After the incorporation of Arp, Guy Lewis brought his drilling ideas to the area and drilled the first oil well in the area in 1930-1931. The success of his well brought about one of the largest booms in the area.

Before the oil strike, the population of Arp centered around 250, but the oil production was rapidly climbing and so was the population.

Arp was originally an agricultural community with strawberries and tomatoes as the major drawing card of the surge of population.

With the population boom, also came industry and city growth for Arp. At one time during the oil surge, Arp housed three hotels (one being a spacious three-story structure); four large oil refineries, a large lumber yard, several oil supply companies and a famous Arp Roses Inc., nursery.

The businesses contributed in giving the town a sizable payroll as the population was growing by leaps and bounds, and with the people came additional business opportunities.

Arp was the place to be during the 1930’s as it was more or less the perfect commuter’s home with oilmen working in the fields near Turnertown, New London and Kilgore, Arp offered the suburban-type living but it was blossoming into one of the more wealthy cities in the East Texas area.

But, the good news was soon departed as the oil fields were dropping off production and oil companies were moving elsewhere. The refineries were following the oil strikes and with the work went the people. As the population began to dwindle so did the city business and all the success that came in with the boom.

On April 6, 1933, the state Railroad Commission ordered oil production stopped in East Texas fields (some 10,000 wells) in order to determine the potential production and equalize the pressure among the wells, for a period of five-days.

According to present "old timers" the years of 1937-38, people started leaving the city area of Arp and by 1945 the area was dying as businesses were closing down, the oil production diminished and drillers started moving. With those moves came the closing of the oil refineries.

There were no jobs to keep the people in the town during the 1940’s and the move continued, slowly but gradually and consistently.