HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1977-01-06, Page 12• .
PAGE 12—GODERICH SIGNAV-STAR, THURSDAY, .3:AMA:KY 6,.1977,
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fin winter's grip
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A tug has been working diligently in Goderich Harbor the past few days to
free the R.G. Sanderson that will be used to store grain for the winter.
(staffphoto)
•
"fashionable Footwear for the entire family"
28 Albert Street .-Clinton 48Z-9692
•
Dungannon mace oil capital
BY W.E. ELLIOTT
Three years before the
Goderich Petroleu,in Com-
pany drilled for oil in Saltford
and struck salt instead,
Dungannon was centre of a
brief but exciting oil en-
terprise, when a large
surrounding acreage was
leased, taverns were
crowded, and an oil derrick
was erected south of the
village.
The Huron Signal, seeing
ultimate benefit to Goderich,
joined in the. jubilation, but
cautiously kept an "if" in its
report, ,dated October 12,
1965, ,
"Down 10 or 12 feet," it told
its readers, "on the farm of
Mr. Struthers (Stothers),
it •
where dark sand is strongly
impregnated with petroleum,
some 2,000 acres in the neigh-
borhood have been leased, ...
After being offered the
tempting sum of $10,000 for
his farm of 50 acres, we un-
derstand Mr. Struthers has
entered into an agreement
with Mr. (Sam) Platt to go on
and bore the well, for one-half
of the oil that may be found. ..
If friend Platt strikes a
flowing well, which he hopes
to do.in a few weeks, he will
doub,tless think himself well
repaidfor his trouble, ex-
pense and loss of time. If the
discovery of oil in our im-
mediate neighborhood leads
to the development of a new
and important resource, it is
impossible to estimate the
extent of the benefit it rill
confer upon the town of
Goderich."
It was a five -gallon can of
coal oil., dumped by "twb'
lads named John," that oc-
casioned the Dungannon oil'.
boom, according to Gavin
Green, in his book, The Old
Log House. He gives the date
as 1868, but that evidently is
an error.
"South of the village about
a mile," he wrote, "on a farm
owned by a man named
Stothers, on the Wawanosh
side of Mail street, they were
digging a well when the -
diggers reported strange
noises. Two lads named John
thought they would keep the
excitement going, and one
dark night they went with a 5 -
Telephone service interrupted_
when underground cable cut
• . .
Long distance" telephone
service out of a huge area of
western and ,north-western
Ontario was cut for nearly
seven hours on Tuesday when
an underground cable feeding
a microwave -tower was cut.
'According to Bell Canada
officials the area affected
-stretched from • Clinton to
• Owen Sound and from near
• Port ETgifl to Walkerton.
Service was interrupted
• -:about 9:15 fha1id it took
until 4:00 p.m. before it was
• frilly restored.
•
tf cl ble and the lost revenue
• Bell Canada's Stra or ca
area manager, Jim Scott, from long distance calls
explained that calls from which could not get through.
within' the area involved are Cost of repairs :will be
fed to a microwave tower charged to the excavator but'
• north of London by cable and -there is no way Bell can
retransmitted from there. estimate the lost revenue
That cable • was cut • by an value and charge that to the
excavation crew , working excavator as well.
flear the tower. •
All calls to Toronto were
blocked by the shutdown, but
about 20 per cent of those
trying to• reak.h London could
do so. As a repair crew began
Me Linvolved jobof splicing
the broken cable a temporary
system was set up to carry w
gallon can of, coal oil and
dumped it into the , well.
without being discovered:
"Next morning the diggers
took a shovelful of sand and it
burned brightly,. They had
Struck oil! Riders Were
despatched to :Goderich;
Lucknow, Port Albert and
surrounding lillages With
news. • The- village •boigted;--;.,
taverns were crowded, stores
did a thriving 'trade. A
company was formed and
people flocked to- suhscrib44$
for stock. A derrick and
engine -house were Antilf.
Finally, word'VaS :delivered
to the promoters that.
sompone.had dumped coal oil
infd the well -at night, and the
boom ended,".
•
•
few calls from some northern
A, • exchanges to outside areas.
Mr. Scott said there was no
• way to estimate the cost of
the breakdown'because it
involved both damage to the
;.
•
•
0• off
our
entire winter stock
• 36 NORTH ST.
Goderich
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