History of Famed "P & B" Products

By \il. H. Lowe, President The Paroffine Companies, Inc.

In the 60's, word reached the Eastern states that there were extensive oil fields in California. It was not long before venturous meri like the 49's who answered the lure of gold arrived by sea and land to seek a fortune in the California oil fields.

Among the first were Thomas Scott, at that time president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, his secretary, Thomas Bard, and M. W. Beardsley, an oil expert from .Oil City, Pennsylvania.

They tested oil from Humboldt to Ventura Counties,,but without success. Mr. Scott returned. to the e4st, leaving Mr. Bard and Mr. Bgardsley in Ventura County, where they drove shallow wellp in the Ojai Valley - Here a thick black oil, low in gravity, was obtained. Experimental separations revealed but a low percentage of illurtrinating oil-about 10 to 20 per cent--{pmpared with the 60 to 70 per cent obtained from Eastern oils. Also, .there was a black, viscous apparently valueless residue from the distillation.

For years the oil industry in California slept.

Mr. B6ardsley set up a little refinery in the town of Ventura. Mr. Bard meanwhile busied himself in the field, dritling wells and building a pipe line into Ventura.

This enterprise, known as the Mission Transfer Co., was the parent of the present Union Oil Company.

At the refinery Mr. Beardsley made the separations atrd sold the oils for whatever he could. Bdt the residue was a source of great trouble and anxiety, he could find no useful qualities in it and its disposition was difficult. William Ireland, State Mineralogist, had suggested the name !'Maltha" for it.

Maltha is one of the many early names for pitch or asphalt. This substance, known for thousands of years, was propably used by Noah in building the Ark. It is almost certain that the bricks of the Tower of Babel were cemented together wlth an asphaltic substance.

Upon distillation, Eeastern oils leave a residue of paraffine. It was supposed that this Maltha was in some way similar, though of a darker color; hence it was, often spoken of as "black paraffine." However, the usual eastefq methsds of treating this were ineffective. Eastern oil e>iperts who came west could do nothing with it.

About this time Mr. Beardsley met a Trumdn J. Pierce of Santa Barbara, who had some knowledge' of chemistry: Ttie two frequently discussed the problem'of this trouble. some residug.. 'They concluded that'it must .have- some merit, if it could but be handled, and they started to experiment. They tried acids, then alkalies, but could not "cut" or dissolve this black paraffine. Every solvent had been tried and things looked rather hopeless when it so happened that Mr. Pierce was bothered with gophers in his yard, and had bought some.poison to get rid of them.

Some of this poison, which was a solution of carbon bisulphide, was spilled on the maltha. The result was astonishingly successful. Not only did the fluid cut the "black paraffine" but dissolved it and made it thoroughly liquid. When the solution was applied to surfaces, it rvas found that it spread readily, dried rapidly and resisted the attack of acids and alkalies.

Further. experiments and tests showed that they had a compound of merit. This black residue, instead of being a troublesome by-product, was a commodity that had great commercial possibiiities,

The' Paraffine'Paint Co. was then formed in July, 1884, with a capital of $1,000,000. Pierce and Beardsley patents, which rvere known as the "P&B" patents, were regarded as basic for the manufacture of asphaltic paints. This industry, small in the beginning, has grown into one of the largest manufacturing enterprises on the Coast. At the same time it was responsible for the start and developing of the oil and asphalt industry in Southern California that has brought, millions to that section of the state.

Soon after organization of the company in 1884, Ralph L. Shainwald, then manager, selected two acres near Emeryville for a factory site. A plant building of the plainest wood construction was erected.

As this was to be the beginning of ready roofing manufacture on the Pacific Coast and from a raw material never before. used, it was up to Pierce and Beardsley, the inventors, to design the machinery necessary to make roofing' The hot process was adopted. Fire kettles rvere installed in the {actoty. A stand of wooden rolls was erected, with an old-fashioned windlass operated by hand at the farther end to furnish the pulling Power.

One visiting the present P&B (norv Pabco) roofing plant representing an investment of several million dollars, with every machine driven by electrical energy, is apt to smile at the primitive construction of Machine N.o. 1, but it served its purpose and produced a roofing that was the foundation of the great growth and development of the company, as well as the-worlds asphalt roofing business,

Incidentally, very few people tealize the asphalt roofing business of the world started at our plant at Emeryville, California.-' ': '.;:

Since thcn' great:3trides have been'made. Research and development hayerbpen gpqsiste,nlly i4ten-sifi9d..r - :...