Bush started the Bush-Overbey Oil Development company in 1951 and in 1953 co-founded the Zapata Petroleum Corporation, an oil company that drilled in the Permian Basin in Texas.
Bush oprettede udviklingsselskabet Bush-Overby Oil i 1951, og i 1953 var han en af grundlæggerne af Zapata Petroleum Corporation, et olieselskab som udvandt olie i Permian-bassinet i Texas.