oak island salvage company
Professor S. A. Williams
“Within a week after beginning the work we expect to recover part of the treasure”
Professor Williams of Soldier’s Grove, Wisconsin, in association with Captain John Welling of the earlier attempts, founded the Oak Island Salvage Company with the goal “to excavate, bore, and recover certain metals and treasure buried and hidden in the earth, on Oak Island”.
Professor Williams never realized his company’s goal, but it is notable for introducing the idea of artificially freezing the ground in the Money Pit to overcome the morass of mud and water encountered and created by past excavations and the ever present evasion of sea water. Williams proposed circling the Money Pit area with thirty-five 5-inch boreholes, 3 feet apart, 160 feet deep each. The casing of these boreholes were to be filled with pipes used to circulate a calcium chloride freezing fluid, which would cool the slush of mud and water at the bottom of the pit to minus 35 degrees below zero. This method is still considered a viable idea, recommended by engineers to this day.
Contributor: Doug Crowell
“Within a week after beginning the work we expect to recover part of the treasure”
Professor Williams of Soldier’s Grove, Wisconsin, in association with Captain John Welling of the earlier attempts, founded the Oak Island Salvage Company with the goal “to excavate, bore, and recover certain metals and treasure buried and hidden in the earth, on Oak Island”.
Professor Williams never realized his company’s goal, but it is notable for introducing the idea of artificially freezing the ground in the Money Pit to overcome the morass of mud and water encountered and created by past excavations and the ever present evasion of sea water. Williams proposed circling the Money Pit area with thirty-five 5-inch boreholes, 3 feet apart, 160 feet deep each. The casing of these boreholes were to be filled with pipes used to circulate a calcium chloride freezing fluid, which would cool the slush of mud and water at the bottom of the pit to minus 35 degrees below zero. This method is still considered a viable idea, recommended by engineers to this day.
Contributor: Doug Crowell
Event Number: 9
Contributor: Paul Troutman
Oak Island Company Name: The Oak Island Salvage Company
Also Know By:
Company Formation date and location: January 15 1913, Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin
Initial Company Shares per Price: $20,000 (200 Shares at $100 Each)
Oak Island Leased by: Fred Blair and Sophia Sellers
Years Active on Oak Island From 1912 to 1914
Deaths as a result on Oak Island: 0
Names of Company Members (location extra):
Frederick Leander Blair
S.A. Williams
Wm. E. Williams
A.E. Williams
Summary of Activity:
In the summer of 1912, Professor S.A. Williams of Soldiers Grave, Wisconsin, organized the Oak Island Salvage Company, which planned to use the Poetsch freezing process to overcome the flooding problem. The company's prospectus said the process, whereby liquid calcium chloride at 35 degrees below zero would be injected into the ground around the Money Pit, had been successfully used in certain European mines where water or quicksand ruled out normal excavation methods. But Professor Williams had bad luck in attracting shareholders. By the end of the year, he hadn't sold enough shares to pay his passage out to Oak Island, much less purchase any equipment. The company folded and its agreement with Blair was cancelled.
Key Events
[1912 to 1914]
Contributor: Paul Troutman
Oak Island Company Name: The Oak Island Salvage Company
Also Know By:
Company Formation date and location: January 15 1913, Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin
Initial Company Shares per Price: $20,000 (200 Shares at $100 Each)
Oak Island Leased by: Fred Blair and Sophia Sellers
Years Active on Oak Island From 1912 to 1914
Deaths as a result on Oak Island: 0
Names of Company Members (location extra):
Frederick Leander Blair
S.A. Williams
Wm. E. Williams
A.E. Williams
Summary of Activity:
In the summer of 1912, Professor S.A. Williams of Soldiers Grave, Wisconsin, organized the Oak Island Salvage Company, which planned to use the Poetsch freezing process to overcome the flooding problem. The company's prospectus said the process, whereby liquid calcium chloride at 35 degrees below zero would be injected into the ground around the Money Pit, had been successfully used in certain European mines where water or quicksand ruled out normal excavation methods. But Professor Williams had bad luck in attracting shareholders. By the end of the year, he hadn't sold enough shares to pay his passage out to Oak Island, much less purchase any equipment. The company folded and its agreement with Blair was cancelled.
Key Events
[1912 to 1914]
- The company was unable to raise shareholder money, no activity happened on Oak Island during this period.