Pioneer Oil Refinery History
The Pioneer Refinery in the early 1880's when it was still in use
Besides many newspapers, much of the information for the following history was taken from Gerald White’s “Formative Years in the Far West” (1962). It is the definitive account of the early history of the Chevron Oil Company and of the Newhall Oil District. White did an incredible amount of research for the book. If you are interested in the oil history of this area, it is a must read. The story of the refinery is a little more involved then I expected. The history of the refinery was entwined with the early history of Chevron. The following is a condensed version. Any errors or omissions are my fault. We pick up the story at the end of life of the Lyon's Station refinery. The story of that refinery is here.
Andrew's Station Refinery
In 1876 the Lyon's Station refinery was successful, but the capacity was inadequate for the increasing supply of crude oil. Pico 4 was completed in September, forcing the California Star Oil Works Company (CSOW), owners of the refinery, to make a decision. In early 1877, majority owners Frederick B. Taylor and his junior partner Demetrius G. Scofield came up with a program to increase the production of Pico Canyon by deeper drilling and to construct a larger refinery accessible to rail transportation.
At the end of April, 1877, CSOW selected a five acre site near Andrew Kraszynski's station for a new refinery to replace the Lyon's Station refinery. Andrew's Station was a hotel or inn that was about a mile northwest of Lyon's Station and situated at the mouth of Railroad Canyon. It was constructed by Kraszynski around June of 1875 to take advantage of the railroad that would be coming through that canyon. The station was located next to the stagecoach road and was reported to have 17 rooms. The railroad would be finished in 1876 with Andrew's Station about 1/8 of a mile away. The station was not located next to the railroad tracks, but the train would stop to allow passengers who wanted to go to Andrew's Station to get off. A wagon took them to the station, which was only about 1/4 mile away. Since the refinery was close to the station, it was commonly called the Andrew's Station refinery, which I will also do.
Construction began on the new refinery in May of 1877 and was supervised by Joseph A. Scott, refiner at the Lyon's Station refinery. It was completed in August of 1877. Many claim that the refinery was built in 1876, but that is incorrect. A refinery was constructed by CSOW in 1876, but that was in Ventura. See the appendix at the bottom of this page for more sources.
From the San Francisco Chronicle of May 28, 1877:
"The new still being put up at Andrews Station has a capacity of 120 barrels per day, and the works are being constructed so that five more stills of like capacity can be added without having to increase the size of condensers, agitators or buildings. The various portions of the refinery are being admirably constructed to guard against fire, being so isolated that in the event of one portion taking fire, no danger would occur to the whole. The barreling house is to be situated upon the siding which the railroad company have put in here, and will be 1000 feet from the stills, the oil coming down from the agitator in pipes, and can be loaded by quantity. A number of cars containing lumber, bricks and machinery were being unloaded on the siding; boiler-makers were assailing the cars riveting the new stills, and everything around showed that business was being pushed. The whole scene was in marked contrast to Newhall, four miles north, where a large town exists on paper, and the railroad company have built a large depot, while hardly a person is to be seen or any signs of life appear. It is evident that nature and the eternal fitness of things have destined this to be the coming town, as the oil men locating here will anchor the business, and the natural advantages of shade, sloping surface of the ground for drainage and an abundance of good water, are all the most desirable qualities for locating a town, and all of which Newhall most decidedly lacks. Pennsylvania experiences have demonstrated that where the oil business centers there will the people locate and all the enterprises attendant upon the development of the oil interests will start their factories. Had the refinery been located elsewhere, the future historian would have no occasion to write up the city of Petroliopolis. The telegraph station is called Petroliopolis, and is already doing a good business. In fact the surroundings here at the present moment strongly reminded me of the early days of Pithole, Pennsylvania, where within two months from the time the first well was struck a town of 3000 inhabitants had been built up. During the evening here the talk was all oil, and every one appeared to be much elated over the strike of a 30-barrel flowing well on the Pico Tract, and, as usual, it was called everything from a 30-barrel well up to a 100-barrel one."
Storage tanks of 20 to 100 barrel capacities were built on the hillside above the site. The crude oil would flow by gravity from the tanks to the stills below. The two Lyon's Station stills of 15 and 20 barrel capacity were moved to the site. In January of 1878 a new 100-barrel (sometimes reported as 120-barrel) cheese-box style still built in Titusville, Pennsylvania, was also installed. All three stills were mounted on a brick foundation and were directly fired using oil and the residual oil from earlier refining runs as fuel. The boiling oil produced gases in the stills which rose into iron pipes which were then redirected downward into a large wooden trough at the back of the stills. The trough was filled with cool water which caused the gases to condense into a liquid. The liquid was eventually treated with acid, agitated with air, and washed with water. The final step was Scott's secret treatment, one which he would never divulge. From the refinery, the refined products were piped to barreling house next to the railroad siding (secondary track used by railroads to allow customers at a location to load and unload railcars without interfering with other railroad operations) where it was barreled and transferred to railroad tank cars probably on the siding. By 1900, that siding was called Elayon.
The most complete description of the refinery was in the Ventura Free Press of October 6, 1877:
"The refinery at Andrew's Station is beautifully located in a romantic nook on the San Francisco Rancho, about a thousand feet from the railroad tract. It is located on the side of a gently sloping hill, and so situated that it can be abundantly supplied with water from two springs located just above, and so that the tankage will be in the shade the greater portion of the day. The wide spreading oaks not only serve to adorn the grounds and beautify the landscape, but are useful in giving shade for the immense tanks of oil, a desirable consideration in the dry and warm climate of this inland valley - a climate which would cause a large shrinkage were the tanks exposed to the sun. This refinery is furnished with one 125 barrel still, one 25 barrel and one 18 barrel still. The condenser is 145 feet in length, 5 feet in width and 5 feet deep, holding about 800 barrels of water. The condensing pipes aggregate 1400 feet in length, a portion being of three inch, and the balance of two inch. There is 1,000 feet of two inch pipe used to convey the crude oil to the stills and refined oil to the railroad station, where the tank cars are filled, the oil pouring through by its own gravity. A tank car, with a capacity of 3,200 gallons, can be loaded in about one hour. The amount of tankage for crude is 250 barrels. The tankage for refined oil is also 250 barrels. There are two distillate tanks, holding 250 barrels. The agitator, which holds about 140 barrels, is lined with lead, and alone cost $750. The Blake blower and pump, both of the most approved pattern, are beautiful pieces of machinery. The water and steam pump is another compact and serviceable piece of machinery. Generally there is a sufficiency of gas to furnish fuel for the boiler, while the refuse oil is used for fuel under the stills. These works are said by those who should know to be as complete as any of the same size in the East. Under the management of the refiner, Mr. J. A. Scott, who is also general Superintendent of the Company, as fine illuminating and lubricating oils are made here as at any point in the United States, and they are meeting with a ready market. At this refinery some naptha is also being made.
The railroad company have erected a depot and platform for the use of the [California] Star Oil Works Company, built a switch to facilitate the loading of cars, and otherwise done what they could to encourage the business, believing that it will in time become an important feeder to their line. The cost for the freight per car to San Francisco is $75. In connection with the refinery there is soon to be erected a spacious barreling house, in which the different grades of oil will be put up in neat and convenient packages for the market."
The refinery produced small quantities of benzene and illuminating oil for use on ships, railroads, factories, and mines. Also produced was a light lubricating oil for machinery and a heavy lubricant for sawmills, and the railroad. However, the moneymakers were two grades of kerosene. The actual output at the refinery never averaged more than 750 gallons per day.
Unfortunately, J.A. Scott still had trouble with California crude. The kerosene was of low quality. However, as long as the better eastern oils were scarce and expensive, there was a good market for it. But the kerosene was smoky, smelly, and dangerous to the consumer. It could ignite at too low a temperature. Under increasing fire about his refining abilities, Scott was let go in 1878. He was possibly replaced by James V. Morrison who is mentioned by White (1962) as a long-time refiner at Newhall by 1888. Morrison and Charles D. Kellogg are also mentioned in the Standard Oil Bulletin of September 1930 as one-time refiners at Newhall. Kellogg, who was still alive in 1930, helped with the restoration of the refinery.
The outlook for CSOW was not good. Cheaper and better eastern kerosene was beginning to flood the market causing the price to plummet. Then Beale and Baker filed a lawsuit (which centered on the question of ownership of the Pico claim) to drive CSOW from the Pico Canyon, their main source of crude. Also, the company could not obtain any new financial backing from Eastern sources.
Pacific Coast Oil Company
Pacific Coast Oil Company (PCO) was incorporated on February 19, 1879, in San Francisco by Charles N. Felton and, for some reason, re-incorporated September 10, 1879. PCO was formed for the purpose of developing Felton’s growing oil interests. Felton became the president of the new company. D. G. Scofield was the auditor. Felton, Scofield, F.B. Taylor, and others were members of the board of directors. Felton was soon joined by Lloyd Tevis, called by White (1962) "one of the greatest western capitalists of the nineteenth century." Felton had previously bought the Wiley Canyon claim and the Leaming Canyon claim and shared ownership of other claims in Pico, Rice, and Dewitt Canyons. He also had his eyes on CSOW and, by the time of the incorporation, was probably close to gaining control.
During May and June of 1879, Charles Mentry extended the Pico Canyon pipeline to the Andrew’s Station refinery. Felton was identified as the owner of the pipe. CSOW was already under the influence of Felton. Mentry was also preparing to put up drilling rigs on Felton's Wiley claim.
In June of 1879 the controversy of the ownership of the Pico claim (from legal action started in 1878 by Beale and Baker) currently leased by Rueben Denton in 1876 finally ended. Under the terms of the agreement, CSOW was given the rights to the Pico claim and Beale and Baker received a 3/7 interest in the company and some money. At this time, Felton and Tevis were able to take over CSOW, making it a subsidiary of PCO. However, it was not actually liquidated until 1901.
In July of 1879, the California Star Oil Works Company took out a lease for the refinery land from H.M. Newhall, owner of the Rancho San Francisco. I don't know how they were able to build and operate the refinery without a lease for two years. Interestingly, the lease also stated that CSOW was not allowed to "build or allow to be built on said land any store, hotel, boarding house, bar room, or any business house of any kind whatever." In 1877, Newhall did not extend the lease of Andrew's Station, exactly the kind of business banned from the refinery lease. He evidently did not want any competition for his new town of Newhall.
Moody Gulch
Moody Gulch is located a few miles west of San Jose and 45 miles south of the Golden Gate and was owned by PCO. In October of 1879, a large amount of oil was found. This crude closely resembled the Pennsylvania crude, causing great excitement. At first the oil was shipped to the Andrew's Station refinery. In 1879, a new 150-barrel (sometimes reported as 120-barrel) cheese-box style still (also from Titusville) was added along with a second agitator. However, this was only a temporary arrangement because of the great distance between the refinery and the wells. A new refinery was needed. In early 1880, PCO selected a site on the island of Alameda immediately across the bay from San Francisco just south of Oakland. It was on a spur of the Central Pacific Railroad, accessible to ships, and had a good supply of fresh water. A large, up-to-date plant was constructed. It opened up in Mid-August of 1880 using the production from Moody Gulch and the Pico crude from storage tanks at the Andrew's Station refinery.
Pico Effort
In 1882 PCO began a major drilling effort in Pico Canyon and 14 wells were completed by 1884. Only three were dry. Because of the new production the Alameda refinery and the older Andrew's Station refinery had all the crude they could handle.
The End
The Los Angeles Times of March 28, 1882, reported that "E. A. Edwards, of the Continental Oil Company, is making strenuous efforts to have the Newhall oil refinery moved to Los Angeles and operated here on a large scale." Obviously, that never happened.
While the Alameda plant was being expanded between 1884 and 1887, the Andrew's Station refinery was being downgraded. After April of 1885, it no longer manufactured kerosene and other refined products. Instead, it distilled the lighter products for finishing at Alameda and sold its residual oil as fuel.
In 1888, due to conditions in the north, there was a shortage of fuel oil. In April of 1888, PCO increased production at the older refinery. However, in three months the conditions returned to normal and refinery only occasionally filled orders.
In October of 1888, PCO’s subsidiary CSOW bought the 12.9 acre old refinery site for $5 from the Newhall Land and Farming Company, something it should have done many years earlier. Although the refinery was reaching the end of its service, the site was still useful for storage and for its railroad car loading facilities. However, any water not used by the refinery could be used by the NLFC. If the refinery ceased to be used as a refinery, all the water could be taken. (LA County Recorder, Deeds, Book 513, Page 242-246.)
Sometime before the land sale, a 1000 foot railroad spur (see map below) from the main line would be built (the 1888 deed for the sale of the refinery land mentioned the spur). This would make it easier to store or retrieve crude oil from the large storage tanks on the hill to the south of the refinery because of the shorter distance between the tanks and the railroad line. A little depot called Andrews was built at the end of the spur. The spur was still being used until about 1943 (Don Ball, personal communication). According to Ripley ("The San Fernando Pass and the Pioneer Traffic that Went over It", Historical Society of Southern California, June 1948), the spur was removed in 1948.
In March of 1890 (White, 1962), the old refinery was shut down. Another source says that Standard Oil Company records show that the refinery was shut down in 1888. The Los Angeles Herald of February 10, 1887, reported that the refinery had been continuously operated since it was built. The Los Angeles Evening Express of December 31, 1889, stated that "...the Pacific Coast Oil Company formerly operated the refinery at Newhall, but now find it more convenient to transport the crude to the gread oil refinery at Alameda Point." So it would appear that refining ended between 1887 and 1889 but Standard didn't officially close the refinery until 1890.
After Death
In 1900, Standard Oil Company of New Jersey puchased PCO, retaining it as a subsidiary. In 1901, after obtaining all the outstanding shares of CSOW, PCO closed that company out with a simple bookeeping transaction (White, 1962).
In 1906, PCO and other smaller companies owned by Standard Oil of New Jersey were consolidated into a Standard Oil Company of California, a subsidiary of Standard Oil of New Jersey.
On March 31, 1909, Newhall Land and Farming sold two acres adjacent to the refinery land to the Standard Oil Company (LA County Recorder, Deeds, Book 3643, Pages 277-279).
In 1911, Standard Oil Company of California became an independent company after the U.S. Government won an anti-trust lawsuit against Standard Oil of New Jersey. Demetrius G. Scofield became the first president of the new company.
In 1918, some of the refinery equipment was cannibalized for the war (World War I) effort.
From "Los Angeles in the 1930's: The WPA Guide to the City of Angels", a book funded by the Federal Writers Project of the Works in Progress Administration first published in 1941 comes this false statement:
In 1924, the Pioneers Petroleum Society of California acquired the abandoned refinery, and some land around it, to make a memorial to California's early petroleum producers. The carefully restored stills, retorts, and vats are seen grouped together in a small canyon. The four stills, with a combined capacity of 330 barrels, rest on brick furnaces below a ridge on which the old receiving tank stands.
The Pioneers Petroleum Society was formed in 1924 "to perpetuate the memory and achievements of the men instrumental in developing the oil industry of the West." The first president, and the prime mover in starting the society, was W.W. Orcutt of the Union Oil Company. They certainly did not have the money to buy the property and do any restoration work. All the records show that the refinery was restored by Standard Oil in 1930. It was always their property until they donated it away in 1998. Why such a false statement was included in the book is a mystery to me.
In 1929, an article in the Los Angeles Times dated January 1, 1929, states that William S. Hart, the famous cowboy movie star, appeared before the County Board of Supervisors to protest against the establishment of an oil refinery near his ranch at Newhall. At the close of his speech, the board denied the request of the Newhall Refinery Company and famous inventory Milon J. Trumble (around 1911 he invented the first continuously operating still and eventually had at least 66 patents to his name) to build a refinery near the Hart mansion. It is possible that they planned to purchase the long unused old refinery site from Standard, which was near the railroad and already had storage tanks on the nearby hill. If not, the site probably was very near the old refinery, which was, and still is, very near the Hart mansion. Smoke certainly would have made living at the mansion very uncomfortable.
In 1930, shortly after the death of Standard Oil Company’s first president D. G. Scofield, the refinery was restored by Standard. Leading the effort was Standard's Pico superintendent Charles Sitzman. Also helping was Charles D. Kellogg, one of the last refiners at the refinery. The refinery was dedicated in Scofield's honor and renamed the “Pioneer Oil Refinery”.
On March, 6, 1935, the Pioneer Oil Refinery became California State Historical Landmark #172.
According to an article in The Signal of July 29, 1948, the Standard Oil Company planned to "tidy the place up and make it more available to sightseeing tourists." "The road will be regraveled, the site tidied up and directional signs placed to call the attention of the traveling public to the historic exhibit."
An Oakland Tribune article from January 25, 1961 says:
The Standard Oil Co. will build a museum at the Richmond refinery to house relics of the company operation which range from the first derrick and early containers to modern developments. The $56,000 museum will be constructed on a site just east of the gymnasium at the Rod and Gun Club and will be of redwood, brick, stucco, and glass. The city building department is checking plans for the 5,200-square-foot, one-story building and company officials say they hope to have the museum completed by fall. The first equipment is being gathered now. In addition to the derrick which is at Pico Canyon near Los Angeles, the first still used by the company will be brought from Newhall. Some wagons used in the operation in the early 1900's and a 1902 automobile will also be included in the collection.
An article from the San Francisco Chronicle from June 13, 1961 (see below) states that on June 25th, Standard Oil would dedicate a new Historical Museum at the company's Richmond Refinery site in California. The article also states that "In front of the building are two of the largest of the exhibits. One is a restoration of the first commercial oil well in California, brought from its site in Pico Canyon, Los Angeles county. The other is the state's first oil refinery [i.e. stills #1 & #2 from the Pioneer Refinery], transported from its original site near Newhall, also in Los Angeles county." The article also states that the museum cost $100,000. After early 1961, Pioneer Refinery photos do not show stills #1 and #2 or the boiler anymore.
In February of 1966 (San Francisco Examiner, February 1, 1966), Standard Oil opened a new oil museum in San Francisco at their 555 Market Street headquarters. They called the exhibit the "World Of Oil." This museum evidently superceeded the Richmond oil museum, because no newspapers ever mention it again. Since the Richmond museum was located on Standard's refinery property, it was easy to close it to public access.
After that, the stills seemed to have disappeared. But finally, Leon Warden was notified of their existance by Chevron in April of 2016. See here for that story.
On September 27, 1975, the refinery was honored by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers by being named the National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark #8 as the first successful refinery in California. See here for the dedication ceremony program (PDF - 4MB).
In 1977, Standard Oil Company of California changed their name to Chevron.
In 1998, Chevron donated the refinery site to the City of Santa Clarita.
On December 11th, 2020, the refinery was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This is the "official list of the Nation's historic places worthy of preservation."
For almost 20 years the city has done no work on the refinery. Mostly they have been waiting the the developer, who would be paying most of the refinery restoration costs, to begin construction of a massive industrial park that would stretch from Sierra Highway to Pine Street surrounding the refinery site. This project was first called the Gate-King Industrial Park and now called the Center at Needham Ranch. Although originally approved by the city in 2003, it was not started until 2017. The eastern part (adjacent to Sierra Highway) has been completed and in January of 2021 the western part, facing Pine Street.
With construction on the western side beginning, the city (using contractor Spectrum) has finally started work on the refinery's stablization and restoration. Preliminary tasks have been completed or are in the process of completion. For their protection, all five of the free-standing tanks have been moved offsite. The pump house was disassembled with the pieces, including the engine and pump, moved to a storage container. The stills won't be moved, but parts, such as the chimneys will be stablized. When the industrial park has been completed, the refinery and pump house will be restored and re-assembled.
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Demetrius G. Scofield |
Charles N. Felton |
From the Los Angeles Herald of December 13, 1873. Information on the building of the refinery at Lyon's Station.
Plans for the restoration of the refinery. Not everything that was planned was done. From the Los Angeles Times of March 3, 1930.
Article from the California Oil World of November 6, 1930, about the restoration of the refinery. The refinery was constructed in 1877, not 1876.
Photo of plaque taken by Barbara Sitzman Cook on May 31,1966. The refinery was constructed in 1877, not 1876, as the plaque says.
California's First Oil Refinery
Operated on a Commercial Scale
Erected 1876
Restored by the Standard Oil Company of California in 1930 as a Memorial to
D. G. Scofield
and his Pioneer Associates
of the California Star Oil Works Company
A Predecessor of the Standard Oil Company of California
In 1875 - 1876 Mr. Scofield and his associates obtained California's first
commercial production of crude petroleum in Pico Canyon six miles
northwest of this point and built this refinery for the
manufacture of petroleum products.
Copyright Note: This image is NOT in the public domain and was used by permission of the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society, Barbara Sitzman Cook Collection.
From the Fourth Annual Report of the State Mineralogist for the Year Ending May 15, 1884, p. 303.
From the Los Angeles Times of January 1, 1887, we read that the refinery was still being used.
Here is a map of the 1000 foot railroad spur line with Andrews Depot at the end. A close-up of the depot and oil house is shown. Andrews Depot was not the same as the 17-room Andrew's Station, but only named after it. (Map is from the Map and Drawing Collection of the California State Railroad Museum Library.)
The Alameda Refinery was constructed and opened in 1880, dooming the Pioneer Refinery
The Richmond Refinery was started in 1901 and opened in 1902. It would replace the Alameda Refinery. It is still in use today. (Photo from a postcard)
The Newhall Signal of July 29, 1948, reports on some planned work to be done at the refinery.
From the San Francisco Chronicle of June 14, 1961, is this photo of the nearly completed Standard Oil Museum in Richmond, Ca. The first oil refinery were stills # 1 and #2 from the Pioneer Oil Refinery. The "pump works" also came from Pico Canyon. The article also says that the derrick restoration in front of the museum was "brought from its site in Pico Canyon." I know of no replica derrick in Pico in 1961 that they could have taken for the museum.
From the California Oil World of June 1961. They used the same story from the San Francisco Chronicle, but a different photo. This is the photo.
There was some controversy about the removal of the two stills from the Pioneer Oil Refinery in Newhall. Evidently, Standard did not tell anyone in Newhall what their plans were. From the Newhall Signal of October 5, 1961.
By November of 1961, the museum two-still refinery was completed. From the Newhall Signal of November 9, 1961. See here for current (2016) views of the stills at the now closed museum site.
This is an aerial view of the Chevron Richmond, Ca, refinery. The red arrow is pointing to the location of the old Standard Oil Museum.
A closer view from above. The boiler is circled on the left and the chimney for the stills is on the right. The museum is below them in the building with the red roof. The Ethyl News magazine of 1961 reported that the museum is in a "36 x 140 foot redwood and glass building". The date that the museum closed is unknown.
Pioneer Refinery dedicated as a mechanical engineering landmark on October 27, 1975. From the Newhall Signal of September 29, 1975.
APPENDIX: Construction dates for the Ventura and Andrew's Station refineries
In 1876, the California Star Oil Works Company (CSOW) built a small refinery in Ventura, not at Andrew's Station near Newhall. In 1877, CSOW built the Andrew's Station refinery (now called the Pioneer Oil Refinery). Here are some quotes from newspapers of that time concerning the two refineries. Also included is a quote from the book Formative Years in the Far West by White, the definitive book about the early history of Standard Oil Company.
Building of the CSOW refinery in Ventura started in August or September of 1876.
"The work of refining oil will in a few days be commenced by the new oil refinery recently erected at San Buenaventura." - Santa Barbara Weekly Press, August 26, 1876.
"The California Star Oil Company started its refinery this morning." - Daily Alta California, September 6, 1876.
"The California Star Oil Works Co. have a refining capacity of twenty barrels of refined oil per day, at their refinery, at Lyon's Station. They have also just completed their refinery at San Buenaventura..." - Los Angeles Evening Express, November 6, 1976.
"The oil refinery of San Buenaventura belongs to the California Star Oil Works Company. It was erected last year at a cost of about $6,000, and has a refining capacity of 30 barrels daily. A wooden tramway connects the refinery with the wharf, thus facilitating shipment. The refinery began operations towards the end of August" - The Los Angeles Daily Evening Express, January 16, 1877.
The construction of the refinery near Andrews Station began in April or May of 1877.
"At the end of April [1877] a five-acre site was selected on the San Francisco Rancho at Andrews Station, nearly a mile northwest of Lyons Station, on the outskirts of what today is the town of Newhall." - Formative Years in the Far West - A History of Standard Oil Company of California and Predecessors Through 1919, by Gerald T. White, Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York, 1962, Page 46.
"A large refinery is now erecting at Newhall." - Daily Alta California, May 3, 1877.
"The Star Oil Works Company have commenced the erection of a new and elegant refinery here [near Andrew's Station], which, when finished, and their two small stills at Lyons Station are moved down and added to it, will have a capacity of about one hundred and fifty barrels per day." - The Los Angeles Express, May 25, 1877.
"The Star Oil Company has commenced the erection of a new large refinery at Andrew's Station." - Santa Barbara Morning Press, May 26, 1877.
"The new still being put up at Andrews Station has a capacity of 120 barrels per day, and the works are being constructed so that five more stills of like capacity can be added without having to increase the size of condensers, agitators or buildings." - San Francisco Chronicle, May 28, 1877.
"...they [CSOW] are now constructing at this point [near Andrew's Station] a first-class oil refinery from a plant purchased at the East. The new still being put up at Andrews Station has a capacity of 120 barrels per day, and the works are being constructed so that five more stills of like capacity can be added without having to increase the size of the condensers, agitators or buildings. The various portions of the refinery are being admirably constructed to guard against fire, being so isolated that in the event of one portion taking fire, no danger would occur to the whole. The barreling house is to be situated upon the siding which the railroad company have put in here, and will be 1,000 feet from the stills, the oil coming down from the agitator in pipes, and can be loaded by quantity." - Los Angeles Evening Express, June 1, 1877.
"While at Andrew's Station yesterday we took occasion to inspect the new refinery, now in process of erection, of the California Star Oil Works Company." - Los Angeles Evening Express, June 25, 1877.
"The brick work for the new refinery at Andrew's Station is completed." - Ventura Signal, July 14, 1877.
"The new refinery of the Star Oil Works Company, at Andrew's Station, will barely suffice for present production. Larger refineries and greater storage facilities must soon be provided." - Los Angeles Evening Express, July 21, 1877.
"J. A. Scott is refining at Andrew's Station. The refinery, in his absence, under the supervision of Mr. Taylor is running night and day and when Mr. Scott returns another large lot will be treated and put in barrels and shipped the city." - Ventura Signal, August 18, 1877.
"The refinery at Andrew's Station is beautifully located in a romantic nook on the San Francisco Rancho, about a thousand feet from the railroad tract. It is located on the side of a gently sloping hill, and so situated that it can be abundantly supplied with water from two springs located just above, and so that the tankage will be in the shade the greater portion of the day. This refinery is furnished with one 125 barrel still, one 25 barrel and one 18 barrel still." - Ventura Free Press, October 6, 1877.
"The Star Oil Refinery, new Andrew's Station, is in full blast and cannot keep up to the demand for lubricating oil both from this and the San Bernardino [San Buenaventura] refinery." - Santa Barbara Morning Press, October 12, 1877.
"Mr. Sanford Lyons, of San Fernando, reports that the Star Oil Company ship daily from their refinery at Andrews' Station 60 barrels of refined oil, in bulk, in tank cars, to San Francisco." - Santa Barbara Morning Press, November 15 1877.