Archives West Finding Aid

The records of the Tamarack & Chesapeak Mining Company are divided into seven series: Records of the Board of Directors and the Stockholders, 1897-1912; General Correspondence and Related Records, 1900-1913; Capital Stock Records, 1897-1915; Financial Records, 1897-1913; Personnel Records, 1904-1913; Ore Production and Shipment Records, 1905-1910; and Plant and Equipment Records, 1907.

The first series contains a minute book, 1897-1910, and three folders of records related to meetings, 1897-1912.

The second series includes two folders of records relating to court cases: the Polly Fraction case of 1906-1908, and the Snowy Peak Mining Company lawsuit of 1911. Both cases involved Daniel Brien's claims against the company. A folder of claim coordinates, 1906-1909, also contains coordinates for the Custer Consolidated and Snowy Peak Mining Companies. Another folder contains seven blueprint maps, only three of which are dated: two 1900; one 1901. There are eight folders of correspondence from the company's Wallace office, 1906-1913, organized in three alphabetical series: 1906-1910 (5 folders), 1909-1913 (1), and 1912 (2). There are also two files from Secretary F.M. Rothrock's office in Spokane, Washington: one chronological, 1905-1907, the other alphabetical, 1905-1910. Correspondence, 1905-1908, in a third folder from Spokane, from the office of F.H. Gohlke, Assistant Secretary, 1905-1908, concerns stock and legal matters. Finally, a folder of miscellaneous items, 1905-1910, includes board bills, a fire insurance policy, indentures, county tax forms and other records.

Capital Stock Records, the third series, contains four ledgers, and three journals, all 1897-1912. Also included are: four folders of correspondence, 1912-1915, which suffered water damage; a folder containing ten lists of stockholders, 1906-1912, and a few blank stock certificates; and a folder containing a meeting notices and proxy card replies for meetings 1905-1910, kept as samples and organized chronologically.

The fourth series, Financial Records, contains three ledgers, documenting activity 1897-1913. Journal coverage is less complete -- the one journal present covers only 1906-1913. A check register volume and three folders of check registers also cover 1906-1913, and one folder of check registers, paid checks, and promissory notes covers 1900-1906. One ledger, the journal, and the check register volume are oversized items. Two folders contain bills and receipts, 1900-1910, ordered alphabetically. Two other folders contain bills, receipts, and financial statements (monthly and discontinuous), 1904-1911, in loose chronological order. There is a folder of monthly financial statements and trial balances, 1906-1908, again in loose chronological order and perhaps missing a few months. Another folder contains bank statements (monthly but incomplete), deposit slips, and a few paid checks. All are from the Fidelity National Bank of Spokane for 1906-1909, mostly 1907. Finally there is a voucher record book for 1910-1911, the second half of which is the voucher record for the Custer Consolidated Mining Company for these same years. A complementary volume for 1906-1909 is boxed with the records of the Custer Consolidated Mining Company.

The fifth series, Personnel Records, includes four folders of monthly payrolls, organized chronologically, covering 1904-1912. These payrolls are badly water damaged and very brittle. A time book covers only from November 1897 to January 1898 and records the activity of only a few workers. Lastly, there are two folders of time checks. The first covers 1906-1907 (mostly 1906); the second, 1912-1913 (mostly 1912).

Ore Production and Shipment Records, the sixth series, contains a folder of assay and settlement sheets, 1905-1907. Most of the ore in these years went to the American Smelting and Refining Company (ASARCO) plant in East Helena, Montana, or to the Ohio and Colorado Smelting and Refining Company in Salida, Colorado. Another folder contains two pages from an Ore Record book, summarizing assay and settlement activity for 1905-1906. Another group includes smelting contracts: Five from 1906, one from 1910. All are blank except for a 1906 contract between the Rex Mining Company and ASARCO. A final folder contains bills of lading for 1907, detailing activity with both the Oregon Railroad & Navigation Company and the Northern Pacific.

The final series contains only a folder of correspondence related to the purchase of generators and milling equipment, mostly from June and July 1907.

Removal of cancelled stock certificates, returned proxy statements, bills, receipts, invoices, bank statements, and paid checks reduced the bulk of this collection by 3.5 cubic feet.