Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners records
Scope and Contents
This collection is a subgroup (Predecessor Agency)
of the Montana Public Service Commission records, RS 501. The Board of Railroad Commissioners served ex-officio as the Public Service Commission until it was abolished in 1971, and its duties transferred to the PSC. Please see the primary finding aid for more
Montana Public Service Commission records.
These records consist of annual reports of the Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners from 1907-1971. The title of the report varied over the years. It was "Annual Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners of the State of Montana" from 1907/1908-1918/1919; it was "Report of Cases and Proceedings before the Board of Railroad Commissioners of the State of Montana" from 1920-1968. The title returned to "Annual report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners" from 1970-1971.
From volume 1-17 the reports were in published hard-bound format; thereafter they were mimeographed typescripts in binders. Beginning in 1913 the Board was ex officio the Public Service Commission; from 1919 to 1928 the Board was also ex officio the Montana Trade Commission and the Montana Irrigation Commission. The reports reflect these various roles and summarize cases heard before the Commissioners.
Dates
- Creation: 1907-1971
Language of Materials
English
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
The Montana Historical Society is the owner of the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from the Research Library before any reproduction use. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from the copyright owners.
Biographical / Historical
The Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners was established by the Montana legislature in 1907. The board, consisting of three members elected statewide, was given the authority to set rates and establish regulations governing freight and passenger transportation within the state.
In 1913 the Board of Railroad Commissioners was made ex officio the newly created Montana Public Service Commission. In 1919 the Board also was made ex officio the Montana Trade Commission and the Montana Irrigation Commission. The Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners continued to function into the 1970s, when it became the Transportation Division of the Public Service Commission.
Extent
5 linear feet
Abstract
This collection is a subgroup (Predecessor Agency) of the Montana Public Service Commission records, RS 501. The Board of Railroad Commissioners served ex-officio as the Public Service Commission until it was abolished in 1971, and its duties transferred to the PSC. Please see the primary finding aid for more Montana Public Service Commission records. These records consist of annual reports of the Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners from 1907-1971.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged chronologically in one series.
Physical Location
33:2-7
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Acquisition information available upon request.
Processing Information
In 2024, the various collections of the Montana Public Service Commission were integrated under one collection identifier, RS 501, in order to help facilitate access, reduce redundancy in the Montana Historical Society Library & Archives catalog, and to follow best archival practices.
Collections from Montana Public Service Commission's various Divisions and Predecessor Agencies that were previously treated as separate entities are now integrated into this collection, RS 501. Rather than reprocessing over 80 linear feet of PSC materials, MTHS staff decided to keep the past arrangement of those collections/finding aids and provide access to them via links in the primary finding aid. This decision has allowed the MTHS archival staff to maintain intellectual control over the collection, while removing the need to reprocess it. It also keeps State Agency finding aids at manageable sizes. Please read the scope and content note carefully to determine if this subgroup pertains to your research needs.
- Title
- Guide to Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners records, 1907-1971
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by Ellie Arguimbau, 2008
- Date
- 2008
- Description rules
- Finding Aid Based On Dacs (Describing Archives: A Content Standard, 2nd Edition)
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
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