Teapot Dome is a geological formation in Wyoming that resembles a teapot, rising above an oil field that held millions of barrels of petroleum. In 1915, President Wilson designated it as Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 3, securing the oil for the Navy's growing fleet. In 1922, Interior Secretary Albert Fall secretly leased the field to oil tycoon Harry Sinclair in exchange for bribes - no competitive bidding, no public notice, just a private deal that would make both men rich. When the scandal broke, it consumed the Harding administration. Fall became the first cabinet officer in American history to go to prison. 'Teapot Dome' became shorthand for political corruption, the Watergate of its era. The oil field itself, a modest landscape feature in remote Wyoming, became a symbol of how easily public resources can be stolen by private interests when officials are for sale.
As the U.S. Navy converted from coal to oil in the early twentieth century, securing petroleum supplies became a strategic priority. President Taft created the first naval petroleum reserves; President Wilson added Teapot Dome and California's Elk Hills. These weren't merely government property - they were military assets, insurance against future oil shortages. Management fell to the Navy Department, which zealously guarded the reserves. Then came the Harding administration. Interior Secretary Albert Fall, a rancher from New Mexico with expensive tastes, persuaded the President to transfer the reserves from Navy to Interior Department control. The justification was efficiency. The reality was that Fall intended to profit.
In 1922, Fall secretly leased Teapot Dome to Harry Sinclair's Mammoth Oil Company. There was no competitive bidding, no public announcement, no opportunity for other companies to compete. In exchange, Fall received about $300,000 in bribes - some in cash, some in cattle, some in bonds delivered in black bags. Elk Hills, the California reserve, was similarly leased to Edward Doheny's Pan American Petroleum Company for $100,000. Fall used the money to expand his New Mexico ranch. He assumed the deals would remain secret. He was wrong.
Suspicions arose almost immediately. How had Fall suddenly become wealthy? Why were the naval reserves being drained? Senator Thomas Walsh of Montana led an investigation that stretched over two years. Slowly, the truth emerged. Fall had received money from Sinclair and Doheny. The leases had been granted corruptly. Fall resigned in 1923, claiming poor health. The investigation continued. In 1929, Fall was convicted of accepting bribes and sentenced to one year in prison - the first cabinet member in American history to be imprisoned for crimes committed in office. Ironically, the men who bribed him were acquitted of giving the bribes he was convicted of taking. Justice, in the Teapot Dome affair, was partial.
Teapot Dome devastated the Harding administration's reputation. Harding himself died before the worst revelations, but his presidency became synonymous with corruption. The scandal dominated the 1924 election and contributed to Republican losses. For decades afterward, 'Teapot Dome' was the reference point for political scandal - until Watergate surpassed it. The incident also shaped energy policy. The naval petroleum reserves remained under government control until the 1990s, when they were finally sold. The principle that public resources shouldn't be secretly given to private interests was reinforced, though regularly violated. Today, Teapot Dome is largely forgotten - remembered mainly by historians and crossword puzzle writers.
Teapot Dome is located in Natrona County, Wyoming, about 30 miles north of Casper. The geological formation for which it was named - a sandstone dome that resembled a teapot - has eroded to the point where the resemblance is debatable. A small monument marks the site. The oil field itself is now managed by the Department of Energy and is not generally accessible to the public. The surrounding landscape is high plains sagebrush - remote, wind-swept, and empty. There are no visitor facilities. For those interested in the scandal, the National Archives in Washington has documents from the investigation, and the Wyoming State Archives in Cheyenne has related materials. The experience of visiting is essentially standing in an empty landscape and reflecting on how this remote place once symbolized everything wrong with American democracy. Casper/Natrona County International Airport (CPR) is 30 miles south.
Located at 43.30°N, 106.25°W in Natrona County, Wyoming, about 30 miles north of Casper. From altitude, Teapot Dome appears as unremarkable high plains terrain - sagebrush and grass with scattered oil infrastructure. The formation itself is subtle from the air. The surrounding landscape is the empty vastness of central Wyoming. Casper is visible to the south.