Carter Nine was unique in that it was company owned, built as a camp to house its offices and workers. Having seen the chaos and lawlessness of other boom towns in the area, such as Whizbang, the Carter Oil Company built their own "town" and fenced it in. The camp was originally built with company offices and two rows of 50 homes, with a third row added later. As the boom continued, the camp continued to expand, adding a school, stores, cafes, etc in and around the camp. The community became an incorporated town with the establishment of a post office in August, 1928.
The town was considered very progressive for the era, with electricity and modern plumbing. Carter Oil had built a large Naptha plant nearby, which produced high octane gasoline, solvents, butane and propane. The company sponsored high school which excelled in sports and academic competition including basketball, track and tennis. Children from the smaller camps and area farms and ranches attended the school as well.
The Skelly Oil Company took over the Carter Nine plant in 1935, which operated it until 1940, when the plant and the remaining Carter Oil Company holdings in the area were acquired by Phillips Petroleum. Much of the town’s population was transferred or laid off when this occurred and the original camp was razed.
At it's peak, more than 500 homes surrounded Carter Nine when the Burbank field employed between 30,000 and 40,000 people. By the time the plant closed, this had dropped to a single grocery and 36 homes. To the south of where the cache is placed is where all the buildings use to be. As you can see there is almost nothing left.