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From the history of George Mitchell Energy:
CM&M [the predecessor to Mitchell Energy expanded operations through the mid-1950s. In 1954 it opened a Western Canada field office in Calgary, where in 1955 it discovered the Alvord 3000' Strawn and Tidwell 4600' Strawn fields.
All was not completely rosy for the new firm, however. In 1956 royalty owners in North Texas's Wise County--where CM&M had drilled 57 oil wells and 103 gas wells in 34 separate fields--began to grow impatient with CM&M which, because of low gas prices, was keeping gas shut-in. George Mitchell decided to deal with the disgruntled royalty owners publicly. He invited the entire county to a barbecue, where he told 3,000 residents that though it had not seen a penny of revenue from gas sales, the company was willing to spend another $7 million to drill 40 wells in the area in 1956 and another 170 wells in 1957. Given the company's financial commitment, residents agreed to wait for satisfactory prices before demanding royalties.
It was not as if the company was not trying to market its gas. As early as 1954 it had negotiated with Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America for a pipeline spur that would transport Wise County gas to Chicago. The Federal Power Commission had rejected this first deal and did not approve a spur into Wise County until 1957. Through the late 1950s and early 1960s, the company expanded and reorganized. It became part owner of the GM&A Gas Products Plant at Bridgeport, which opened in 1957. In 1959 George Mitchell became CEO. And in 1961 the company, which had just discovered the Alvord South Caddo Conglomerate Field in Wise County, formed CM&M Equilease to lease oil field equipment.
Devon bought Mitchell Energy in 2002 for $3 billion.
Edit: Original George Mitchell office in Bridgeport
