Oil transformed Midland from a small ranching town into a regional city

Oil strikes in neighboring counties in the 1920s brought attention to the region, but major production in Midland County did not begin until 1945. The Midland South Pool success in 1947 confirmed the area's wealth. The county's population jumped from about 8,000 in 1930 to nearly 83,000 by 1980.

Midland became the white-collar hub where oil companies kept their offices, while Odessa to the west handled more of the field work and refining. By 1991, Midland County wells had produced over 455 million barrels of oil. The Permian Basin continues to be one of the most active oil-producing regions in the world.