DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, Grayson County has sent some notable folks out into the world, but few left a mark quite like Allison Mayfield — a man who helped shape the way Texas handles its most valuable resource underground. It started, as so many Texas stories do, with a man and a law practice.
Mayfield opened his right here in Grayson County in 1884. Nine years later, he was assistant attorney general of Texas. And then in 1897 — well, that's when things really got interesting.
He won election to the Railroad Commission. Now, the Railroad Commission had been created in 1891 to regulate shipping rates and practices. That was its original purpose — keeping the railroads honest.
But Mayfield served that commission for twenty-six years. Twenty-six. And sixteen of those years, he sat as chairman.
Think about what happened on his watch. In 1917, the commission took jurisdiction over pipelines — oil and gas regulation was beginning, and that was no small thing in Texas. Then in 1919, the Legislature handed the commission something even bigger: responsibility for conservation of oil and gas.
The stakes were rising. In the 1920s, proration began. And then came the 1930s — and East Texas.
One million, seven hundred thousand barrels a day pouring out of that field. The commission moved to close it down, backed by Texas Rangers, until conservation rules could be revised. Let that image sit with you a moment.
Texas Rangers standing between the oil and the ground. Complete regulation followed. And when World War II came calling, Texas was ready.
The commission's policies were acclaimed when Texas was able to supply the allies with great stores of oil necessary for victory. All that orderly regulation — all those years of preventing waste and protecting reserves — it mattered when the world needed it most. The marker puts it plainly: men like Chairman Mayfield set high ethical standards that have continued in the commission, causing it to merit the confidence of the people and of the petroleum industry.
A law practice opened in 1884. Twenty-six years on a commission. Sixteen as chairman.
And somewhere underneath Texas, the oil reserves that helped win a war. Not a bad accounting for one man from Grayson County.
What the marker says
Opened law practice here, 1884. Became an assistant attorney general of Texas, 1893. Won election, 1897, to Railroad Commission; served 26 years -- 16 years as chairman. The commission had been created in 1891 to regulate shipping rates and practices. In his term as chairman, oil and gas regulation -- a major responsibility -- began with jurisdiction over pipelines, 1917. In 1919 the Legislature made the commission responsible for conservation of oil and gas. In the 1920s proration began. Complete regulation came in the 1930s with the 1,700,000-barrel-a-day production in East Texas. Backed by Texas Rangers, the commission closed the field until conservation rules could be revised. Commission policies were acclaimed when in World War II Texas was able to supply the allies with great stores of oil necessary for victory. The commission's goal is to prevent waste and protect oil and gas reserves by orderly regulation of exploration, production and transportation. Such men as Chairman Mayfield set high ethical standards that have continued in the commission, causing it to merit the confidence of the people and of the petroleum industry. Incise in base: Commemorative series on Texas Railroad Commission; Erected in cooperation with Abell-Hanger Foundation, 1966.