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| Title | Clarence Iverson oil well Christmas tree, South of Tioga, N.D. |
| Date of Original | after 1951 |
| Creator | Shemorry, Bill, 1914-2004
|
| Creator Role | Photographer |
| Description | View of the Clarence Iverson oil well Christmas tree, which is steel, consists of multiple valves and is used to control the flow of oil or gas into or out of the well. In the background are trucks, a small building, and storage tanks. 'Christmas tree' is oil language for the steel valves on a completed producing oil well. |
| General Subject | Oil
Business & Industry
|
| Subject (LCTGM) | Oil wells
Storage tanks
Petroleum industry
Trucks
Steel
|
| Organization Name | Amerada Hess Corporation
|
| Location | Tioga (N.D.)
|
| Decade | 1950-1959
1960-1969
1970-1979
1980-1989
|
| Item Number | 1-68-7-22 |
| Format of Original | Photographic prints
|
| Dimensions of Original | 21 x 26 cm. |
| Transcription | "Clarence Iverson" and "Completed oil well - Rig left - What you see is the 'Christmas Tree' - 'Christmas tree' is oil language for the whoosis they have on a completed producing well." - Handwritten on back of photograph. |
| Notes | Title created by staff. |
| Biography/History | William E. "Bill" Shemorry was a native of Williston, N.D. who began work in the newspaper industry as a newsboy selling the Williston Herald and the Williams County Farmers Press. In 1953, he started to publish the Williston Plains Reporter, which he operated for 25 years before selling to the Williston Herald. Shemorry then began to concentrate on his own writing and photography. In addition to writing many books on the history of Williams County, he also collected photographs of early North Dakota photographers. Shemorry was an active member of the Williston Fire Department, was Civil Defense Chief of Williams County for three years in the 1950's, and was a combat photographer in World War II. Shemorry's photograph of the discovery of oil in North Dakota on April 4, 1951 at the Clarence Iverson No. 1 is one of the most famous oil photographs ever taken, and was published in many national publications. |
| Repository Institution | State Historical Society of North Dakota
|
| Repository Collection | William E. (Bill) Shemorry Photograph Collection 1
|
| Credit Line | State Historical Society of North Dakota, William E. (Bill) Shemorry Photograph Collection (1-68-7-22) |
| Rights Management | Permission to reproduce this image must be requested from the State Historical Society of North Dakota. |
| Ordering Information | To order a reproduction, inquire about the collection, or provide information about an image, please email Emily E. Schultz at eschultz@nd.gov |
| Digital ID | ws168722 |
