WorldWide Drilling Resource

Interstate 5 stretches from Oregon down through all of California to the Mexican border. Though it serves some of the largest cities on the U.S. West Coast, I-5 is described as a long, straight, flat, never-ending road. However, just a few miles off the freeway, near Coalinga, California, on Route 33, if you rub your eyes and take a second look, you’ll see a colorful mix of painted iron beasts residing peacefully in an oilfield. How did these strange creatures come to inhabit this part of the country? Back in 1971, local artist Jean Dakessian was a newcomer to Coalinga. She and her husband at the time had just opened the Cambridge Inn & Restaurant. Interstate 5 had recently opened and Jean was looking for a way to pull motorists from the freeway to their business. Pumpjacks along the highway gave her the inspiration she needed. “I had never seen oil pumps like those,” said Jean. “My imagination saw them as all kinds of creatures. I thought that if people came off the freeway, they would see a painted pump, go a little farther to see the next one, and on and on until they made it to...our wonderful and inviting motor lodge.” Jean approached Marshall Newkirk, the manager for Shell Oil in Coalinga at the time, and was given permission to paint her first pump. She turned it into a giant red bird. The creation was a huge success, drawing curious outsiders to town; so Shell gave the green light for Jean to create 23 more, and even donated the paint. Chevron got in on the action, and Jean ran a contest to design the company’s 34 pumpjacks. Winners could paint a pump or have Jean paint their idea. It turned into a fun community effort. Jean said, “People looked forward to seeing a new pump being created. Teachers took the students on field trips. People would gather there (‘meet me at the zebra after the game tonight’).” In 1975, Jean told the Los Angeles Times , “It’s a dull 12- mile drive from Interstate 5 through the oilfields to Coalinga. I dressed up the desolation.” The oi lfield came to be known as “The Iron Zoo”. In its heyday, you could find a cowboy riding a horse, a green-eyed skunk, an eagle flapping its wings up and down, along with many other wondrous inhabitants. Even Snoopy and Woodstock were there. Jean’s artwork continues to celebrate the role of petroleum in this small town’s history, and people still trickle in to the Iron Zoo. Sadly, time is taking its toll on the animals, and only a few can be seen from the side of the road. Visitor Diane Melde said, “The animals weren’t in nearly as good of shape last year (the last time we saw them) as they were in 2007 [when the photos by Bill Joyce included in this article were taken]. They are still fun to see, however.” Suzanne Jordan curator of Coalinga’s R.C. Baker Museum said four of the animal pumpjacks are actually still in use. Although there’s talk from time to time of restoring the zoo to its former glory, the painted pumpjacks are slowly disappearing. If you ever find yourself traveling this lonesome California highway, visitors say the few faded animals left standing are definitely worth a side trip. A special thank-you goes out to the R.C. Baker Museum and Curator Suzanne Jordan for so kindly providing the photos at the top of this page, as well as visitors Bill Joyce and Dianne Melde for sharing photos and information. The Iron Zoo of Coalinga Compiled by Amy White, Associate Editor WorldWide Drilling Resource ® Photo by Bill Joyce, sacnoth.com Photo by Bill Joyce, sacnoth.com 3"- 0)'! +#0* /'! /,,). '+ ./,!( '4#. 6 /, 6 +(. ,1* + 13 -"#+ ))#3 5 2 - 0!&*$% !,* 5 - 0!&*$% $-,+/'#-+#/ !,* ,"#) '4#. /#+/ + " #+"'+% 31 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® JANUARY 2016