A look back in time – February 1991

Veteran Iola oilman Mack C. Colt died at the age of 83. A graduate of Yale University in 1930 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, Colt didn’t appear headed for life in the Kansas oil patch. But in 1931, with oil selling for 10-cents a barrel, Colt returned to Iola to take over his father’s oil properties in the eastern part of the state. He never left and became well known in Kansas business circles and in state politics. Colt was in the forefront of experimentations with advanced enhancement recovery techniques such as polymer-augmented waterflooding, carbon dioxide flooding and fireflooding. He was one of the first eastern Kansas operators to drill with rotary tools. He was an active member of the advisory board of the University of Kansas Tertiary Oil Recovery Project and a founder of the Eastern Kansas Oil and Gas Association. He became its fifth president and also served as vice president and board member. He served as mayor of Iola and as a vice president of the Kansas State Chamber of Commerce.