The History Found in Natural Gas

The History Found in Natural Gas

For the past two centuries (and beyond), natural gas has been heavily utilized in numerous ways. From powering streetlights and heating homes to gassing up vehicles and drying clothes, this fossil fuel has proven it’s here to stay. One factor that plays into the current success of natural gas is its influence over time. Check out the most important events throughout history that have aided in today’s use of natural gas:

 

• 1,000 B.C. – A goat herdsman comes across a ‘burning spring’ on Mount Parnassus, figuring out that seeping natural gas transform into a flame
   
• 500 B.C. – The Chinese discover a way to transport gas seeping from the ground by using crude pipelines of bamboo
   
• 1626 – French explorers discover Native American burning gases that were seeping into and around Lake Erie, MI
   
• 1785 – The first commercialized use of natural gas is utilized in Great Britain
   
• 1816 – Natural gas is first used in Baltimore to fuel streetlamps
   
• 1821 – Fredonia Gas Light Company becomes the first American natural gas company, located in New York
   
• 1885 – The Bunsen burner is created and used for safe use of cooking and heating
   
• 1891 – One of the first lengthy pipelines is constructed. At 120 miles long, the pipelines carry natural gas from wells in central Indiana all the way to Chicago, Illinois.
   
• 1925 – The first all-welded pipeline is built. It is 200 miles in length and reaches from Louisiana to Texas.
   
• 1940s to 1960s – The U.S. invest in a massive expansion of its pipeline network, which means the construction of thousands of miles of pipelines throughout the country
   
• 1998 – About 5.1 billion cubic feet of natural gas are reported as being used for vehicles
   
• 2006 – A record 31,687 natural gas wells are drilled nationwide this year

What is a world without natural gas? Thanks to the early explorers and innovators of this resource, we’ll never have to know. Modern technology has also helped in expanding the uses of this resource, as shown throughout history. While we may have only reached the tip of the iceberg on the many uses of natural gas, it already deeply contributes to your life as a utility, automotive fuel alternative, and even as a contributing ingredient to many everyday products!