Cerro Azul, Veracruz

Cerro Azul is a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz. Located in the state's Huasteca Baja region, it serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. In the 2005 INEGI Census, the city reported a total population of 23,573. The site had been a 10,000-acre (40 km) area of rolling plains and hills used for cattle grazing (potreros). Hundreds of little asphalt springs dotted the area where cattle bones could be seen caught in the black seepage. Oil drilling in the area began in 1906. The town's population grew exponentially following the drilling of the Cerro Azul No. 4 well, at the time the world's largest pumping 260,000 barrels per day (BPD), in February 1916. The well was drilled by Herbert Wylie for...