Sun Exploration and Production Co. Oil Lease Sign

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The early 20th century saw a dramatic change in economic fortunes when Texans first discovered oil on their ranches.

This unexpected and sometimes unwanted discovery brought new income to ranchers and economic diversity to Texas. Ranchers claimed their rewards, so to speak, by leasing their land to oil and gas companies that built hundreds of rigs to drill for the "liquid gold." The Mallet Ranch in West Texas—located in Hockley, Terry, Cochran, and Yoakum counties—joined the ground gold rush when oil was discovered in the late 1930s. This sign, posted on the Mallet Ranch, proudly proclaims an oil lease by the Sun Exploration and Production Company. Many ranches today still maintain economic stability through oil and gas companies leases.