Built from Scratch : The Energy Companies of Tenneco

During the early years of World War II, an entrepreneurial young company did something impossible - they built a 1265-mile pipeline from South Texas to West Virginia, and they did it in only 11 months. From that start, Tennessee Gas Transmission Company became a dominant force in pipeline development. Within a few years, the vision grew to include exploration and production, and then refining and marketing: the birth of the Tenneco Oil Companies. Each would become a major player in its own arena of expertise. The building of the Energy Companies of Tenneco was a feat of unparalleled proportion. The unlikely demise of these three successful businesses in 1988, victims of a corporate strategy gone awry, was an equally unparalleled event. Built from Scratch is the story of the rise and the fall of the three energy strategies. It is also a tribute to the enterprise of the people who worked to create a unique giant in the energy world. A big, bold book with 140 black & white photographs and countless stories of the best days of the oil industry.