Hungry Horse news., 1955-02-04
East Glacier Well Could Help F|athead

OF interest to the Flathead is
Union Oil Co. of CALIFORNIA; Morn
ing Gun No. i well on the Black
feet Indian reservation which was
spudded in Jan. II with ceremon-
les that saw Governor j. Hugo
Aronson and Reese Taylor, presi-
dent of Union Oil present. There
were Indian festivities and pag-
eantry.
The well site is six miles east of
East Glacier Park and "the Wild
cat' may open new field and
certainly boom the Browning area.
Hope is. that it will tap an extern
sion of the famed Pincher Creek
gas wells found just north of Wa
terton Lakes National Park. If a
new major gas field is found it
means natural gas for Missoula,
and possibly for the Flathead.
Please see editorial page 2.
The Hungry Horse News photo
graphed the oil drilling rig itself
Jan. 8, and then last Saturday we
returned to get pictures of Mrs.
Otter Woman Morning Gun, the
87-year-old Blackfoot lady, on
whose land the new well is located
In Browning we met Archie
Clarke, rowing reporter-photograp-
her for the Great Falls Tribune
and went to Mrs. Morning Guns
| home.
She was out, but there were al
least 20 persons in the small home
and the good fortune of $4,000
paid her for the oil lease (accord-
ing to report, in $3.50 a month
allotments by the agency was evil
dent.
Indians have a fine custom
though not particularly practica
of sharing good fortune will
friends and relatives includin!
three sons. The relatives were
there, and it was obvious tina
Mrs. Morning Guns good forum,
and the Jan. II festivity was still
being celebrated.
| Mrs. Morning Gun had moved
to a better home on the edge O
Mocc4sin flats. Improvement
hadn't yet reached the point O
| taking soap off windows from Hal
loween, or fixing the mostly pick
etless picket fence. A TV aeria
hadn't yet made its appearance.
| Not finding Mrs. Morning Gu1
in we checked at various stores. A
Boss Tribal store there was com
/ rnent about the fine, little olt
lady. Across the street at Vaught'
it was the same: "she's sweet ant
nice, and even though about 8
years old walks up town and bacl
frequently"
| We were also told to watch TO
a new two-tone light colored Fore
that the family now owned.
| Later when we met Mrs. Morn
ing Gun, she had a new shawl
and overshoes, but otherwise Their
were few signs that she hersel
had struck it rich.
We finally found Mrs. Morninl
Gun at the home of Mr.. and Mrs
Fish Wolf Robe. There was ga
thering for a feather game.
Sitting on blankets and old mat
tresses around the edge of tn
floor was Mrs. Heavy Runner, Jir
White Calf and half-dozen othe
venerable Blackfeet. Mrs. Heav
Runner was saying things at l
in Blackfeet. BY the tone we kne'
they weren't compliments. Arch.
took her picture, and it was quie
Fish Wolf Robe through h
!, daughter told us that he had some
thing to do with Hungry Hors
Dam. He pointed to color pit
ture on the wall taken in Kali
: pell, and said he had been back
Washington, D. c. appearing in b.
Y half of Hungry Horse Dam.
Meanwhile another man can
i into the house with a big box
4 groceries, and we sensed that t
feast and feather game was
B commence. We left.
N AS to Mrs. Morning Gun, we
\ she couldn't speak word of En-
lish as far as we knew, but O
B doesn't have to speak English
h be a charming old grandmoth'