Northwestern Improvement Company Field Survey Notebooks, 1908-1923

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Northwest Improvement Company
Title
Northwestern Improvement Company Field Survey Notebooks
Dates
1908-1923 (inclusive)
Quantity
0.5 cubic feet, (1 letter sized document case)  :  Fair condition. Leather bindings are starting to deteriorate, some fading to the handwritten material and minor foxing to the pages
Collection Number
MS003
Summary
The collection consists of field survey notebooks composed by surveyors of the Northwestern Improvement Company of Cle Elum, Washington, from 1908 to 1923. The notebooks contain surveys of construction projects in Cle Elum and Roslyn conducted by the Northwestern Improvement Company and its subsidiary corporation the Northern Pacific Railroad Company.
Repository
Central Washington University, Archives and Special Collections
Archives and Special Collections
Central Washington University
400 E University Way
Ellensburg, WA 98926
Telephone: 509-963-1023
Fax: 509-963-3684
archive@cwu.edu
Access Restrictions

Open to the public

Languages
English

Historical NoteReturn to Top

The Northwestern Improvement Company was organized on October 18, 1897 by D. S. Lamont, the Vice President of Northern Pacific Railroad, to manage the mining properties and other lands owned by Northern Pacific Railroad. On January 17, 1898, the company was incorporated by the State of Washington and allowed to conduct business within the state. In 1899, the Northwestern Improvement Company purchased the Northern Pacific Coal Company, which included the coal mines at Roslyn and Cle Elum, Washington. For the next five decades, the mines at Roslyn and Cle Elum supplied the coal fuel needed by the steam engines of the Northern Pacific Railroad. By the early 1950s, the conversion of locomotives from steam to diesel led to the decline of coal mining in the region and their eventual closures in the early 1960s. On March 3, 1970, the Northwestern Improvement Company’s subsidiary, the Northern Pacific Railroad, merged with Burlington Lines Incorporated to create Burlington Northern.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The collection consists of eleven leather-bound field survey notebooks composed by surveyors of the Northwestern Improvement Company of Cle Elum, Washington, from 1908 to 1923 and retained by the company’s office in Tocoma. The notebooks contain surveys of construction projects in Cle Elum and Roslyn conducted by the Northwestern Improvement Company and its subsidiary corporation the Northern Pacific Railroad Company. Included within the pages of the notebooks are sketches of regional topography, buildings, railroad lines, mine shafts, bore holes, and other geographical indicators.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Preferred Citation

[Name of document or photograph number]. MS003-06-03, Northwestern Improvement Company Field Survey Notebooks. Archives and Special Collections, Brooks Library, Central Washington University.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

Chronological arrangement

Acquisition Information

Donated by: Billy L. and Alice Y. Fulleton

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
1-1 Notebook 2 1908
1-2 Notebook 3 1908-1909
1-3 Notebook 4 1909
1-4 Notebook 5 1909-1910
1-5 Notebook 6 1910
1-6 Notebook 7 1910-1911
1-7 Notebook 8 1911
1-8 Notebook 9 1911-1912
1-9 Notebook 10 1912-1913
1-10 Notebook 11 1913-1916
1-11 Notebook 12 1916-1923

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Coal Mining--history--United States
  • Railroads--History--20th century
  • Washington (State)--History

Corporate Names

  • Northern Pacific Railroad Company

Geographical Names

  • Cle Elum (Wash.)
  • Roslyn (Wash.)
  • Washington (State)

Other Creators

  • Corporate Names
    • Northwestern Improvement Company (creator)