History

BIRTH OF THE PETROLEUM ENGINEERS CLUB OF DALLAS

The club was founded in late 1940 as a result of discussions among various members of the Dallas section of the Petroleum Branch of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers.  These members wanted to discuss subject matter of technical interest more frequently than that offered by the current regular scheduled AIME meetings. They also wanted to include others engaged in a similar endeavor who were not members of the AIME or could not, for one reason or another, attend the regular meetings.  Nature, basically, abhors a vacuum, and thus a vacuum of whatever size was filled and continues to this very day.

A forum thus founded has provided a regular basis to meet, discuss, relax for a little while and enjoy the company of peers in similar endeavors, and in so doing keep in touch "with progress" in the Petroleum Exploitation Industry.

This club has since its founding been closely aligned with the SPE (of AIME) while maintaining its independence.  It has also had a more relaxed, less formal, style than the SPE.  In fact, in some respects, it has often behaved as if it were the Bone Head Club equivalent of the petroleum endeavor in Dallas.

Levity and humor has been an integral feature of this club's regular meetings since its inception.

         
Bob McLemore was the club's first president.  Bob went to war in 1941 and Mr. H. C. Otis agreed to complete his term for him.

The club does not have, nor has ever owned a meeting area, consequently, from time to time it has moved because of various exigencies: The Adolphus Hotel, Baker Hotel, Engineer's Club (both in the Vaughn Building and the old Republic Bank), White Plaza Hotel, One Energy Square, Vicks, Grand Hotel, Lancer's Club and the present location, The Dallas Petroleum Club.

The club struggled through, and survived the WW II years and emerged with its present format of "mores et te?" with a singular exception:

COUP D'ETAT

With the election in 1947 of K. Marshall Fagin president, H. J. (Hank) Gruy, a guy who couldn't figure out where he wanted to live (Fort Worth or Dallas), led a small insurgency group to Tulsa (the annual meeting of the Petroleum Branch of AIME at the Mayo Hotel).  This group of ruffians declared the present, duly elected officers of the club as being "thrown out," returned to Dallas, and for the remainder of the year operated as if they were in power.  Thereafter the meetings continued on a weekly basis with two groups of officers (frequently shouting at each other!) and two speakers, both talking at the same time in the same room.

Early in 1949, this attempted "coup d'etat" was resolved, and thereafter the club only "purged" its officers once a year!!  One year, one set of officers!!!

THE VERY FIRST PERMIAN POT

Some time in 1946(?), during the early development, on a post-war basis, of the Permian Basin, a few of the members of the club found themselves in the Scharbauer Hotel in Midland, Texas.  They realized that a lot of the club members were spending an enormous quantity of time in the Permian Basin, and that the center of oil field activity was slowly moving Eastward from Hobbs, New Mexico.

While discussing this (and other important subjects) over gin, scotch and bourbon, after kitchen hours, one of those present produced an old Apple Colander and christened it The Permian Pot.  This was the original pot, one lost in one of the club's many moves.

In 1948, the first official Permian Pot #1 was created. Dewey Jordan brought the new symbol of the Petroleum Engineers Club of Dallas from Magnolia, Arkansas in early 1948. It had a humble, yet industrious past - it was a cream separator top found in an abandoned mill barn near Magnolia. But the Club now had an official symbol --  and for the first time the name of the order of the  (Kappa Rho Alpha Pi) was embellished on it.

KAPPA RHO ALPHA PI & The PEC Formula

The original Screw Ball Committee while selecting the original recipient of the   (Kappa Rho Alpha Pi) award (Warren Jackson) retired to the private bar in the Scharbauer Hotel and in their deliberations observed, through a martini glass, while seated, the following in full plumage:

            1.         a Great American Regret

            2.         a Gimlet Eyed Tit Watcher

            3.         two Rosy Breasted Bed Thrashers

            4.         one Over-Eager Push-Over

            5.         three Hairy Chested Nut Scratchers.

The committee at some length settled, after several rather heated, drunken altercations on a formula which would, hopefully, be applied to any candidate considered to be awarded the order of   (Kappa Rho Alpha Pi), and immediately recorded it on a damp "old fashioned" drink doily:

This seemed to fit those awardees from 1945 through 1964, all erudite, loquacious, savvy individuals.

Then, in 1966, K. Marshall Fagin received the award.  Soon after the presentation a new secret screw ball committee realized their individual did not fit the formula.  Refer please to the infamous Gruy-Fagin hiatus over Aggie Jokes!!  Further, there were differences of opinion.  In a way this situation was similar to the man being chased by a bear down the mountain-side --- after all, both those individuals are in the "pursuit of happiness"!!  It's all in your point of view.

This committee then retired to Odessa, Texas with side sorties to Snyder, Andrews, Wink and No Trees with frequent snorts of Bourbon & Coke, ultimately modifying the formula to:

Most of those in petroleum endeavors readily recognize this form of an algebraic homily.

             U is Ultimate achievement to which we (each of us) are all destined.

            S is That substance which we individually possess and produce in varying 
              quantities of solidity.

            a is The individual ability to throw that substance S which he possesses.

            t is The "tackiness" of the substance S imparted by the individual in order
              to make it stick when it hits.

The basic certificate has remained unchanged since its original printing (overhead projector).

THEFT & REBIRTH

The club used Permian Pot #1 until the fall of '67.  The Adolphus Hotel stored this for us, but during the weekend of the Texas-OU game someone stole it (likely an OU student!). Rather than leave the Club without its symbol, an effort was made to replace the pot.  Dewey Jordan donated another cream separator top (made by the Superior Farm Equipment Company), and the Adolphus Hotel as consolation donated a champagne ice bucket cooler.

Warren Jackson and Dewey Jordan combined these two receptacles to create the Permian Pot # II as we know it today. They emblazoned the Pot with the Symbol of the Order of   (Kappa Rho Alpha Pi), and scribed the Petroleum Engineers Club formula - and also added 2 large spoons for handles and 10 smaller spoons as decoration near the top. Their reasoning: the smaller spoons could be used for flinging that substance "S" (see formula above), while the big spoons could be used to stir a larger quantity of it.

Since 1948, those revered winners of the "Permian Pot Award" have had their names scribed upon the base of the Permian Pot #II. Each of the recipients emblazoned on our Permian Pot II has this in common: Once started, they are all without exception very difficult to stop!!

 THE EARLY DAYS

The organizational meeting of the Petroleum Engineers Club of Dallas was held on January 13, 1941 at the Adolphus Hotel. Twenty people attended, elected temporary officers and committee members, and agreed that luncheons would be held at the Dallas Athletic Club noon Mondays, at a cost of 85 cents per plate. On February 10, 1941 Bob McLemore was elected first president for the Club. H.C. Otis completed his term when Bob went to war.

In addition to luncheon meetings the Club has three evening meetings during 1941, one a meeting with wives at which a motion picture, “Cavalcade of Texas”, was shown. There was also a “grand stag party held at the Dreyfuss Club”, which was well attended. There were 121 members, including 37 complementary members for December. Annual dues were $5.00.

In 1942 there were 100 paid members, 18 of whom were “inactive due to being called to Military Service, or assigned to work outside the City.” In 1943 the Club provided guest membership to all officers of the Army and Navy who were working in Dallas in areas relating to the petroleum industry.

In 1943 two bills were introduced in the U.S. Senate that provided “for the regimentation and use by the government of scientific and technical personnel under the direction of an appointed head, at a salary of $12,000 per year.” The Club passed a resolution objecting to the bills and sent copies to the Texas delegation and other Congressmen. Texans receiving the resolution included Senators Tom Connally, W. Lee O’Daniel, Representatives Wright Patman, George H. Mahon, Sam Rayburn, Lyndon Baines Johnson. There is no evidence in the Club records of other political stands.

The Club held a picnic in Lee Park in May 1943. Over 100 people attended at a cost of 75 cents per lunch. Park rental was $10 and a magician and ventriloquist provided entertainment. It appears that a picnic became a standing event for a number of years.

In 1945 the Club formed an orientation committee to assist returning members of the Armed forces in reestablishing themselves in the oil and gas industry. The committee was to act as counselors, not as an “employment agency.” A “great number of returning military personnel” contacted the committee and they were successful in “locating quite a number of applicants.” That same year a committee was appointed “to study a deserving charity to which the Club could make a donation.” A donation of $100 was made to Parkland Hospital for deserving charity patients.