Kansas Geological Survey shortly after he graduated from the University of Kansas in 1907 with a bachelor's degree.From 1909 to 1916,...
's dictum that "Oil is found in the minds of men", to encourage more creativity in oil exploration.
Halbouty died at age 95, while working on a West Texas oil project.
Honors and offices
- President of the American Association of Petroleum GeologistsAmerican Association of Petroleum GeologistsThe American Association of Petroleum Geologists is one of the world's largest professional geological societies with over 31,000 members as of 2007. The AAPG works to advance the science of geology , to promote technology, and to inspire high professional conduct...
(AAPG), 1966 - American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum EngineersAmerican Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum EngineersThe American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers is a professional body for mining and metallurgy, with 90,000 members. It was founded in 1871 by 22 mining engineers in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, United States, being one of the first national engineering societies in the...
(AIME) honorary membership, 1973 - Horatio Alger Award, 1978
- Hoover MedalHoover MedalThe Hoover Medal is an American engineering prize.It has been given since 1930 for "outstanding extra-career services by engineers to humanity"...
recipient, 1982 - Honorary "Doctor of Geoscience" degree from the USSR Academy of Sciences, 1990
- Michael T. Halbouty Geosciences Building at Texas A&M College of GeosciencesTexas A&M College of GeosciencesTexas A&M College of Geosciences is a college of Texas A&M University located in College Station, Texas. The college has six academic departments and programs, including Atmospheric Sciences, Geography, Geology & Geophysics, Oceanography, Environmental Programs in Geosciences, and the Water...
- The American Association of Petroleum Geologists awards the Michel T. Halbouty Outstanding Leadership Award to those providing "outstanding and exceptional leadership" in petroleum geosciences.
- Scientific adviser to the Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, People's Republic of ChinaPeople's Republic of ChinaChina , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
- Elected to membership, Chinese Academy of EngineeringChinese Academy of EngineeringThe Chinese Academy of Engineering is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for engineering. It was established in 1994 and is an institution of the State Council of China...
- Honorary Professor in Geology, Nanjing UniversityNanjing UniversityNanjing University , or Nanking University, is one of the oldest and most prestigious institutions of higher learning in China...
, 1993 - "Legendary Geoscientist Award" recipient from the American Geological InstituteAmerican Geological InstituteThe American Geosciences Institute is a nonprofit federation of 45 geoscientific and professional associations that represents more than 100,000 geologists, geophysicists, and other earth scientists...
, 2002
Selected articles
- "Rationale for deliberate pursuit of stratigraphic, unconformity, and paleogeomorphic traps," in Stratigraphic Oil and Gas Fields, (1972) Tulsa, Okla.: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Special Publication 10, p.3-7.
- "Exploration into the new millennium", in Petroleum Provinces of the Twenty-First Century, (2001) Tulsa, Okla.: American Association of Petroleum GeologistsAmerican Association of Petroleum GeologistsThe American Association of Petroleum Geologists is one of the world's largest professional geological societies with over 31,000 members as of 2007. The AAPG works to advance the science of geology , to promote technology, and to inspire high professional conduct...
, Memoir 74.
Books
- Petrographic and Physical Characteristics of Sands from Seven Gulf Coast Producing Horizons, 1937, Houston, Tex.: Gulf Publ. Co.
- Spindletop (with James A. Clark), 1952, New York: Random House,
- Salt Domes, Gulf Region, United States and Mexico, 1969, Houston, Tex.: Gulf Publ. Co.
- Ahead of His Time; Michel T. Halbouty Speaks to the People, (ed. by James A. Clark) 1971, Houston, Tex.: Gulf Publ. Co.
- The Last Boom (with James A. Clark), 1972, New York: Random House, ISBN 0-394-48232-8.
Further reading
- Jack Donohue, (1979) Wildcatter: the Story of Michel T. Halbouty and the Search for Oil, New York: McGraw-Hill, ISBN 9780070175426
- Jack Donohue, (1990) War Without End: Michel T. Halbouty's Fight for American Energy Security, Houston, Tex.: Gulf Pub. Co, ISBN 0872019217 (0-87201-921-7)