May 15,1914 is one of the most important days in Calgary's history. It is the date of the "Dingman Discovery". On this day at Turner Valley, some thirty miles south of Calgary, Archibald Dingman, who was in charge of the drilling, and his associates in the Calgary Petroleum Products Company struck oil at the 2,700 foot level. The oil that flowed to the surface was a very high-grade crude of such light gravity that it was used directly in the unsophisticated vehicles at the well site.
News of the discovery sent Calgary into a frenzy. Within a few weeks literally hundreds of new oil companies (such as those advertised in this photograph) were organized by investors who hoped to get in on the "ground floor" and make their fortunes. Enormous sums of money changed hands daily and it is said that brokers at the Calgary Stock Exchange were compelled to abandon their cash drawers in favour of wastebaskets in order to handle the heavy volume of money.
