Mark L. Requa

Mark L. Requa (December 25, 1866 – March 6, 1937) was an American mining engineer and petroleum conservationist. He served as the director of the Oil Division of the U.S. Fuel Administration during World War I. He helped manage the presidential campaigns of Herbert Hoover in 1928 and 1932.

Early life Mark Lawrence Requa was born on December 25, 1866, to Sarah Jane (née Mower) and Isaac Lawrence Requa in Virginia City, Nevada. Isaac Requa was a one time president of Oakland Bank of Savings and made a fortune in silver and gold mining in Virginia City. He was also an engineer with Comstock Mining and served as president of the Central Pacific Railroad. Requa was educated at the Requa School in Piedmont, California and at private schools. Requa organized the White Pine Copper Company in 1902. In 1904, Requa merged the White Pine Copper Company and the Boston and Nevada Copper Company into the Nevada Consolidated Copper Company. He formed the Nevada Northern Railway to transport copper ore from the Robinson Mine near Ely, Nevada to Cobre, Nevada. He also served as a consulting engineer with the U.S. Bureau of Mines. He established "motorless weekends" while at the Fuel Administration. In 1921, at the World Engineering Congress in Tokyo, Requa warned nations about wasting petroleum.

After the war, he moved back to California. Requa partnered with Hoover in mining ventures after his presidency. He also served as a member of the American Petroleum Institute.