The Amelia oil field, 5 miles west of Beaumont, Jefferson County, Texas, was discovered in 1936. Geophysical evidence of this structure led to the discovery but was rather indefinite as to true structural conditions. No surface geological indications of structure are present. The subsurface conditions are those of an elliptical, flat dome, probably underlain by a deeply buried salt core, and further complicated by a large normal fault striking almost parallel with the long axis of the dome. Amelia was one of the forerunners of a new type of coastal oil field, dominated by a big fault having production on the downthrown side while the upthrown side is dry.

The producing sand, locally known as the "Langham sand," is a member of the middle Oligocene Frio formation, and is found productive of oil and gas from 6,694 to 6,785 feet although only the last 20 feet shows oil. The sand is a thick, blanket sand body literally surrounded by salt water sands and has an extensive gas cap above the oil zone.

The field has a proved area of 1,220 acres and has produced 2,644,642 barrels of oil, to January 1, 1939, which gives an average of 2,168 barrels per acre. The present daily allowable under strict proration is 4,414 barrels from 115 producing wells. The Humble Oil and Refining Company operates 112 wells, or 98 per cent of the entire field, the only other operator being the Normandie Oil Corporation with three wells. Drilling development, on the basis of present known conditions, is entirely finished.

The development of this field was interesting, not only from the disclosure of its peculiar geological features, but also from the standpoint of unusually difficult well-completion problems. A new method of completing low gas-oil ratio wells employing squeeze-cementing was introduced at Amelia and has since been used extensively in other fields throughout the Gulf Coast region.