Webb County and the Laredo Oil Field – circa 1923

This rare and detailed map records the cities of Laredo and Nuevo Laredo (with hundreds of individual tracts delineated, some named with the rail lines) as well as Mirando City, Oilton and Bruni.  Derricks mark active wells, and the Leaseholder’s Mirando, Schott, Aviator and Carolina-Texas pools are marked. The detailed framed map measures 43” wide by 39” tall.

All around the map itself are advertisements for Laredo businesses, ranging from banks, leasing agents – “write for my list of leases – I own 20,000 acres”, petroleum engineers, geologists, jewelers, opticians, tailors, office supplies, as well as the Piggly Wiggly and other grocers, lumberyards, car dealers, cafes, restaurants and hotels. This map was published during the Prohibition Era, so especially interesting are the advertisements for six different bars and the Hotel American across the river in Nuevo Laredo. Promotions include “Plenty of O’ Be Joyful on tap,” Cal Hurdelston’s Orchestra, and at the Paradise Club (White Horse) “the finest hilarious and soul warming refreshments ever manufactured… try them and be happy!” An accompanying sheet from the Chamber of Commerce records the population of Laredo as 50,000 and Nuevo Laredo as 15,000, the total imports and exports through the Port of Laredo in 1921 as 61 million dollars and the cost of drilling a rotary well as between $5,000 and $7,000. In addition the Chamber includes details on the main gravel highways connecting Laredo to the rest of the United States and lists the abundant benefits and impressive growth the Laredo area enjoys and the bright future ahead.