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Barrels of oil await shipment at Oil Creek, PA, circa 1864.
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Barrels of oil await shipment at Oil Creek

Credit: Courtesy of the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania

In the early days of the Pennsylvania oil boom, most oil was barreled, then rafted and barged down river to market. This was a highly inefficient mode of transportation. Streams could be too high or too low, freeze in winter, and spill their overloaded cargo into the waters below.

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