The Miracle in East Texas
When it was discovered in the early 1930s, the East Texas oil field was the largest known reserve in the world. Ten years down the road in 1941, that tremendous amount of oil proved absolutely essential in the Allies' fight for freedom from the Nazis. Within one month of the Pearl Harbor attack and America entering the war, and within 22 days, Nazi subs sank 73 of 74 tankers shuttling oil from Texas through the Gulf of Mexico to the East Coast. That oil was meant to supply our fighting soldiers over on the European battlefields. The U.S.