Cass County, Texas
Sell Mineral Rights in Cass County, Texas
Rose City Resources dominates recent permitting, with Fossil Petroleum and Saltwerx also active through 2026.
Producing formations: Cotton Valley, Rodessa
Where Cass County sits
Dry gas country, the Haynesville, Bossier and Cotton Valley run underneath this county. All twenty-three counties we buy in are shaded; click one to open it.
The history of oil and gas in Cass County
Rodessa, 1930s: eleven million barrels and then almost nothing
Cass County's oil history is a lesson in how fast a shallow field can be produced out. It peaked at eleven and a half million barrels a year and fell ninety-two percent inside eleven years. The county's second act, ninety years later, is gas, and it is happening right now.
The Rodessa field
Oil exploration in Cass County began in the 1930s, centered on the Rodessa field south of Atlanta. Rodessa is a trend that runs across the Texas-Louisiana-Arkansas corner, and the Texas portion reached into this county.
By 1936, more than a hundred wells had been drilled. The activity created an entire new town, McLeod, and made money for landowners who happened to sit over the trend.
Up fast, down faster
In 1937 Cass County wells produced 11,511,838 barrels. That is a serious number; it is roughly what Upshur County was making at its peak in the East Texas Field.
Then it fell off a cliff. By 1948, eleven years later, annual production was 880,575 barrels. A ninety-two percent decline.
From 1935 through 2000 the county produced 112,600,392 barrels in total, most of it in the first decade. The county histories are honest about the result: Cass County "never really became a major oil-producing county," and the industry's effect on the economic base is hard to measure.
What the 1937 crash teaches
This is the clearest cautionary tale in the district about buying off a peak.
An owner in 1937 looking at their royalty check would have concluded they held a substantial long-term asset. An owner in 1948 held the same interest producing eight percent as much. Nothing about the ownership changed; the reservoir simply gave up what it had.
The modern equivalent is a first-year Haynesville well. Different formation, different century, same mistake available.
The present
Cass County today is Cotton Valley gas country, and it has become the center of gravity for Rose City Resources, which has permitted here consistently from 2024 through 2026. Fossil Petroleum, Saltwerx and Barrow-Shaver Resources have also been active.
What to know if you own here
- Old Rodessa oil interests are mostly a tail, small, long-declining, and often still paying something.
- The gas underneath is the live question. Whether your old oil lease covers the Cotton Valley depths determines most of the value.
- Rose City's activity is worth watching. When one operator consolidates a county over three years, that is usually a considered position rather than a coincidence.
Sources: Handbook of Texas (Texas State Historical Association) county and field entries; American Oil & Gas Historical Society; Texas Almanac; Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas energy research; Railroad Commission of Texas permit and completion records as published through texas-drilling.com and the weekly drilling reports of the Longview News-Journal and Tyler Morning Telegraph. Verified August 2026.
Who is operating in Cass County
These operators have filed permits or completions in Cass County with the Railroad Commission. If your check comes from one of them, we already know the wells.
- Rose City Resources
- Fossil Petroleum
- Saltwerx
- Barrow-Shaver Resources
What we buy in Cass County
Mineral rights, royalty interests, overriding royalty, non-participating royalty, non-operated working interest, and non-producing minerals. There is no size limit in either direction. We buy a single interest in one unit and we buy whole family positions.
If your piece feels too small to bother with, call anyway. Small interests in the same tract usually belong to relatives, and we would rather work with the whole family at once.
How an offer gets made
You call or fill out the form. We pull the county records, the appraisal district roll and the Railroad Commission production history ourselves. Within three business days you get a specific cash number in writing and a plain explanation of how we got there. If we think you should hold, we say that too. We cover title, recording and closing, and you keep every royalty check until the day we close.
Call or text (936) 289-3438 Or email offers@longleafmineralco.com
Cass County questions
What formations produce in Cass County?
The producing formations we track in Cass County are the Cotton Valley and Rodessa. In short: dry gas country. The Haynesville, Bossier and Cotton Valley run underneath this county. Ask your operator or check your division order to see which formation your own check comes from.
Who operates wells in Cass County?
Operators that have filed permits or completions in Cass County with the Texas Railroad Commission include Rose City Resources, Fossil Petroleum, Saltwerx and Barrow-Shaver Resources. If your check comes from one of them, we already know the wells. You can also look up any well yourself in the Railroad Commission's public records.
What should I check before selling minerals in Cass County?
Old Rodessa oil interests are mostly a tail, small, long-declining, and often still paying something. The gas underneath is the live question. Whether your old oil lease covers the Cotton Valley depths determines most of the value. Rose City's activity is worth watching. When one operator consolidates a county over three years, that is usually a considered position rather than a coincidence. If any of that is unclear, call or text us and we will look it up with you for free. We also buy in the counties that border Cass County: Bowie County, Morris County and Marion County.
Other counties we buy in
Own minerals next door too? We also buy in the counties that border Cass County: Bowie County, Morris County, Marion County.