WHAT IS THE “BIGGEST” OIL WELL ON RECORD IN ILLINOIS?
Illinois’ largest well, near Centralia, flowed 12,000 barrels of oil in a 24-hour period. Most Illinois oil wells, however, have to be pumped, and the majority of them are now producing 10 barrels or less a day. The deepest producing well, 5,354 feet, was drilled in 1960 in Wayne County, near Fairfield. In the same year the deepest oil test was drilled to a depth of 8,616 feet and was stopped in granite. This test is located in Fayette County near Beecher City and has its oil production from a zone over 4,000 feet above the bottom of the hole.