MIDLAND, Texas (KOSA) – During yesterday’s legislative session, State Representative Tom Craddick secured new and sustained funding for multiple West Texas organizations.
Specifically, in the Permian Basin, the petroleum museum received over 600,000 dollars to continue its education and preservation.
This is a key victory for House District 82 as the budget win ensures that this educational and cultural gem continues to serve as a vital resource for the community.
The Permian Basin began its formation about 1.3 billion to 850 million years ago with tectonic activity.
Back in 1855, the first wells were drilled for freshwater, and small amounts of crude oil were collected slowly and with trouble.
Now, it accounts for almost 40 percent of all oil production in the United States.
Executive Director at the Permian Basin Petroleum Museum, Bryan Grant, said, “It is a little shocking sometimes how many people don’t realize exactly what all is involved and where our oil and gas comes from that powers our everyday lives and it really did start millions and billions of years ago with micro-organisms when the Permian Basin was actually under the ocean.”
The state funding for the petroleum museum is distributed through a partnership they have with Midland Community College.
Representative Craddick’s office says it is crucial to preserve the 230 million years of history in the petroleum museum.
The 615,708 dollars will specifically be used for the purposes of education, archives and collections, and exhibits.
“We do multiple different classes, camps, different programs, and these funds just help give us the resources that we need to make sure that we can keep on offering that programming to the community,” said Grant.
The Petroleum Museum currently partners with both Midland and Odessa school districts, as well as other museums in the region.
Over the summer, they will host STEAM Sprout mini camps for ages four through 15.
He continued, “Come out and sign up for one of our classes. Get your kids involved in our classes. See what we’ve got going on out here. We’ve got tons of great STEAM education programming where we focus on science, technology, engineering, arts, and math. Tons of things for them to take part in.”
If you’re looking to donate or maybe just stop by to learn more about the history of the Permian Basin, visit https://petroleummuseum.org/.
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