Alice Gold and Silver Mining Company records
Scope and Contents
This collection is composed primarily of interoffice correspondence and financial records. The former includes letters between Joseph R. Walker and Matthew H. Walker at the Salt Lake City company offices and the company superintendents at the mine in Walkerville. These letters discuss daily operations, national mining issues, equipment used, labor relations, assay results, dealings with Butte business interests, etc. (1877-1940). In addition, the collection contains court papers, legal documents, and organizational materials.
Dates
- Creation: 1877-1930
Language of Materials
English
Conditions Governing Access
Collection open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of the Montana Historical Society. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collection. In some cases permission for use may require additional authorization from the copyright owners. For more information contact an archivist.
Biographical / Historical
In 1875, Marcus Daly purchased mining property north of Butte, Montana Territory, for four Walker brothers in Salt Lake City, Utah. Three years later, the Alice Gold and Silver Mining Company organized, with Joseph R. Walker as president and Marcus Daly as superintendent of the Walkerville operations. In 1880, Daly withdrew from the Alice and bought into the Anaconda Mine. Walker served as president until his death in 1901 when his brother, Matthew H. Walker, succeeded him. During these formative years, the Walker brothers invested in new machinery and enlarged the Alice's production capacity. The company constructed a 60-stamp mill, considered at the time to be the world's largest dry crushing and chloridizing mill. These technological improvements proved that, in addition to silver bullion, base ores could be economically mined. This was a particularly significant development after the Silver Panic of 1893, when silver prices fell and the Alice management sought profits through the extraction of zinc. The Anaconda Copper Mining Company acquired majority control of the Alice Company in 1910, and in 1930, the Alice Gold and Silver Mining Company was dissolved.
Extent
9.8 linear feet
Abstract
The Alice Gold and Silver Mining Company was a gold and silver mining operation in Walkerville, Montana. Its headquarters were in Salt Lake City, Utah. The records consist primarily of letterpress volumes of outgoing correspondence from Walkerville mine superintendents to Salt Lake City company officials. Also included are organizational materials, financial records, productions records, and legal files.
Arrangement
Arranged by series. Some material housed in oversize folder in archives map case. See inventory below for more information.
Physical Location
4:2-4
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Acquisition information available upon request
Geographic
Occupation
Topical
- Assaying -- Montana -- Butte
- Business, Industry and Labor
- Gold mines and mining
- Labor History
- Labor and laboring classes -- Montana -- Butte
- Labor relations -- Montana -- Butte
- Labor Unions -- Miners
- Mineral industries -- Montana -- Butte
- Mines and Mineral Resources
- Silver mines and mining -- Montana -- Butte
- Stamp Mills -- Montana -- Butte
- Strikes and lockouts -- Copper mining -- Montana -- Butte
- Wages -- Montana -- Butte
- Zinc mines and mining -- Montana -- Butte
- Title
- Guide to the Alice Gold and Silver Mining Company records 1877-1930
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by MHS Staff
- Date
- 2004
- Description rules
- Finding Aid Based On Dacs ( Describing Archives: A Content Standard 2nd Edition)
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Repository Details
Part of the Montana Historical Society, Research Center Archives Repository
225 North Roberts
PO Box 201201
Helena MT 59620-1201 United States
406-444-2681
406-444-2696 (Fax)
mhslibrary@mt.gov