Dietler, Cortlandt S., 1921-

Successful oilman Cortlandt S. Dietler was born September 19, 1921, in Denver, Colorado, to Ralph O., a noted Denver oil consultant, and Christabel Scoville Dietler. As a young man, he attended Cascia Hall Prep School in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Culver Military Academy in Indiana, from which he graduated in 1940. He was called to serve in the Army Corps of Engineers during World War II. Upon his return, he graduated from the University of Tulsa in 1946. In July 1946, he went to Beirut, Lebanon, to work for the Trans-Arabian Pipeline Company during construction of the Tapline. Dietler returned to the United States in 1948, married, and moved to Casper, Wyoming. In 1950, Dietler moved back to Denver and took a position with Argo Oil as a division exploration manager. He formed the Platte Transport Corporation on the side. He left Argo, and in 1953 teamed with Jack Oleson to form Western Crude Marketers, Inc. Dietler then founded Western Crude Oil, Inc. in 1967. In 1975, he joined a consortium of small independent oil companies that founded the Northern Tier Pipeline Company. He resigned as Western Crude Oil's president and CEO in the fall of 1981 to pursue the Northern Tier Pipeline project full-time. Western Crude went on to become a subsidiary of Getty Oil Company. In the early 1980s, Dietler co-founded Associated Natural Gas Corporation, a natural gas gathering, processing, and marketing company, which he ran and later sold to PanEnergy Corporation in 1994. In 1981, Dietler co-founded TransMontaigne Oil Company in Denver. In 1987, he became a partner in the privately held Caza Drilling Company of Denver. His involvement in more than fifteen oil and gas companies over the course of his career earned him the moniker, "the man with the Midas touch." The Colorado Petroleum Association named him "Pioneer Oil Man of the Year" in 1986, and he was inducted into the Colorado Business Hall of Fame in February 2001.

From the description of Cortlandt S. Dietler papers, 1953-2005. (University of Wyoming, American Heritage Center). WorldCat record id: 54850249

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