The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1921-03-17
vOLNEY D. WILLIAMSON IDAHO GROUP COMPANY
HAS NOVEL OIL COMPANY OPERATE ON PINE CREEK
PIONEER MILLIONAIRE MINE I
OWNER MEETS OLD
FRIENDS.

Nolney ID. Williamson. one of the
real pioneers of the Occur dAlene
district. returned to his home in Spo-
kane last Tuesday, after spending
several days here renewing acquaint-
anee with old friends He was one
of the early arrivals on Prichard
creek coming i'm over the Trout
creek trail in 1888. He was one of
the locators of the Pacific claim. just
above Murray, which joined the fam
GUS Widow claim covering part Of the
ground upon which Murray stands
and which formed the bone of con-
tention in the first mining litigation
of note in this district Following
the discovery of lead silver ore on
the South Fork. Mr. Williamson
gave his attention to this section of
the district and secured interests i'm
a number of claims in the vicinity Of
Sunset He made his home in Wal
lace until about 1898 or 1894. when he
followed the lead Of many other
Occur d'Aleners and went to British
Columbia. He made his first big
Cleanup" in Rossand through the
sale Of the War Eagle as now re-
called. and that was the beginning of
fortune which has since been /
counted in millions His mining op-
erations during the subsequent years
took him first to Australia and then /
to South Africa. and still later to /
Mexico Mr.. Williamson makes his .
home i'm Spokane, where he has eX-
tensive property interests He still .
retains his widely scattered and val
liable mining interests, but there is
little activity on account of the un-
favorable metal conditions
Giving Attention to Oil.
The depression in mining and the .
coincident boom in oil caused Mr. /
Williamson to turn his attention to
the latter but not as promoter nor /
as a pioneer in the oil fields On .
the contrary. Mr.. Williamson enters /
the field after the cream has been /
skinned after the gushers have .
subsidized and the product of the wells .
has been reduced to 10 20 or possibly .
50 barrels per day. When this stage .
is reached the wells become either .
Improbable or not sufficiently pro
ftable to remain attractive to their .
speculative owners. and they are /
therefore ready to sell at a low fig
me. It is at this point that the VIII /
hanson oil Reclamation company
steps in For a comparatively small .
consideration this company takes
over these wells with their pumping
facilities and pipe line connection.
Associated with Mr.. Williamson i'm
this company are two oil engineers Of 4
long experience, who proceed to clean
out the well which in time becomes K
clogged, possibly Spring the hole"
as the miner would say, or even drill
the we'll deeper depending upon the 1
condition As a result of these OPP ,
erations wells seemingly near ex- ]
haustion are made to double or
treble their capacity and have their
lease of life extended for many
years One man can supervise the {
pumping in 80 or 40 of such wells.
Thus with the comparatively small
practically without fin
lncial risk. and with overhead eX-
oense reduced to minimum, the oil 4
company of which Mr. q
Williamson is the head is able to p
earn good profits from wells which f.
regular oil companies are ready to Z
abandon. d