Archives West Finding Aid

The first meeting of the Woodburn Mining Company was held May 6, 1937 at the residence of Herbert E. Rogers in Saltese, Mineral County, Montana. The incorporators were Herbert E. Rogers, vice-president; Eugene Keesey; John H. Wourms, president; Roy W. Anno, secretary-treasurer; and Frank Davey. The corporation was primarily organized for the purpose of acquiring and taking over from the surviving directors, then acting as trustees, of the Ben Hur Mining Company all the property owned by Ben Hur before it was dissolved by the expiration of its charter, all of which property was located in St. Regis, an unorganized mining district in Mineral County, Montana.

Jerome Day, who owned approximately 90% of the Woodburn stock, advanced the company $1,000 to buy Mrs. Malvina Lelande's undivided 1/8 interest in the Bell #1 and #2 claims. Woodburn already owned the other 7/8.

The minutes for the 1940 directors meeting report the company was indebted for more than $1900 for organizational expenses, the Bell purchase, and annual expenses. A financial sheet dated March 19, 1940, shows the total indebtedness to Jerome Day as $1,980.88. A 2 1/2 mill stock assessment was authorized on April 9, 1940, but many shareholders failed to pay and the company raised only $1300. Jerome Day agreed to accept 82,463 shares of stock in payment of his claim against the company.

The Woodburn property was located next to Last Chance Copper Company. Last Chance was negotiating with Jupiter Mining Company which had already acquired 3/5 of the neighboring Bryan Claim developed by the Day brothers. On June 3, 1940, the directors of Woodburn, John H. Wourms, Roy W. Anno, Alpha H. Hogan, Gale D. Rogers and Herbert E. Rogers, has a special meeting to discuss selling the property to Jupiter. The shareholders approved the sale on June 29, and in August 1940 a petition of dissolution was filed. The Woodburn property was sold to Jupiter for 200,000 shares of capital stock of Jupiter Mining Company with a par value of $20,000. At the time of the sale Woodburn owned nine patented lode mining claims and 8 unpatented mill sites.