This scene shows a cut of oil tankers at Lawrenceville. It has to be the "LONG SIDING" beside the CAIRO LINE M.T. south of the B&O Xing. Only place that would be available for this perspective. I worked the "REFINERY JOB" at L'VILLE in 1950s--It was a crude oil facility now demolished, as are the MARATHON refinery at ROBINSON, ILL---and the oil loading 'racks/stge' at NORRIS CITY.......LAB
Yes, it was a part of the WWII effort. Illinois was a central location for much of the oil movement in the Midwest.
ROGER,,, Marathon refinery is still going strong in Robison, but now can only refine lite crude [import]. It is severed by the INRR. The marathon pipe line pumping station is also still running, which is also the dumping point for the heavy crude from the oil fields round here in E central ILL. The Texaco refinery [Lawrenceville] closed in the early 80’s. A few years later, another company was going to buy it, if they could tie back in to the pipeline which was by then controlled by Marathon, along with the storage tanks there, but an arrangement. couldn’t be reached. In the early 90’s I think it was the EPA tour it down. I think the storage tanks are still there on the S side of town
