The Teapot Dome Scandal was one of
earliest scandals in
American business. Three naval oil fields, Elk Hills and Buena Vista Hills in California and Teapot Dome in Wyoming, was public land that were reserved by previous presidents to be emergency underground oil supplies to be used by
navy only when
regular oil supplies diminished.
The Teapot Dome oil field received its name because of a rock resembling a teapot that was located above
oil-bearing land.
In June, 1920, Congress passed a bill that stated that
Secretary of
Navy would have
power "to conserve, develop, use and operate
same in his discretion, directly or by contract, lease, or otherwise, and to use, store, exchange, or sell
oil and gas products thereof, and those from all royalty oil from lands in
naval reserves, for
benefit of
United States."
In 1921 Albert Fall was appointed as Secretary of
Interior by President Warren Harding.
Fall then convinced Secretary of
Navy Edwin Denby to turn
control of
oil fields over to him.