DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Earl George Rodman, Senior and William Douglas Noel, right here in Ector County. Now, every now and then two men come along who just fit together like a drill bit and a well casing — and when they do, whole cities feel the difference. That's the story the marker tells about Rodman and Noel, the two men who brought the petrochemical industry to Odessa.
Let's start with Earl George Rodman, Senior, born in 1896. He served in the First World War — and when that was done, he married Fay Louis Hummel and went to work for Dunigan Tool and Supply Company in 1923. Three years later, he packed up his family and moved to McCamey to establish a branch of Dunigan tools.
Then in 1935, Rodman opened his first oil field. That led him further afield — development work on oil reservoirs clear out in Oklahoma. The man was building a résumé, one well at a time.
Meanwhile, a younger fellow named William Douglas Noel — born 1914 — was charting his own course. He graduated from the University of Texas in 1935, the same year Rodman was punching that first oil field, and entered the petroleum world not as an executive, not as an engineer in a pressed shirt, but as a roustabout. You respect that.
From there he moved to Wickett in 1936 as a chemist for Gulf Oil, married Ellen Witwer a year later, and by 1940 he was bold enough to go into business for himself. He and two colleagues — M.H. McWhirter and J.B.
Tubb — formed Trebol Oil Company, and they found immediate success drilling in west Texas. Two men, different backgrounds, different paths — and then the paths crossed. Rodman and Noel came together in 1946 to form the Odessa Natural Gasoline Company.
That meeting was enough to pull Noel to Odessa itself by 1947. And what started as a venture matured into major success. But these two weren't the type to leave well enough alone.
In 1954, they expanded their operation to explore ways to efficiently and profitably utilize wasted natural gas. Wasted natural gas — the stuff other people were letting burn off or walk away from. Rodman and Noel looked at that waste and saw a future.
Their plans influenced El Paso Products, Rexene, General Tire, and Shell Oil to open plants right there in Odessa. Four major operations, drawn to one west Texas town, fostering its economic prospects in ways that would ripple forward for decades. Thirty years those two men remained partners.
Rodman lived until 1976, Noel until 1987. Between them they'd carried a partnership from the postwar years all the way through to the latter part of the twentieth century — and the legacy they built remains a prominent part of recent west Texas history. Two men, thirty years, one city transformed.
Not bad for a tool-and-supply man from McCamey and a roustabout from the University of Texas.
What the marker says
Earl George Rodman, Sr. (1896–1976) and William Douglas Noel (1914–1987) brought the petrochemical industry to Odessa. Rodman and Noel came together in 1946 to form the Odessa Natural Gasoline Company and enjoyed major success as their venture matured. While both men had previous experience in the petroleum industry, their backgrounds differed considerably. After serving in WWI, Rodman married Fay Louis Hummel and began working for Dunigan Tool and Supply Company in 1923. He and his family moved to McCamey in 1926 to establish a branch of Dunigan tools. Later, Rodman opened his first oil field in 1935, which led to additional work in development of oil reservoirs in Oklahoma. Meanwhile, Noel graduated from the University of Texas in 1935, and entered the world of petroleum as a roustabout. He moved to Wickett in 1936 as a chemist for Gulf Oil and married Ellen Witwer a year later. In 1940, he set out to form Trebol Oil Company with colleagues M.H. McWhirter and J.B. Tubb and found immediate success with drilling in west Texas. Upon meeting Rodman, Noel and he began a partnership in 1946 which caused Noel to move to Odessa in 1947. After the formation of Odessa Natural Gasoline Company, the two men expanded their venture in 1954 to explore ways to efficiently and profitably utilize wasted natural gas. Their plans influenced El Paso Products, Rexene, General Tire, and Shell Oil to open plants in Odessa, which fostered the economic prospects of the town. Rodman and Noel remained partners for 30 years, and their legacy remains a prominent part of recent west Texas history. (2015)