Its economy is largely dependent on jobs from the much bigger refinery towns Port Arthur and Beaumont.

The son of an electrician who was also a Baptist deacon, Mr. Lewis grew up in Port Arthur, a refinery town.

In fact, the drearily stable refinery town of the 60's that seemed like such a prison to Janis and her friends, in retrospect looks pretty appealing to most of those still here.

Most of the men at the front line were trying to get from Brega to the refinery town of Ras Lanuf.

Cross conjectures that Tarshish here "is most easily understood as the name of a refinery town in Sardinia, presumably Nora or an ancient site nearby."

Mrs. Imrencler, whose family has just bought a four-bedroom house in this refinery town midway between Bonn and Cologne, does not count herself among the Islamic fundamentalists.

Ms. Hunter plays Wanda Holloway of Channelview, Tex., a refinery town outside Houston.

It was a refinery town, Kate knew, but it looked like Hell to her as they approached.

"I don't have to erode her likability," Mr. Bush explained the other day on a swing through this refinery town.

Getting clear of the walled refinery town presented no problem, since the few sentries were looking for trouble only from the outside.