Moncla Companies
321 Renaud Dr. , Lafayette, Louisiana, United States

The oil industry was just beginning to thrive when, in 1942, Cecil Guinn moved his family from Monroe, Louisiana to begin a career in that state’s famous oilfield in Jennings.  When WWII broke out, he, and his identical twin brother Carl, wanted to sign up for active duty. Carl ended up in the Air Force; however, due to Cecil’s perforated ear drum, he could not pass his entrance physical. He was upset about not being able to fight for his country, but another brother Earl, pastor at the First Baptist Church in Jennings, consoled Cecil, convincing him that the war efforts needed oil to support tanks and planes, and that the oilfield would make him feel a part of the war effort. Earl found Cecil a job with National Supply where he worked for five years in Jennings before being transferred to Houma.

While in Houma, he accepted a sales position with Garret Oil Tools, which later became Otis Oil Tools. After spending three years in Houma, he was transferred to Lafayette by Otis. It was in Lafayette that he saw an opportunity as an entrepreneur to own his own business. In 1957, Cecil bought his first workover rig and named his business Pelican Well Service after Louisiana’s state bird. A workover rig, unlike a drilling rig, is more mobile and much smaller. While drilling rigs drill new wells for oil companies in hopes of finding oil or gas, workover rigs work on the oil companies’ existing wells that, for one reason or another, has either declined in production of oil and gas, or the oil or gas has totally stopped flowing. There are several types of well site jobs that workover rigs perform: workovers, completions, rod jobs, re-entries, sidetracks, and plug and abandonments.

Pelican’s reputation was second to none in servicing the oil companies of Louisiana, and by the mid-70s Pelican had grown to ten land rigs and two swab trucks. In 1971, Cecil hired his son-in-law, Charlie Moncla. Charlie assumed by the family relationship, that he would have a nice office job, but upon arriving on his first day of work, Cecil pointed toward a hard hat, steel-toe boots, and a pair of coveralls. Cecil stated, “The best way to learn this business is by working on the rigs.” Charlie spent about two years working on the rigs, before moving into safety, and later, sales. Cecil always described the workover rig business as “the janitors that had to go clean up wells, to make them flow again.”  In 1977, Cecil was diagnosed with cancer and passed away shortly thereafter. His wife, Virginia took over as president of the company with, Charlie Moncla moving up to vice president. From 1977-1987, Virginia grew Pelican to four 1,000 hp 24-hour rigs, one 24-hour barge rig, 11 daylight rigs and two swab trucks, and employed 200 at its highest point. Virginia Guinn was a true pioneer as a in the oil business, running a rig company through the ups-and-downs of the late 70s, 80s and early 90s before selling the rigs in 1992.