Why Are There Secret Oil Wells Under LA Shopping Centers?

There are secret oil wells under LA! Beneath the glitz and glamour of Los Angeles lies a secret that has fueled this city’s rise—and its contradictions. This is not just the story of a city built on dreams; it is the story of a city built on oil. Hidden from plain sight, thousands of active and abandoned oil wells dot the landscape, quietly extracting black gold while masquerading as ordinary neighborhoods, shopping centers, or even schools. By the time you finish watching this documentary, you’ll uncover a fascinating fact about Los Angeles that connects its oil-rich past to some of its most iconic landmarks.

To understand how this came to be, we must journey back more than a century—to a time when Los Angeles was less about red carpets and more about rugged ambition. In the late 19th century, Los Angeles was a small but rapidly growing town, far removed from the global powerhouse it would later become. Its economy relied heavily on agriculture, real estate speculation, and railroads. But beneath its surface lay untapped riches—rich deposits of crude oil waiting to transform the region forever.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLQmm0IRQvN0tLGvfmjZoYrLRXTaARG8V
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0:00 The Discovery That Changed Everything
4:38 Urbanization Meets Industrialization
8:52 Cover-Ups and Controversies
11:16 A Forgotten Legacy Beneath the Streets
14:54 A Fascinating Fact