Column No. 57
Bob Ring, Al Ring, Tallia Pfrimmer Cahoon
Arizona’s early borderland mining was often a part time proposition, with the
mine owners working their real jobs somewhere else, usually Tucson. George B.
Williams is the ultimate example of a part time, long distance miner. Two
thousand miles away in Geneva, New York, Williams was a newspaperman, who
eventually rose to the position of Editor and Publisher of the Geneva Times. But
Williams was also a miner who owned El Oro mine, three miles southwest of Ruby,
for more than 60 years.
A group of businessmen from Rochester, New York located (mineral rights only) El
Oro in 1892, built a small mill, and reportedly produced $30,000 in gold rather
quickly. In the mid 1890s the Oro Mining Company, with principal stockholder
James B. Williams, took over operation of the mine. Then, in April 1898 James
Williams’ son George B. Williams came west to take charge of Oro Mining
Company’s operations.
G. B. Williams was born September 8, 1873 in Rochester, where he attended public
schools. In 1897, during the presidency of William McKinley, Williams received a
degree from the University of Rochester with a double major in chemistry and
political economy.
According to the Geneva Times, reporting on Williams new mining assignment,
“here, in the atmosphere of the truly Wild West, he established himself, learned
the business by working at it, and gained the respect and admiration of his
associates. … He grew a glowing black beard – much thicker than the
close-cropped goatee that later became his trademark. He wore high leather boots
for protection against rattlesnakes. He worked long hours improving operating
methods.”
By April 1899 Williams was postmaster of Old Glory (not the nearby gold mine,
but the stage stop at the Warsaw mining camp’s store), about a mile and half
east of El Oro on today’s FR 219. Later in 1899 Williams met Canadian brothers
Alexander and John Fraser, recently arrived in southern Arizona from Colorado,
where they had been mining. The Fraser brothers began locating and working Los
Alamos mining claims, just over a mile northwest of William’s El Oro.
Production at El Oro slowed in late 1899, operations there were closed down, and
Williams returned to Rochester, New York. From 1900 to 1903 he was the cashier
in the office of City Treasurer. The following year he began a stint as City
Comptroller. While there, he organized the National Association of Comptroller
and Accounting Officers.
In 1906 George William’s father Samuel B. Williams attained majority control of
Geneva, New York’s major newspaper, the Geneva Times. And in January 1907 George
Williams joined the newspaper as Secretary and Treasurer.
Williams devoted his early years at the newspaper to development of the business
side and the editorial department. He insisted that the Geneva Times emphasize
“constructive news of the territory.” Foreshadowing “truth in advertising”
movements 50 years later, each day Williams ran this credo on the editorial
page, “The Geneva Times strives to publish only clean, truthful, dependable
advertising. Annually, it refuses much that does not comply. Readers who find
any advertisements that are misleading or make misrepresentation are earnestly
asked to report at once at the Times.”
Meanwhile, back in southern Arizona, not much was going on at El Oro. Now as
sole owner of the mine, Williams made periodic trips to inspect his property and
evaluate conditions for restarting operations. From 1906 to 1912 Williams
located several other mining properties close to El Oro, many of these in
conjunction with either John or Alexander Fraser.
Finally in July 1912 newspapers reported that, “work has been resumed at El Oro
and that sinking of a main shaft is to start at once. Alexander Fraser is in
charge of the property.” By November 1913 El Oro’s shaft had reached a depth of
340 feet, “following a quartz vein in which gold is the principal mineral.” Over
the next nine years the Fraser brothers helped their friend Williams work his
mine and dig 400 feet of tunnels. In a February 17, 1920 letter to Williams,
then in Geneva, Alexander reported a cave-in in the main shaft that had recently
been “cleaned out and new timbers in.” Alexander also happily told Williams that
he and his brother looked forward to getting out of the horribly tough mining
business by buying the general store in the nearby Ruby mining camp.
Ten days later on February 21st Alexander and his brother John were shot and
killed by Mexican bandits in the store that the brothers had purchased only a
month earlier. In a March 5th letter to John Fraser’s widow, Ines Fraser,
Williams wrote, “I have waited a day or two before writing you to get over the
shock. Friday I received such a nice cheerful letter from Al telling how things
were going. It looked to me as though matters had begun to straighten out … Al
and John were both good men, and they’ve gone home. They will be waiting for you
some day.”
Williams offered to help Ines get settled in the area after the tragedy, but
Ines quickly sold the store and moved back to the family’s permanent home in San
Diego.
From 1920 on, Williams divided his time between mining at El Oro and the
newspaper business in Geneva. El Oro grew to a group of 10 contiguous mining
claims, seven of which Williams patented (received permanent title to the land)
in 1922. But, the mine never regained its early production success.
Williams stayed in the background in his newspaper business until 1945 when the
editor died. Williams then took over as editor and became sole owner and
president of the newspaper in 1955.
Williams never lost his love for mining and his beloved El Oro mine in Arizona.
During his later years Williams often visited his inactive mining property.
George B. Williams died in 1966 at the age of 93 and El Oro mine remains in
Williams’ family today.
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George B. Williams, editor and publisher of the Geneva Times, owned El Oro mine for over 60 years. (Courtesy of the Geneva Times) |
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El Oro mine was a significant Oro Blanco mining property in 1916. (Courtesy of Fraser family) |
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These are the stone ruins of El Oro’s ore processing building. (Photo by Bob Ring, 2004) |
(Sources: James Brand Tenney, History of Mining in Arizona, Vol. 1, Tucson,
1927-1929, University of Arizona, Special Collections Library, AS198; George A.
Ballum, “Oro Mine,” Department of Mining & Mineral Resources, Phoenix, Arizona,
August 1, 1949; “One of Nation’s Oldest Active Newspapermen – G. B. Williams,
Dies,” Geneva Times, September 19, 1966; Arivaca Briefs (Arivaca, Arizona,
January 6, 1958; Fraser family records)
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