Allegany | Cattaraugus | Oil Springs

Oil Springs Indian Reservation (OSIR) - The OSIR is located on the border of Cattaraugus and Allegany Counties near Cuba, New York. The OSIR is made up of one square mile of land that includes access to Cuba Lake. Although the OSIR has no permanent Seneca residents, there are SNI and privately owned enterprises operating on the reservation.

The spring is located near the spillway end of Cuba Lake on the Oil Spring Indian Reservation. This is the site of the famed spring described by the Franciscan Missionary Joseph DeLa Roch D'Allion in 1627, the first recorded mention of oil on the North American Continent. In 1927, the New York State Oil Producers Association sponsored the dedication of a monument at the site describing the history of the oil industry in North America.