World's First Offshore Oil Well Site

A historical marker in Morgan City commemorates the spot from which the world's first commercial offshore oil well was drilled in 1947. The achievement transformed the global energy industry: before this well, commercial oil extraction required a platform anchored to land or visible from shore. The Kerr-McGee operation proved that production from a freestanding ocean platform was viable, opening up subsea reserves that would eventually underpin the modern energy economy.

The offshore oil industry remains central to Morgan City's identity. Supply boats and crew vessels still work from the Atchafalaya River docks, and the Port of Morgan City serves the Gulf oil patch that its residents helped invent. The marker and its context make a thought-provoking stop for anyone interested in industrial history.

things to do sight
A story
On 14 November 1947, Kerr-McGee drilled the first truly out-of-sight-of-land offshore oil well from a surplus wartime platform in the Gulf of Mexico off Morgan City. The well, called Ship Shoal Block 32, was 10.5 miles from shore. Within a decade, the offshore oil industry had spread worldwide. Every drilling rig working in the North Sea, the Persian Gulf, and the deep Atlantic is a descendant of the platform that first broke contact with the American shore in Morgan City's backyard.