THE HISTORY OF GEOPHYSICAL PROSPECTING
PART NINE - 1921

Chapter 21  -  Haseman, Karcher, Eckardt and McCollum

Of the big five in American geophysical instrument building, the seismie exploration pioneers, four had done their graduate work in Physics at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Haseman, Dr. Eckhardt and Dr. Bazzoni had taught physics at this institution. Dr. Haseman, Dr. Eckhardt and J. C. Karcher were assigned to the Bureau of Standards during World War One, while Dr. Bazzoni had donned a lieutenant's uniform in France, in charge of sound-ranging for the American forces. Karcher returned to the University of Pennsylvania in 1919 and in 1920 became the fourth of the Ph D's in Physics from the University of Pennsylvania. The one outsider among the big five was Burton McCollum, who had received his B. S. in E. E. from the University of Kansas in June, 1903, just three months prior to the time that Wallace Pratt first enrolled at that University.

In June of 1917, William Peter Haseman, head of the Physics Department at the University, of Oklahoma, obtained a leave of absence from the school to devote himself to research work for military purposes at the United States Bureau of Standards. About the first person Dr. Haseman met in Washington was John Clarence Karcher. Karcher had heen Haseman's star physics student as an undergraduate at the University of Oklahoma. J. C. Karcher was graduated in June of 1916 with the highest scholastic grade average in his class. Haseman's strong recommendation of Karcher had obtained for him a scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania to do graduate work. Karcher had obtained aleave of absence as a graduate physics student at Pennsylvania to enter war work for the Bureau of Standards.

Haseman and Karcher were assigned positions in the Sound Section under Dr. Frank Wenner. Wenner and Haseman had been fellow doctorate recipients in 1907. Wenner had gone straight from Pennsylvania to the Bureau of Standards and was still there. Wenner, Haseman and Karcher were working together on the creation of a suitable detector for air sound waves as generated by the explosions of big guns.

Dr. Haseman and his brillient student, Karcher, soon entered into a discussion of the feasibility of utilizing reflected sound waves to determine probable oil field structure. Both being from the same oil state, such a discussion was almost inevitable. In the spring of 1964, I interviewed both J. C. Karcher and Burton McCollum. When asked specifically about who initiated the oil structure discussion, their memory came up with the same answer. Haseman was the first American to put into words the idea of using a seismic detector to delineate petroleum anticlines. In 1913, Reginald Fessenden was the first man to conceive of the idea of discovering ore bodies with sound waves and William Peter Haseman in 1917 was the first man to dream of spotting structures favorable to the accumulation of oil and gas by seismic means.

Before oil structure geophysics could proceed beyond the conversation stage for Haseman and Karcher, the original Sound Section was split up. Dr. Frank Wenner was transferred to the Submarine Section and Dr. Haseman was sent to the Bureau's Division at the University of Michigan to conduct some experiments on supersonic waves in water. For some unexplained reason, the Sound Section was now housed in the Bureau of Standard's Department of Electrolytic Corrosion. Dr. Engelhardt August Eckhardt was in charge of reorganizing the Sound Section with J. C. Karcher as his assistant. Burton McCollum  became administrative head of both the Electrolytic Corrosion Section and the Sound Section. After the war, when laboratory space was not so critical, Dr. E. A. Eckhardt moved into new quarters and became both the technical and admistrative head of the Sound Section. This continued during the five year span of 1920 to 1925.

When Dr. Haseman returned to the University of Oklahoma in January of 1919, one of his first acts was to write to J. C. Karcher at the University of Pennsylvania, asking Karcher if he would be interested in joining with Haseman when he finished his work at Pennsylvania, in an oil exploration company Haseman had in mind forming. Karcher replied with speed and enthusiasm, saying he would start work on the draft of a patent application. Haseman came right back with a number of suggestions including one for a four-way partnership. Karcher was asked to suggest to Eckhardt and McCollum that the four of them join forces in advancing the idea of seismic exploration.

When the draft of the patent application was finished, Karcher gave the document to Anton Udden, his friend and fellow physics graduate student, to read. Young Udden was favorably impressed and he suggested that Karcher write to his father, Dr. Johan Udden, eminent geologist at the University of Texas. This Karcher did, exchanging several letters with the eIder Udden, so that geological and physical ideas were jointly examined. This was in March of 1919.

In April of 1919, J. C. Karcher was required to go to Washington, D. C. to take a special examination in a course in thermodynamics under Professor Edgar Buckingham. By prearrangement, Karcher met with Dr. Eckhardt after the couclusion of the examination. Dr. Eckhardt then telephoned Mr. McCollum, who joined them in a further discussion of Dr. Haseman's proposal. At this meeting Karcher showed them the draft of his patent application covering a sound reflection methode. After a general discussion of some length, the partnership idea of Dr. Haseman became a reality between them, although it was never reduced to a written agreement. Since Burton McCollum had had eleven different patents on electrical motors issued to him between 1904 and 1917 and was therefore an old hand at processing patents, it was agreed that he would make a joint patent application with J. C. Karcher. McCollum said he would do everything he could to rush the issuance of the joint patent, using his Washington address to facilitate matters.

The opening statement of the new application for a patent in seismic exploration read:

To all whom it may concern:

"Be it known that we, Burton McCollum and J. C.Karcher, citizens of the United States and residing at Washington, D. C., have invented a' new and useful method for determining the contour of subsurface strata, of which the following is a specification.“

This 1919 patent application, concerned with the use of artificial earthquakes and the recording thereof to determine subsurface structure, was the second such application in geophysical history, being predated by only one patent application in sound, that of Reginald Fessenden. Since their invention concerned sound, the patent office first turned the application over to its music department. In course of time it found its way into more scientific channels.

J. C. Karcher spent the summer of 1919 assembling experimental seismograph apparatus, with which some seismic records were obtained within the confines of the grounds of the Bureau of Standards. The same summer, Dr. Haseman resigned his position as head of the Physics Department of the University of Oklahoma and moved to Oklahoma City, where he entered into discussions with Dr. Irving Perrine and Dr. D. W. Ohern, both able geologists. Both these geologists had served on the faculty of the University of Qklahoma and were therefore weIl known to Dr. Haseman. With some help from Perrine and Ohern, Haseman set out to interest Oklahoma City oil men in forming an exploration company and raising $28,000, the sum deemed necessary for the enterprise.

In 1920, J. C. Karcher was awarded his Ph D in Physics. He joined the Bureau of Standards Sound Section under Dr. Eckhardt. Karcher and Eckhardt kept busy with experiments in sound, while awaiting the slow consummation of the money raising activities underway in Oklahoma under the supervision of Dr. Haseman.

The Geological Engineering Company was incorporated under the laws of the state of Oklahoma in April of 1920 and some funds were made available for Karcher in the summer of 1920 for experimental purposes. Burton McCollum and J. C. Karcher required that $6,000.00 be paid jointly to them in exchange for the right to operate under their patent application.