Bunker Hill Company Research and Development Division Records, 1922-1982

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Bunker Hill Company. Research And Development Division
Title
Bunker Hill Company Research and Development Division Records
Dates
1922-1982 (inclusive)
Quantity
8 cubic feet
Collection Number
MG187 (collection)
Summary
Brochures issued by the company, organizational manuals, research and development project reports, legal documents concerning electric power rates, flow charts, aerial photographs of the plant and smelter, and visitor registers.
Repository
University of Idaho Library, Special Collections and Archives
Special Collections and Archives
University of Idaho Library
875 Perimeter Drive
MS 2350
Moscow, ID
83844-2350
Telephone: 2088850845
libspec@uidaho.edu
Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

The Bunker Hill Company was founded following the discovery of the Bunker Hill Mine in 1885; it was incorporated in 1887. It grew from a strictly mining enterprise to a large industrial complex capable of carrying out every step in the production process from removing ore from the ground to fabricating finished metal products. The company was an important supplier of the nation's requirements for lead, zinc, silver, and cadmium. The lead smelter had the capacity to produce 135,000 tons of refined lead per year, or 17% of the U.S. capacity, while the electrolytic zinc plant produced 104,000 tons, or 14% of the U.S. capacity. The company also produced over 9 million troy ounces of silver, over one million pounds of refined cadmium, and a variety of by-products including 1000 ounces of refined gold. In 1968 Bunker Hill merged with Gulf Resources.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The records of the Bunker Hill Research and Development Division span the years 1922 to 1982, with the bulk of the material covering the years 1945 to 1975.

The papers include brochures issued by the company, organizational manuals, reports on various research and development projects, papers dealing with Washington Water Power requests for rate increases, drawings of plant flow sheets, aerial views of the plant and smelter, and visitors registers.

Two other Bunker Hill groups in the University of Idaho Special Collections Library are MG 130 and MG 188, both of which deal with the mining aspects of the company and contain legal documents relating to mining claim litigations.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

Most of the papers in this record group were in labeled file folders or three ring notebooks, but were in no discernible order. Therefore, while folder and notebook headings were retained, a series order was imposed during processing. The folders in each series are in alphabetical order and the original order of the material is maintained throughout.

The first series contains material concerning the overall organization of the division, including budget manuals, policies manuals, supervisors manuals, and work rules.

The second series, or research files, is divided into two subseries, one is the material that was originally in file folders, the second is the material originally contained in notebooks. Most items in this series deal with the operation of the plant, and various experiments performed. There is a section on patent applications, and a list of patents held by the company.

The Washington Water Power rate increase requests are arranged by case number. Included are petitions and other legal documents, transcripts of testimonies, and occasionally legal documents from court cases resulting from the application.

The final series contains blueprints of the lead and zinc plants, aerial views of the zinc plant and smelter, a University of Idaho thesis, flow sheets, and two visitors registers.

Annual reports of the Bunker Hill Company, and the session papers of the American Mining Congress were removed from the collection and sent to the library's gift receiving office for possible cataloging into the library's main collection. Suppliers catalogs, annual reports from other companies, and duplicate materials were discarded. Material from notebooks was transferred to file folders. By these means the bulk of the records was reduced by 7 cubic feet.

Acquisition Information

The records of the Research and Development Division of the Bunker Hill Company were donated to the University of Idaho Library by the company between November 1986 and January 1987.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Series I. Organization , 1966-1981Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
1/1
Brochures
7 items
1968-1980
1/2
Building and equipment manual
1 item
1975
1/3
Capital budget procedures
15 items
1974-1981
1/4
Capital expenditure manual
1 item
1973
1/5
Chart of accounts
1 item
1976
1/6
Keys
4 items
1979
1/7
Library filing index
2 items
1966-1968
1/8
Marketing division manual
1 item
196-?
1/9-10
Policies and procedures manual
1 item
1979
1/11
Quality Control Preventative Maintenance Program Plan, by John Benjamin
1 item
1979
1/12
Supervisor's manual
1 item
1967
1/13
Supervisor's handbook
1 item
1973
1/14
Supervisor's newsletter
4 items
1980-1981
1/15
Warehouse catalog
1 item
1981
1/16
Work rules
1 item
1974

Series II. Research Files , 1922-1982Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
A. File Folders
1922-1982
Box/Folder
1/17
American Journal of Mining: facsimile of first issue in 1886
1 item
1941
1/18
Assay ranges
1 item
1970-1972
Box
1
Battelle Northwest
Box/Folder
1/19
Air pollution
12 items
1968-1970
1/20
Bunker Hill research
57 items
1965-1969
1/21
Carbon Sorbates
21 items
1968-1969
1/22
Cl, F, and SB removal from solution of ZnO fume in acid
36 items
1969-1970
1/23
Development of a Fused Salt Catalytic Extraction Process for Removal of So2 from Flue Gas
2 items
1970
1/24
Monitoring equipment (Y-40539)
23 items
1968-1969
1/25
Proprietary agreement
2 items
1968
1/26
Bunker Hill lead and zinc concentrates
7 items
1981
1/27
Bunker Hill medallion
17 items
1981-1982
1/28
Byproducts
7 items
1978
1/29
Cadmium
10 items
1974-1975
1/30
Cadmium - Gould contract
8 items
1975
1/31
Calcium-lead alloy
7 items
1974-1981
1/32
COD
4 items
1975
1/33
Colombia samples
91 items
1980-1981
1/34
COMINCO
1 item
1981
1/35
Concentrates
4 items
1975-1976
1/36
Copper
1 item
1961
1/37
Correspondence, submissions
1 item
1978
1/38
Determination of lead in ores
4 items
1973-1982
1/39
Exide Management and Technology Company
3 items
1980
2/40
Gould MF-10 alloy
38 items
1977-1980
2/41
Henwood, Arthur B.
10 items
1903-1968
2/42
ILZRO Program Review Committee
1 item
1969
2/43
International Precious Metals Institute
8 items
1978-1980
2/44
Investigation of Arkansas bauxite
1 item
1948
2/45-46
Lead
24 items
1972-1978
2/47
Lead-antimony alloy
1 item
1978
2/48
Literature search on process for removal of lead from zinc fume
1 item
1975
2/49
LME (London Metal Exchange)
32 items
1974-1980
2/50
Material safety data sheets
39 items
1971-1981
2/51
Memos
2 items
1976
2/52
Miller, J.L.
4 items
1981
Box
2
Patent Applications
Box/Folder
2/53
Ammonium chloride
33 items
1929-1931
2/54
Hydrometallurgical process for removing chlorides from chloride bearing zinc oxides
9 items
1970-1971
2/55
Precipitating arsenic from solution
10 items
1968-1970
2/56
Process for the hydrometallurgical treatment of argentiferous tetrahedrite minerals
9 items
1971
2/57
Recovering indium from leach solutions
14 items
1967-1970
2/58
Recovery of lead from waste storage batteries
5 items
1976
2/59
Recovery of metallic values from phosphorus electric furnace dust
6 items
1968-1969
2/60
Simultaneous leaching of zinc and manganese ores
20 items
1956-1970
Box
2
Patents
Box/Folder
2/61
Abstracts of
25 items
1942-1964
2/62
Bethune/Bunker Hill
6 items
1960-1965
2/63
Bunker Hill patents
1 item
1969-1976
2/64
Canadian patents
10
2/65
Pleasant Valley Coal District, Utah
3 items
undated
2/66
Prospective shippings
4 items
1975
2/67
Request for analysis
4 items
1976-1978
2/68
Research and development
28 items
1978
2/69
Research progress reports
44 items
1977
2/70
Review of chemical abstracts related to electrolytic zinc deposition
1 item
1948-1963
2/71
Sample preparation
15 items
1967-1969
2/72
Sample storage and preparation
6 items
1967
2/73
Sampling
6 items
1969-1977
2/74
Sampling and preparation
7 items
1973
2/75
Scrap
4 items
1977-1978
2/76
Silver
4 items
1977-1979
2/77
Skeen International Company
6 items
1978
2/78
Smelter
1 item
1978
2/79
Sulfuric acid
27 items
1972-1978
2/80
Supervision
21 items
1968-1977
2/81
Volcanic ash
6 items
1980-1981
2/82
Weekly mercury analyses of sulfuric acid plants
24 items
1972-1981
2/83
X-Ray values
10 items
1978
2/84
Zinc
37 items
1970-1978
2/85
Zinc, samples of
1 item
1922-1928
2/86
Zinc alloys
1 item
1977
2/87
Zinc concentrate sampling
2 items
1972
2/88
Zinc dust - Pasco
65 items
1967-1975
2/89
Zinc oxide flue dust
5 items
1974
2/90
Zinc oxide fume to zinc plant
6 items
1981
B. Notebooks
1929-1981
Box/Folder
2/91
Aluminum and alumina
11 items
1957-1959
Box
2
American Society for Testing and Materials
Box/Folder
2/92
Committee B-2, Nonferrous Metals and Alloys
14 items
1966-1981
2/93
Committee B-2-02
32 items
1977-1981
2/94
Committee B-2-04
15 items
1974-1980
2/95
Committee B-2-05
10 items
1977-1980
2/96
Committee B-6, Die Cast Metals and Alloys
22 items
1973-1981
2/97
Committee B-6-02
12 items
1967-1976
2/98
Committee E-2-06, Development of Lead Standards
3 items
1976
2/99
Committee E-3-05.09, Silver
5 items
1977
2/100-101
Committee E-16, Taskforce on Lead and Zinc
130 items
1969-1976
3/102
American Zinc Institute Symposium on Plating of Zinc Die Castings
1 item
1959
3/103
Antimonial and arsenical lead production
40 items
1946-1960
3/104
Antimony and its Smelting, by Walter Wendt
1 item
1951
3/105
Arsenic control program
28 items
1954-1959
3/106
Arsenic purification Burt solution
1 item
1941
3/107
Baghouse
53 items
1954-1962
3/108
Barium chemicals
40 items
1957
3/109
Battelle Memorial Institute
45 items
1954-1964
3/110
Budget
26 items
1953-1961
3/111
Bunker Hill-Bailey Meter Density Recorder and Controller, by Alvin F. Kroll
1 item
1964
3/112-113
Bunker Hill zinc plant expansion and cell room mechanization study
2 items
1973
3/114
By-Products
1 item
1976-1977
3/115
Cadmium plant, letters, experiments, etc.
33 items
1947-1965
3/116
Casting
23 items
1954-1961
3/117
Charge preparation and pelletizing plant
59 items
1949-1963
3/118
Cobalt information
2 items
1956-1957
3/119
Combustion burners
10 items
1950-1955
3/120
Comparison and weighted averages on zinc concentrates and cadmium sponge purchased
1 item
1957-1964
3/121
Computers
5 items
1968-1970
3/122
Continuous softening
6 items
1950
3/123
Copper dross smelting
18 items
1955-1963
3/124
Copper matte and speiss
42 items
1953-1963
3/125
Cost distribution and economics
47 items
1953-1954
4/126
Cost statements, analytical lab
1 item
1967
4/127
Cost Statements, combined lab
1 item
1967-1981
4/128
Cost Statements, Coeur d'Alene lab
1 item
1972-1981
4/129
Cottrell
7 items
1956-1960
4/130
Dechloridizing-Defluorodizing zinc fume
5 items
1950-1962
4/131
De-Golding, de-Silverizing
1 item
1962
4/132
Diversification
28 items
1956-1959
4/133
Drossing
17 items
1955-1964
4/134
Dry ore plant, Sb ore reports
38 items
1940-1942
4/135
Economics - smelting margins
19 items
1957-1959
4/136-137
Electric furnace
116 items
1950-1964
4/138-139
Environmental health
63 items
1970-1977
4/140
Environmental health - lead
7 items
1978-1980
4/141
Environmental Sciences Associates, blood lead
22 items
1973-1979
4/142
Environmental Sciences Associates, lead testing
25 items
1977-1979
4/143
Experimental laboratory notebook
1 item
1930-1936
4/144
Foundry alloys
8 items
1980
4/145-146
Fuming plant
120 items
1943-1963
4/147
Hard lead run costs
2 items
1954
4/148
Indirect cost and general expense
3 items
1953-1958
4/149
Laboratory notebook
1 item
undated
4/150
Laboratory notebook
1 item
1971
4/151-153
Lead hygiene
61 items
1972-1979
4/154-155
Lead refinery
90 items
1931-1960
5/156
Lead uses
62 items
1953-1959
5/157
Material flow and balances
18 items
1950-1959
5/158-159
Material specifications and analysis
1 item
1975-1981
5/160
Mining and metallurgical qualifications for engineering and construction. Wellman-Power Gas, Inc.
2 items
1972
5/161
Miscellaneous
77 items
1954-1962
5/162
New Cottrell
34 items
1954-1957
5/163
Optical emission quantometer fortran programs
1 item
1979
5/164
Optical emission specification limits
1 item
1971
5/165-166
Ore purchases
334 items
1952-1963
5/167
Ore receiving and handling
9 items
1953-1961
5/168
Ore settlements, cost distribution
4 items
1947-1952
5/169
Ore stock and smelting rate
10 items
1954-1955
5/170
Other plants
22 items
1955-1959
5/171
Other plants - visits
24 items
1952-1961
5/172
Outside work
43 items
1953-1959
5/173
Overtime and absences
1 item
1980-1981
5/174
Patent: Beasley combustion igniter
190 items
1929-1931
5/175
Product certification
12 items
1979-1981
5/176
Proposed sintering plant
11 items
1954-1960
5/177
Research and development procedures notebook
1 item
undated
5/178
Retreatment of cobalt residue
1 item
undated
5/179
Retreatment of zinc plant residue
4 items
1930-1936
5/180
Sales
61 items
1954-1959
5/181
Sherrit Gordon Mines, Ltd.
7 items
1966-1967
5/182
Silver manuscript by Donald B. Macurda
4 items
1964?
5/183
Silver refinery
55 items
1942-1963
5/184
Sinter plant and Cottrell
30 items
1953-1963
5/185
Sintering
12 items
1951-1959
6/186-187
Slag fuming plant
6 items
1942-1943
6/188-190
Slag fuming plant, operating data
1 item
1953-1965
6/191
SO2 in Peabody effluent, L. Hoffman notes
9 items
1972-1978
6/192
Super pure antimony
89 items
1957-1964
6/193
Unidentified scientific notes
3 items
1941-1942
6/194
Vacuum dezincing
13 items
1954-1960
6/195
Wheelabrator baghouse
53 items
1953-1962
6/196
Zinc alloy manual
1 item
1970
6/197
Zinc oxide benefication
50 items
1956-1965
6/198-199
Zinc plant melting furnace
60 items
1956
6/200
Zinc plant research work
31 items
1956-1962

Series III. Washington Water Power Cases , 1966-1982Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
6/201-203
WWP standard prepared testimonies and exhibits for rate cases
2 items
1981
7/204
Case P-300-16. Consideration of essential needs rates
6 items
1980-1981
7/205
Case P-300-18/U-1008-144. Consideration of certain ratemaking standards
4 items
1981
7/206
Case U-1006-159. Application of Idaho Power Company for authority to increase rates and charges
2 items
1981
Box
7
Application of the Washington Water Power Company for an Order Approving Revised Rates and Charges for Electric/Gas Service in the State of Idaho.
Box/Folder
7/207
Case U-1008-86. Reporter's transcript
1 item
1974
7/208
Case U-1008-93/94
19 items
1975-1981
7/209
Case U-1008-109. WWP surcharge
1 item
1978
7/210-212
Case U-1008-101/102
7 items
1966-1967
7/213
Case U-1008-112
20 items
1977-1980
7/214
Case U-1008-117. WWP vs. Bunker Hill
17 items
1977-1978
7/215-216
Case U-1008-133/134. Testimony
3 items
1979
7/217
U-1008-144/145. Rebuttal testimony
2 items
1980
8/218-219
Case U-1008-147. Legal documents and testimony
35 items
1980-1981
8/220
Case U-1008-154/155
2 items
1981
8/221-222
Case U-1008-155/156
48 items
1980-1981
8/223
Case U-1008-161
3 items
1981
8/224
Related material
21 items
1981-1982
8/225
Related material - Bonneville Power Co.
2 items
1981
8/226
Idaho Public Utilities file of J.E. McKay, vice president for Technical Services
60 items
1973-1975
8/227
Idaho Public Utilities Commission. Summary of utilities activities
8 items
1980-1981

Series IV. Other Material , 1956-1980Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
8/228
Blueprints of lead and zinc plants
11 items
1966-1976
8/229
Aerial views of zinc plant and smelter
2 items
1977
8/230
Publications about Bunker Hill and the Coeur d'Alene mining area
5 items
1956-1980
8/231
Thesis: Decopperizing Lead with Arsenic and Sulphur, by Denton Mark Tucker, University of Idaho
1 item
1962
8/232
The Gold Ingot Mark Book
1 item
undated
8/233
Metals recovery facility flow sheet
2 items
1967
8/234
Copper dross flue dust recovery flow sheet
1 item
1967
8/235
Metals recovery plant general arrangement
2 items
1967
8/236
Unidentified drawing
1 item
undated
8/237-238
Visitors registers
2 items
1969-1970

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Mines and mineral resources -- Idaho -- Shoshone County -- History -- Sources
  • Mining corporations -- Idaho -- Shoshone County -- Records and correspondence

Other Creators

  • Corporate Names
    • Bunker Hill Company. Research and Development Division