Sulfur was first reported in West Texas by William P. Blake, a geologist and engineer on an army scouting expedition led by Captain John Pope in 1854. Blake collected rock samples containing 18% sulfur from the bed of the Delaware Creek near Delaware Spring, approximately 30 mi west of the town of Orla.

Sulfur occurrences in West Texas have been mentioned in the literature since 1891. The most complete report of the surface occurrences of sulfur in Culberson County is the 1917 University of Texas Bulletin 1722, "Rustler Springs Sulfur Deposits," by E. L. Porch, Jr.

Attempts have been made since the late 1890s, but without economic success, to mine the surface sulfur deposits. Sulfur shortages, starting about 1963, resulted from a demand greater than the supply of Frasch-processed sulfur. These shortages caused renewed interest in Permian basin sulfur. Exploration and development are continuing rapidly. Two Frasch-process sulfur mines are being operated in Pecos County; a plant for the extraction of elemental sulfur from gypsum is commencing operations in Culberson County; and a Frasch-process sulfur plant is being constructed on a large ore deposite in Culberson County.

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