Andrew and Edward Olson Photograph Collection, approximately 1959-1980's

Andrew Olson was born in Sweden on August 25, 1885. His brother Edward was born on March 27, 1898. Both immigrated to America and became involved in the mining business. Starting in 1907, Andrew developed new methods of using machinery to make mining easier and less labor intensive, which he used during a 1912 gold rush in Flat, Alaska. In 1922, Andrew went to the Soviet Union to study mining techniques. After returning, Andrew founded Olson and Company with some fellows, buying the rights to Happy Creek in Flat. Using his inventions, Andrew was able to find success in mining platinum at the site, and became a valuable contractor to the U.S. military during WorldWar 2. Edward Olson was his student during this time, adding his own inventions to Andrew's to increase efficiency.

Edward took over the company after Andrew retired in 1970. Government regulations and the increased difficulty of obtaining minerals from the increasing depth led the company to close in 1979. Andrew died March 19, 1981; Edward, December 23, 1988.