2005-08-05/2008-08-08

Center for Public History, University of Houston; University of Houston Libraries, University of Houston

This is an oral history interview with Tim Creswell conducted as part of the Houston History Project. Tim Creswell responded to the article in the Baton Rouge Advocate. Born and raised in Abbeville, he realized that the oil industry would be a good way to make money without going to school first. His first job in the oilfield came in 1953 after his sophomore year of high school, he worked in the marsh running pipelines. After graduating high school, he went to a few colleges, before deciding that was not for him. So in 1958 he went to work for Union Oil Company of California (Unocal) which was just beginning to get into offshore production, he worked as a contract dispatcher in Intercoastal City until 1963. After that he took a job in production operations and began working offshore. In 1974, he took a construction foreman's job where he supervised the building of offshore platforms. A year and a half later, he became a production foreman where he supervised two offshore complexes, several years later he took on the additional responsibility of being a shore base foreman, while losing one of his offshore complexes. Later, he continued with the production foreman job and took over the safety supervisory work (taught water survival). He did this until 1991 when the company completely reorganized when he became the logistic superintendent's job for the Louisiana Gulf Region. After having a quadruple bypass, he retired at the end of 1996. During his first interview he discusses his career, noting changes in the industry. His second meeting was for a photo interview, wherein he shares picture of many Union Oil Company structures, including their first offshore production venture in the late 1950s. Interviewers: Steven Wiltz and David DiTucci, University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

interviews

Energy development; Petroleum industry and trade; Creswell, Tim

Lafayette, Louisiana

Oral Histories from the Houston History Project

University of Houston Libraries Special Collections

English

Collection
University of Houston Libraries Special Collections
Houston History Archives
Oral Histories from the Houston History Project

Preservation Location: ark:/84475/pm0648ff98c