Charles Nelson Tripp

Charles Nelson Tripp (182330 September 1866) was an American bitumen businessman in Ontario, Canada. Tripp is best known for his role in the formation of the International Mining and Manufacturing Company in 1854, the world's first incorporated oil company. Tripp and his brother Henry were among the first to exploit Enniskillen Township's bitumen deposits following Thomas Sterry Hunt and Alexander Murray's reports on the region and helped kickstart the first oil boom in Enniskillen Township.

Biography

Early life Charles Nelson Tripp and his brother Henry moved to Canada West from Schenectady, New York, sometime before 1850. Tripp went to Bath, Ontario, where he worked as a foreman in a stove foundry.

International Mining and Manufacturing Company After arriving in Enniskillen Township, Tripp amassed 1,450 acres of land and engaged in manufacturing asphalt by boiling bitumen. In 1852, Tripp petitioned the Legislative Council of Canada West for a charter to establish the International Mining and Manufacturing Company. After multiple petitions, the Legislative Council issued a charter on December 18, 1854, resulting in the world's first incorporated oil company. The company was capitalized at a value of $60,000, with Charles Tripp as President.

In 1855, Tripp sent a sample of his asphalt to the University Exhibition in Paris, and it received an honourable mention. The exhibit prompted Paris to order asphalt from Tripp's Company to pave its streets. From 1855 to 1857, 13 creditors issued judgements against Tripp, and he lost all of his land in Enniskillen with the exception of two 100 acre parcels that he sold for 10 shillings to Henry. One creditor, James Miller Williams, purchased 600 acres of Tripp's land for £2000 and commenced his own oil operation. Tripp briefly worked for Williams in 1856 and unsuccessfully attempted to sink an oil well near Bothwell, before heading to the United States in November.

Later life After leaving Canada, Tripp travelled to the oil fields in Pennsylvania, before making his way to Louisiana. Throughout the American Civil War, he reportedly explored Louisiana and Texas for minerals under the orders of Edmund Kirby Smith and Henry Watkins Allen. Vice-Chancellor Spragge ruled that the Court of Chancery could appoint new trustees, but Cornish could not take full control of her properties.

Death Shortly after arriving in New Orleans, Tripp died in a hotel room on September 30 from "congestion of the brain." His obituary in the Ottawa Citizen noted that Tripp "knew practically, more about the mineral wealth of every Southern State than any other man."

In 2008, Canada Post issued a commemorative postage stamp featuring portraits of Tripp and Williams.