[p. 570] whose business as a general
oil drilling contractor is one which
requires a large amount of exact experience,
has been identified with the oil business
since 1871, and has been a resident
of New Castle since 1899, where he is a
leading citizen. He was born in 1853, in
Venango County, Pennsylvania.
Mr. Eakin remained in his native locality until he was eighteen years of age and then left home for the oil fields, finding his first work in the old scrub grass region on the Allegheny River, in 1871. He engaged in operating and producing in the Bullion field in Venango County, in 1879, and from 1882 to 1892 was in the Bradford field, later was in the Thorn Creek field for a time, then went back to the Bullion field for a number of years, working as a producer, and was also engaged in drilling in the Allegheny County fields. From 1892 until 1895 he was in the rich oil districts of Northwestern Ohio, going from there back to the Venango County fields, and in 1899 he came to New Castle. For the seven succeeding years he drilled wells for the New Castle Gas Company, during the last two years being in the Volant fields. Since then he has operated in Butler County and drove the first well that opened up the Muddy Creek fields. Mr. Eakin has a reputation in his line of work that keeps him very busy and there are few men through this section who are better posted or can be more thoroughly relied upon in oil matters than Mr. Eakin.
In 1876 Mr. Eakin was married to Miss Henrietta Cross, who is a daughter of Judge Robert Cross, of Venango County. Mr. and Mrs. Eakin have a family that includes seven sons and three daughters as follows: Blanche, Victor, who is associated with his father; Josephine, deceased; R. Ernest, who has charge of the, accounting department of the Kansas Natural Gas Company, located at Independence, Kan.; Wilfred, who is assistant cashier of the Pittsburg & Lake Erie Railroad Company, at New Castle; William, who is employed in the First National Bank at New Castle; Helen, Norman, who is employed in the electrical department of the Carnegie Steel Company, and Samuel, Virginia and Edward.
20th Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County Pennsylvania and Representative Citizens Hon. Aaron L. Hazen Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company, Chicago, Ill., 1908
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