>
Johnson Newlon Camden
Johnson Newlon Camden drilled one of the first oil wells in West Virginia in January 1861 along Burning Springs Run in Wirt County on property that he leased from the Rathbones. Camden’s well was named “The Eternal Center,” and proved to be very successful, reportedly producing 100 barrels in 30 minutes in January 1861.
Camden began a refining business in Parkersburg in 1869, which he expanded to six over time. By 1875, he and his partners had secretly sold the businesses to John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil. The businesses kept operating in name only as Camden Consolidated Oil Company. Camden establish Standard Oil’s national monopoly of the oil business. In West Virginia, Camden would buy out rivals and shut down all but one refinery in which he had a controlling interest.
Over time, Camden turned his interest to building railroads and became as U.S. Senator.
Of Note
First Governor of West Virginia
U.S. Senator of West Virginia
About the Images
Camden’s well on the Little Kanawha was so prosperous, it became known as the “Eternal Center.”
Letterhead from Camden’s office in Parkersburg
Johnson Newlon Camden’s home at Eighth and Ann Streets in Parkersburg became the Parkersburg City Hospital after Camden's death. The Camden mansion was gifted to the city by the Camden family in honor of Annie Camden. Camden-Clark Memorial Hospital was built on the site in the 1930s.