In the 1970s and 1980s the Texas wildcatter was a recognizable 
figure in popular culture. Since then, the wildcatter's role is less 
celebrated but still important, as shown in the new introduction to 
this edition of a book originally published in 1984 by Texas 
Monthly Press.

    Drawing heavily on oral histories, this book tells the story of the 
West Texas independents as a group, looking at their business 
strategies in the context of their national, regional, and local 
conditions. The focus is on the Permian Basin and southeastern 
New Mexico over the sixty-year period in which the region rose to 
prominence on the American oil scene, producing about one-fifth 
of the nation's output. It is a story that covers vast technological 
change, governmental regulation, and economic fluctuation with 
profound implications for the oil and gas community.

    The new introduction brings the story up-to-date by addressing 
not only the subsequent careers of the wildcatters described in the 
book but also the role of independents in the current economy.

_________________________________________________________

ROGER M. OLIEN, who holds a Ph.D. from Brown University, lives 
in Austin and is a member of the TSHA Speakers Bureau. DIANA 
DAVIDS HINTON holds the J. Conrad Dunagan Chair in regional 
and business history at the University of Texas–Permian Basin. 
Her Ph.D. is from Yale University.


Number Twenty: Kenneth E. Montague Series in Oil and 
Business History


What people are saying about this book

"This valuable and well-researched study must be consulted by 
anyone who has a serious interest in the petroleum industry and 
how it works."—The Chronicles of Oklahoma, Fall 2007