Museum of Oil and Gas Industry in Bóbrka

Launched in 1854, the world's oldest and still operating oil production site today holds a unique museum. An excellent destination for those into industrial tourism, the exposition is related to the history of the oil industry. Surrounded by the beautiful forest, there are 19th century oil drills where you can see crude oil, sometimes called ‘black gold’, which is still being extracted from wells dating back to the time of Ignacy Łukasiewicz, who started the plant.

As you walk along the pathways, you can see the exhibits associated with petroleum, oil-refining and gas industries. The museum located in an area of 20 hectares comprises the oldest drilling site, and over 50 structures that are open to the public. In Bóbrka you can see the original tools and equipment used for digging the wells, and drilling  the holes. There are also scale models illustrating the early history of the Polish oil industry and the first mining works. The oil drilling site in Bóbrka presents a unique value as a part of the world’s industrial heritage.

Description of film: Presentation of the Museum of Oil and Gas Industry in Bóbrka. Film with voiceover presents the exhibition and talks about Ignacy Łukasiewicz. Soft and quiet music plays in the background. English translation is included in the film.

Voiceover: Can you believe that a small village in the Podkarpackie region changed the history of the world? The petroleum industry, which was born here in 1865, revolutionized the technological progress. During a visit to the only museum located within an oil drilling site which still operates today you can see how the extraction methods transformed over the years. You can go back to the times of the pioneers and learn about their incredible inventions. You can see the pace with which the world has changed. And it all started here, in a small village in the Podkarpackie region, in Bóbrka - the cradle of the oil industry.

The most unique and invaluable exhibits in the museum include some structures dating back to the 1800s. Two original oil wells named ‘Franek’ and ‘Janina’ have been preserved here. The Franek well was dug by hand around 1860 to a depth of 50 m and in subsequent years it was hand-drilled to a depth of 150 m. On the other hand, the Janina well was dug by hand to a depth of 132 m and then hand-drilled to a depth of 250 m and it is still exploited today.

An interesting fact about the Bóbrka plant is that it was Ignacy Łukasiewicz, the brilliant inventor from the Podkarpackie, that came up with an idea of the museum of petroleum industry to be created at this location. He personally marked the site for the posterity by founding a commemorative obelisk in 1872, with an inscription: ‘To preserve the memory of the crude oil mine established in Bóbrka, in the year 1854 - Ignacy Łukasiewicz’.

Other equally valuable artefacts include the wooden building of the mechanical workshop from 1864, and the percussion drilling machines and rigs. Another wooden building comprises a smithy from 1856, with the genuine blacksmith's tools and two brick furnaces with leather bellows from 1890-1895, as well as a reconstructed hand drill from 1862, used for shallow well drilling.

Another truly unique exhibit in Bóbrka is the so-called Polish-Canadian drilling rig, which can be seen at the far end of the exposition site. It was used in the areas which presented the most difficult conditions. The imported device was adapted and modernized by Polish specialists who adjusted it to the local requirements – the drilling rig was used to provide access to the largest oil deposits in Galicia.

There is also an exposition related to oil refinery and distribution processes, for instance presenting the control room for the tube-and-tower distillation process, as well as flow meters, fuel gauges and a fuel dispenser from 1934.

The inconspicuous Administrative Building of the oil plant, or the so-called Łukasiewicz House from 1865, presents fascinating expositions such as a 19th century style apothecary’s shop with original furnishings and apothecary’s laboratory. A multimedia presentation which you can hear in the two rooms talks mainly about Ignacy Łukasiewicz, and his discovery of the methods for refining crude oil and obtaining kerosene, and presents the history of the oil plant in Bóbrka. On display here are also collections of kerosene lamps, photographs and geological artefacts. Visitors can also see the home office of Ignacy Łukasiewicz, with oil portraits of the inventor and his wife, as well as furnishings brought here from his manor house in Chorkówka.

Natural oil seeps had been observed in the forests near Bóbrka for many years but it was not until 1854 that an oil plant was established here and industrial exploitation started. The pioneers of the oil industry who founded the plant included Ignacy Łukasiewicz – who earlier worked as a pharmacist, Tytus Trzecieski - a landowner who came up with the idea to start an oil drilling site, and Karol Klobassa -Zrencki - the owner of the Bóbrka village. Owing to their cooperation, commitment and efficiency, the world’s first oil drilling plant and refinery were started.

It is impossible to talk about the early history of oil excavation and drilling techniques as well as petroleum exploitation and processing without emphasizing the role of the father of the oil industry and inventor of the kerosene lamp - Ignacy Łukasiewicz (1822-1882). This researcher, pioneer and inventor, born in the Subcarpathian region, initiated novel technological and industrial ventures, and in a way injected the DNA of ingenuity into the region's entrepreneurship which is at the core of the region’s growth today.

In Łukasiewicz House in Bóbrka you can read the following quotation: ‘A man in the world is like a soldier on guard duty, as long as he lives he must work; he will not take to the grave that which he accomplishes, it may be useful for other people’... This thought perfectly reflects the beliefs and values cherished by Ignacy Łukasiewicz, who was also a patriot and a man of exemplary character.

During your visit to the museum in Bóbrka you will learn about other facts from his life. Before Łukasiewicz started his petroleum related ventures, he worked as an apothecary and he continued to study chemistry and pharmaceutical sciences. He was also involved in political organizations supporting the idea of restoring Polish independence. Later he combined his industrial operations with public and social activism. As an example, he established the first system of insurance for employees at the Bóbrka plant, the so-called Kasa Bracka (Brotherhood Fund). He also provided financial support for national liberation movements as well as hospitals, schools, and churches. For example he founded the school of lacemaking for girls which was run by his wife Honorata. In recognition for his charitable work, Pope Pius IX awarded him the title of Papal Chamberlain in 1873 and decorated him with the Order of St. Gregory.

• was the first person in the world to distil kerosene from petroleum and use it for lighting;
• invented the paraffin lamp; on 31 July 1853, paraffin lamps were lit for the first time in public at a hospital in Lviv. This is a symbolic birthdate of the oil industry;
• was a pioneer of oil refinery industry;
• was a pharmacist, a researcher, inventor, member of independence movements, philanthropist, and social activist, and he initiated a social insurance program for workers;
• cofounded and managed the first oil plant in Bóbrka
• promoted the growth of oil industry in the whole region and founded the National Oil Society.

According to some sources, John Davison Rockefeller paid a visit to Ignacy Łukasiewicz in Bóbrka to learn about petroleum processing, and then he took the secrets of this innovative technology across the Great Pond and based on that he proceeded to build his large empire. Although there is no tangible evidence that this is what really happened, there may be a grain of truth in this story, just like in every legend.

It is a fact, however, that in the United States the oil industry developed much faster than in Poland although the oil plant in Bóbrka was launched in 1854 and in America they drilled the first oil well in 1859. Yet, we should remember that in those times Poland did not exist as an independent state. The Austrian authorities did not promote development of the oil industry here, while the Americans quickly understood the potential of oil for various purposes .

You can take a tour of the exposition in Bóbrka individually (with no time limit), or with a guide. Before you get to Bóbrka, you should check the opening hours and book your tickets. There are three extremely interesting routes, varied in length, so you can decide how you want to explore one of the oldest oil drilling sites in the world. The routes are entitled ‘In the footsteps of the oil pioneers’, ‘From digging to drilling’, and ‘Three ages of the Bóbrka plant’.  Optionally you can also have lunch in the replica of the so-called Canadian drilling tower as part of the tour along the route ‘From digging to drilling’.

Those wanting to learn more about the history of petroleum industry are invited by the Podkarpackie Regional Tourist Organisation to take a tour along the new cross-border route ‘Black Gold Discoverers’. It leads to the most interesting and important places connected with the beginnings and development of the oil industry. The route is designed for everyone: young people, families with children, as well as senior citizens. In a few locations along the route you will find boxes with tasks or riddles to be solved, as well as stamps which are to be imprinted at the places shown on the map. If you solve the riddles and tasks, and collect all the stamps you receive a gift that can be collected in four places along the route: in the open-air museum in Bóbrka, the Podkarpackie Museum in Krosno, the Polanka Palace and in the open-air museum in Sanok.