Give a Year-End Gift to Friends of Drake Well!

Dear Friend,

As another year comes to an end, we reflect on the memories we made and the goals we achieved here at Friends of Drake Well, Inc., throughout 2025. Over 18,000 visitors from across the country and around the world came to Drake Well Museum and Park this year, including 2,000 school children from western Pennsylvania. All came to learn about the birthplace of the modern petroleum industry and its impact on our world.

It is Drake Well Museum’s mission to uncover, preserve, and share Pennsylvania’s rich petroleum history, connecting past to present through a diversity of perspectives and inspiring its global audience to strive for a sustainable energy future. Working together with the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, Friends of Drake Well assists Drake Well Museum in fulfilling its mission through a myriad of ways, including but not limited to:

• Staffing – Friends of Drake Well employs three full-time staff, seven part-time and seasonal staff, and three summer interns. Included with this are our staff who operate the Drake Well Replica every season, interpreting the history and operation of the original well site to visitors!

• Marketing & Outreach – the majority of marketing and outreach for both Drake Well Museum and Historic Pithole City comes from Friends of Drake Well. Marketing to potential visitors is crucial to the ongoing success of both sites. This year we hired a new Outreach Coordinator, John Hetrick, to spearhead our new outreach program by attending festivals, fairs, bus tour conventions, and more!

• Events & Programming – we assist in the planning and implementation of all events and educational programs held at Drake Well Museum and Historic Pithole City. We also provide funding for these activities, securing sponsors to help with expenses.

• Fundraising and Development – the most important task of Friends of Drake Well is its role in securing funding for Drake Well Museum and its associated sites of Historic Pithole City and McClintock Well #1. This is done through grant writing, memberships, fundraisers, sponsors, and the support of our donors!

Today, we ask for your support – help us continue the great work we do in keeping history alive at Drake Well! Your generosity is greatly appreciated. For questions or for additional ways in which you can help Friends of Drake Well, please feel free to call me at (814)461-0008 or email c-emilywea@pa.gov.

Wishing you a wonderful holiday season and a joyful New Year!

Emily M. Weaver

Executive Director, Friends of Drake Well, Inc.

Friends of Drake Well, Inc., is the 501(c)(3) community-based nonprofit organization that supports the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission in the administration and operation of Drake Well Museum and Park in Titusville, Pennsylvania. Donate to Friends of Drake Well today to help us in continuing our mission to support Drake Well's educational and outreach programs, preservation and management of its vast collections, interpretation of its story and that of the Oil Region at large through state-of-the-art exhibits, programming, and much more.

By giving to Friends of Drake Well, you are ensuring the future of Drake Well Museum and its own mission to uncover, preserve, and share Pennsylvania's rich petroleum history, connecting past to present through a diversity of perspectives and inspiring our global audience to strive for a sustainable energy future.