THE MINERAL INDUSTRY OF MONTANA 
501 
 
Elk Basin (2.8 million barrels) field in south-central Montana. Other fields
where crude-oil production exceeded 1 million barrels were Pennel (1.9 million),
Lookout Butte (1.8 million), Bell Creek (1.7 million), Weldon (1.5 million),
Fred & George Creek (1.1 million), and Flat Lake (1.1 million). An important
oil discovery was made in the Muddy sand formation in the Powder River Basin
in southeastern Montana. The discovery resulted in delineation of Bell Creek
field, comprising 68 sections (43,520 acres), and sparked lease and drilling
activity during the latter part of the year over the entire Powder River
Basin. The largest auction of oil and gas leases on State-owned lands since
the Williston Basin boom in 1952 took place in September when 188,050 acres
of Stateowned land was auctioned in 2 days for $1.8 million. Most of the
land was in the vicinity of the Bell Creek field in southeastern Powder River
County and western Carter County. The Bell Creek field, a shallow field where
the average depth of wells drilled totaled 4,716 feet, was discoverod in
June in 
southeastern Powder River County and had 17 producing wells by September.
Development of the field was vigorous, and by December, 86 wells were producing
crude oil; one was producing natural gas. Primary recoverable reserves of
the Bell Creek discovery were estimated at 50 million barrels with an additional
50 million barrels available using fluid-injection recovery techniques. Production
was restricted by the Montana Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to 300
barrels of crude oil per day per well, and development was limited by the
Commission to 40-acre spacing for producers. By December, three 8-inch pipelines,
each with initial capacity of transporting 30,000 barrels of crude oil per
day, connected wells in the field to a terminal of the Butte Pipeline Co.
at Alzada. Since the Butte Pipeline Co. pipeline could handle only 20,000
barrels of crude oil per day, further revamping of the pipeline system included
plans to connect the system eventually to the Service Pipeline Co. Reno station
in Wyoming. 
Marketed production of natural gas de 
 
Table 16.—Oil and gas wells drilled in 1957, by counties 
County 
~ 
Exploratory wells 
Dry Oil Gas 
Proved field Dry Oil 
wells Gas 
Wells 
Total 
 
Footage 
Big Horn                      
Blame                        
Carbon                       
Carter                        
Cascade                       
Chouteau                      
Custer                        
Daniels                       
Dawson                       
Fallon                                        
3            
24  15 1           15  114  12           1 1     2            
 3 3 
7      
3 
  
  
  
1      
 4 4 2 8 1 7 
7 
  
1 
 
 
1 
  
  
  
9 
39 
9 
17 
1 
5 
4 
10 
12 
8 
39,587 
74,274 
29,745 
74,979 
4,892 
12654 
20 618 
72 604 
121975 
70567 
Fergus                        
Garfield                       
Glacier                       
1 
4 
5            
9 12 
2 
1 
4 
28 
5,990 
24664 
87028 
Hill                          
Liberty                       
MeCone                      
Musselshell                    
9            
12  13           8 1      
6      
4 32           8 6 
1 
1 
 
  
16 
21 
5 
23 
42,397 
59,882 
33,052 
116335 
Petroleum                     
3                  
1 
 
4 
15 235 
Phillips                       
Pondera                       
5 
12            
3 3 
 
5 
18 
16,380 
45,052 
Powder River                   
18 1 1 
12 86 
1 
119 
561,177 
Prairie                                       
 
1            
 
1 
9,135 
Richland                      
2            
1 2 
 
5 
59,600 
Roosevelt                     
3 1      
5 1 
 
10 
74,370 
Rosebud                      
Sheridan                      
Stillwater                      
7            
9 1     1 1 
 4 3 8 10 
 1 
 
14 
28 
3 
67,7.94 
225,390 
6,955 
Teton                        
Toole                         
Treasure                      
4 
24            
1 
 21 7 
  
 
4 
52 
1 
10,505 
128,031 
5,893 
Valley                       Yellowstone                    
 
Total                    
1 
2            
2 2 
 
1 
6 
4,900 
37,304 
 
 191 7 5 
 104 162 
14 
483 
2,158,964 
Source: Oil and Gas Conservation Co 
mmission of the State 
of Montana.