L. G. Smith's History

The Lago Refinery is just as much a part of Aruba’s history as the Arawak Indians and the aloe plantations. Due to Aruba’s favorable geographical position and stable political climate, the Lago Oil and Transport Company Ltd was established here in 1924. From 1932 on, the refinery was operated as a subsidiary of Standard Oil Company of New Jersey. It is here that we meet Lloyd Gaston Smith, a man associated with Lago since 1927.

General Manager since 1933, the late L. G. Smith became Vice President of Lago on March 2, 1942. He became Lago’s first President in 1944. After serving a two-year term, he returned to Standard Oil’s New York office. L. G. Smith was held in such high esteem that the boulevard that connects Oranjestad with San Nicolas and Noord was named after him. The government of Aruba also unveiled a bust of L. G. Smith in front of the Cultural Center on September 16, 1961.

The Lago Refinery had an enormous impact on Aruba’s development. In Lago’s early years, thousands of foreign workers hailed from the British and Dutch islands, and many new businesses developed. English was spoken at Lago by the local workforce and English soon became Aruba’s second language. Lago supplied one-third of all the aviation fuel consumed by the Allied forces during World War II and was the world’s largest refinery producing 440,000 barrels of fuel per day. No surprise that four Lago tankers were torpedoed on February 16, 1942 and that the Lago Refinery was the first land target in the Western Hemisphere to be hit by the enemy. With the Allies protecting Aruba and patrolling its air space and the surrounding sea, the enemy held its fire.

There were 8,300 Lago employees at its peak in 1949. Largely due to the refinery, Aruba’s population increased from 8,700 in 1924 to about 60,000 in 1972. Today, that number has doubled to 120,000. But increased costs and competition, decreased demand, and the refinery’s inability to compete with modern technology forced it to close down in 1985. It has since reopened under new ownership. Since that time, Aruba has become one of the most popular vacation destinations in the world, enjoying one of the highest hotel occupancy rates in the Caribbean.

Link to old newspaper articles: http://www.lgsmiths.com/Newpapers.htm