2022 NIHF Inductee James Abercrombie: Oil Driller, Inventor, Philanthropist

Before the invention of the world’s first reliable blowout preventer (BOP), patented in 1926, oil wells were left to “blow out” after tapping in order to reduce pressure for capping — a practice that was dangerous and sometimes even deadly for workers. This changed with the work of 2022 National Inventors Hall of Fame^® (NIHF) Inductees James Abercrombie and Harry Cameron.

From the Farm to the Oil Fields

One of 13 children, James Abercrombie was born in 1891 in Huntsville, Texas. Around the time he turned 15, his family established a dairy farm on the outskirts of Houston. Abercrombie worked for his family’s business for a few years before joining his brother in looking for work in the oil industry, which would allow them to pay for more employees to support the dairy.

In 1909, Abercrombie was hired to work as a roustabout, or an unskilled deckhand, on a drilling rig. The following year, he began working as an oil driller and he soon became a field superintendent for Crown Petroleum. In 1918, Abercrombie begin drilling on his own, purchasing a used drilling rig to establish several wells near Wichita Falls. After leaving Crown in 1920, Abercrombie continued working on his own in South Texas and Gulf Coast oil fields.

Making an Impact in Drilling and Beyond

In July 1920, Abercrombie joined machinist Harry Cameron, then the co-owner of the oil drilling supply company Cameron-Davant Co., to form Cameron Iron Works. Abercrombie became the unsalaried president of this company while he was also president of the James S. Abercrombie Co., his growing independent drilling operation.

Late in 1921, the Monarch Oil and Refining Co. contracted Abercrombie to provide a solution for a “troublesome” well located near Houston. In developing a solution, Abercrombie and his team experienced three blowouts, one of which occurred while using the blowout preventer that had been on the market at the time. This led Abercrombie to begin developing his idea for a “ram-type” blowout preventer — a device that would use hydrostatic pistons (rams) to clamp the drill stem, creating a seal against well pressure in order to control a blowout and prevent potentially life-threatening situations. Abercrombie and Cameron worked together to create this device, which could withstand up to 3,000 pounds per square inch (psi), then an industry record. The team patented their invention in 1926.

With the success of this BOP, Cameron Iron Works’ profits grew substantially, and Abercrombie traveled the world to help solve challenges on oil fields. He earned a total of 30 U.S. patents and became one of Houston’s civic leaders and most generous philanthropists. In 1950, for instance, Abercrombie collaborated with other prominent residents of Houston to charter the Texas Children’s Hospital. Support for this hospital, which treats critically ill children, would continue through the James S. Abercrombie Foundation, established in 1968.

Through the decades, Cameron Iron Works evolved into Cameron International, which became part of Schlumberger Ltd. in 2016. Today, Cameron is a leading manufacturer of oil and gas pressure control and separation equipment, and the company remains one of the leading providers of BOPs in the industry.

To learn more about the other inventors Inducted in James Abercrombie’s class, view our Inductee search page.