Oil City, LA

Oil City is a Caddo Parish town in northwestern Louisiana along Louisiana Highway 1, north of Caddo Lake. Its name reflects the petroleum history that made this part of the state important during the early twentieth century. Ferry Lake No. 1, drilled in Caddo Lake in 1909, was an early offshore oil well, and the lake's wooded shoreline and oilfield structures still frame the area's geography. Highway 1 carries the town's north-south connections, while Caddo Lake opens the map toward the bayous and wetlands of the Louisiana-Texas border country.

The Louisiana State Oil and Gas Museum at 200 South Land Avenue interprets the area's drilling history through photographs, films, dioramas, and equipment. The museum stands across from the old train depot, tying the town's oil story to the rail line that served the region. Caddo Parish lists Oil City among its incorporated towns, and the local school and civic map extends along the highway corridor. Oil City is a compact place, but the lake, the depot, and the museum give it a distinct industrial history rooted in the landscape around Caddo Lake.