Canadian accounts go back a year earlier, to 1858, when a businessman named James Miller Williams decided to dig a well for drinking water outside the town of Bear Creek, Ontario.

NEWYORKER: Unconventional Crude

Ltd. and Bear Creek Mining Corp.

FORBES: Connect

Walking by a fast-moving creek on the property, the 60-year-old Duluth native pointed out where the polar bear, Berlin, sought to escape rising water by moving to higher ground outside his cage.

WSJ: Flood Cleanup Continues in Duluth