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Below is an article published September 28, 1883 by

The Allegany County Reporter

from research & files of the LateĀ  Emma Lou King, former Town of Alma Historian.....


THE WILLING WELL
(The Allegany County Reporter, Wellsville NY Sep 28, 1883)

The Fletcher well, on lot 111, Alma is the mysterious one that will be watched for the next few days. This well, when first drilled, ws looked to by many for the extension of the field in that direction. They were sanguine as to the result and reported the well as a good one. The well, however, was reported "dry" by the owners, and so tabulated. The casing pulled, the well plugged; everybody, at least, supposed it to be dry. Today it is reported that the owners are leasing all the land in the immediate vicinity of this well that they can lay their hands on. From this fact many draw the conclusion that the well is by no means what it seems. That it is a second-edition of the Varney well which after being tabulated a failure for nearly a month had the plug removed and spurted oil over the derrick. If this should prove to be the case in the Fletcher well, would cause considerable excitement. It is several miles in advance of developments and would define as it was thought to condemn a large seeping territory. The opinion prevails pretty generally, nevertheless, that the well has been rightly tabulated before and is dry. --