Pennsylvania Smelting Company Records, 1899-1943

The Pennsylvania Smelting Company, with George Faunce as president, was incorporated in Pennsylvania on June 5, 1899. Its plant occupied a 3,832 acre site near Carnegie formerly owned by the Pennsylvania Lead Company. At the time of its incorporation its capitalization was $25,000 divided into 250 shares of the par value of $100. In December 1899 the capital stock was increased to $45,000, and in 1917 it was again increased, this time to $2,000,000. According to the by-laws the corporation was formed "for the purpose of the manufacture of iron and steel or any other metal or of any article of commerce from metal or wood or both."

The only business conducted at shareholder meetings between 1900 and 1915 was the election of board members. During this same period the board met regularly to declare dividends on the capital stock.

In 1915 the Hercules and Tamarack & Custer mines loaned the Pennsylvania Smelting Company $75,000 for construction of their plant. George Faunce was appointed General Manager and John E. Williams Sales Manager, each at a salary of $10,000 per year. The records of the May 8, 1916 shareholders meeting reveal the Days to be the major shareholders. Harry L., Eugene, and Jerome each held one share, but Eugene was trustee for the shares held by the Hercules, and Jerome was trustee for the Tamarack & Custer shares. At this meeting the three Day brothers were elected to the board along with George Faunce and John E. Williams.

The construction work at the plant included building a 100'x160' steel and concrete building for all processing procedures, and extending by 185 feet the railroad siding, also replacing steam power with electricity. The total cost of construction to January 1, 1917 was $79,533.57.

In 1916 the plant treated 32,725 tons of ore and bullion, much of the bullion was from the Day-owned Northport Smelting & Refining Company in Northport, Washington; it shipped 26,925 tons of lead, 2,505,000 ounces of silver, and 4,275 ounces of gold. The following year was one of the worst for the smelter as, due to the war and government priority on freight cars, it was almost impossible to get material to the plant. But, because of the war, there was an increased need for lead and between July 1917 and November 1918, the smelter supplied 14,847 tons of lead to the government. Total production in 1918 was up 30.5% over 1916: 42,941 tons of ore and bullion treated, 40,850 tons of lead, 3,040,629 ounces of silver and 4,871 ounces of gold were produced. Wages were increased four times, amounting to a total of $1.20 per day, and $15,000 was spent on plant improvements.

Lead prices fell at the end of 1918, and a strike in the Coeur d' Alenes cut off the supply of bullion. As a result operations in the plant in 1919 were reduced by 50%, but during the latter part of the year the company began smelting cobalt-silver ores. The average pay was $4.31 per day compared with $3.95 in 1918. Production was up by 45% in 1920, but 1921 shipments were less than half the previous year's and, due to a fall in metal prices, the company sustained a loss of $251,000.

In order to reduce its capitalization the company, in 1923, called in one-half of the outstanding capital stock owned by each shareholder. Plans for changes and alterations to the plant were made, and between 1924 and 1925, over $29,000 was spent on construction, and more construction was planned for 1926. By October 1926 the physical and financial conditions of the plant were "unsatisfactory." The Days guaranteed a $50,000 loan to the company from the Wallace Bank and Trust, and the smelter management was told not to purchase any raw material not already under contract. $500,000 in preferred stock was created from unissued stock in the corporation, of which $380,000 was used to pay off the Hercules and Tamarack and Custer debts. The company then borrowed $100,000 from the Bank of Pittsburgh and immediately repaid the Wallace bank.

The Pennsylvania Smelting Company had been unprofitable for a number of years owing to its inability to secure a sufficient volume of smelting material, business unsettledness, market fluctuations, and especially the intense competition. Its 1926 deficit was almost $95,000. The Western directors, A.P. Ramstedt, Jerome and Harry L. Day, after a meeting on May 11, 1927, ordered the plant to suspend operations, clean up the property, and arrange for a sub-lease of the Pittsburgh Office. By July 15 the plant had totally ceased operation.

The board, in 1940, now consisting of Jerome Day, Harry Day, Henry Day, and Paul B. Jessup, authorized J.C. Bigham, who had been managing the property in Carnegie, to do the salvage work at the plant and to sell off all equipment and supplies. In 1941 an option was granted to J.H. Hillman and Robert M. Moore for purchase of the property at Carnegie for $75,000 paid over 3 years: the actual price paid by Hillman & Moore was $67,500, a discount of 10% being allowed for cash payment. The new owners planned to erect a factory to produce specialized war materials.

The shareholders met at the William Penn Hotel in Pittsburgh on April 20, 1942, to approve, by a vote of 1933 to 315, the dissolution of the company. The records which were in the care of J.C. Bigham in Carnegie were sent to Wallace in March 1943.