Visit to an Oil Field in Purissima Hills, USA by Geldolph Adriaan Kessler

Visit to an Oil Field in Purissima Hills, USA Possibly 1908

photo of handprinted image

aged paper

light pencil work

photo restoration

natural tone

light coloured

19th century

natural palette

watercolor

historical font

"Visit to an Oil Field in Purissima Hills, USA" is a black and white photograph by Geldolph Adriaan Kessler, taken possibly in 1908. This photograph showcases the industrial landscape of the Purissima Hills in California, featuring an oil refinery nestled in the foothills, complete with tall tanks, smokestacks, and power lines. The photograph, currently housed in the Rijksmuseum, offers a glimpse into the early 20th-century oil industry in America and serves as a historical document of industrial development.

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In 1908 Kessler accompanied the director of Koninklijke Olie (Royal Dutch Petroleum Company, later Shell), Henri Deterding, as secretary on a world tour. He travelled to Canada and the United States via the Dutch East Indies, Singapore, China, and Japan. Dolph’s photo album contains pictures of an oil field in California, as well as San Francisco’s town hall which had collapsed during an earthquake.