Potlatch Lumber Company records

Potlatch Lumber Company records, 1890-1949

Overview of the Collection

Creator: Potlatch Lumber Company
Title: Potlatch Lumber Company records
Dates: 1890-1949 (inclusive)
18901949
Quantity: 5 cubic feet
Collection Number: MG 193, MG193 (collection)
Summary: Correspondence of Walter D. Humiston, assistant general manager and director of research; contracts, leases, deeds and conveyances, property tax records, and reports on timber cruises; also property tax and other records of the Washington, Idaho and Montana Railway.
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
Access Restrictions: Collection is open for research.
Languages
Sponsor: Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

These records of the Potlatch Lumber Company, of Potlatch, Idaho, span the years 1890 to 1949, with the bulk of the material covering the years 1901 to 1932.

The records include the correspondence of Walter D. Humiston, assistant general manager and director of research, several early contracts, leases, deeds and conveyances, property tax records and the results of numerous timber cruises. There are twelve folders of material from the Washington, Idaho and Montana Railway Company as well as individual folders containing material relating to Potlatch subsidiaries such as the brick company, dairy ranch, and flour mill, as well as the incorporation of the town of Elk River.

In addition to this record group the University of Idaho library has several manuscript collections of Potlatch related material, including the records of Potlatch Lumber Company, 1901-1979 (MG 135, 111 cubic feet); and Washington, Idaho and Montana Railway Company, 1903-1962 (MG 139, 65.5 cubic feet).

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Alternative Forms Available

Some of the materials in this collection were digitized and added to the Potlatch Lumber Company Photograph Collection.

Preferred Citation

Photographer, "Title," date. Collection name, object ID. University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives, Moscow, ID.

Author, Description or "Title" of item, date. Collection name, collection number, box, folder. University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives, Moscow, ID.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

Many of the items in this record group were in labeled folders or document envelopes when received; all headings were retained during processing. The series designation was determined by the storage method of the material, i.e. folders, document envelopes, or, as in the case of the timber cruises, wooden drawers.

The first series contains the correspondence of W.D. Humiston, much of whci concerns the work of the research department. The first thirteen folders were in individual file folders which were contained in a large accordion folder. The original order of the folders was maintained during processing. Folders 16 to 22 contain correspondence between Potlatch and G.J. Esselin concerning processes he was developing for Potlatch. There is some duplication of material in files 16 to 19, e.g. the original of a letter from Esselin will be in one folder, and a carbon in another. The remaining correspondence in this series concerns patents.

The second series contains other items originally foldered and includes reports, specifications for the Potlatch Mill, and a contract with the Wisconsin Log and Lumber Company, 1903.

A large portion of the material was contained in document envelopes. This material was identified by company, Potlatch Lumber Company, Washington, Idaho and Montana Railway, or other subsidiary. The material was then unfolded and placed in file folders which were then arranged alphabetically. Papers dealing with Potlatch subsidiaries, e.g. brick company, dairy ranch, etc., were arranged by company and placed at the beginning of the series. They are followed by the lumber company, and finally the railroad. Types of material include leases, deeds, rights of way, and property tax receipts and related correspondence. The final items in this series are abstracts of title.

The final series consists of timber cruise notes, or estimates of timber, in sections of Latah County. These take three forms, 5 x 8" cards, arranged by location; notebooks, identified by cruiser and also by number; and by 8 1/2 x 11" sheets of paper.

Acquisition Information

The records of the Potlatch Lumber Company were donated to the Latah County Historical Society which transferred them to the University of Idaho Library, where they complement other Potlatch material, in December 1986.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Series I. Walter D. Humiston Correspondence File, 1928-1939Return to Top

Container(s)	Description	Dates
Box/Folder
1/1	Alcohol, Vegalene motor fuel, gasoline energizer and by products 23 items	1928-1919
1/2	Pulpwood spools 11 items	1930
1/3	Densewood, correspondence with Alfred G. Olson 34 items	1930-1931
1/4	Instructions on the recording and compilation of experimental data and observations 2 items	1931
1/5	Miscellaneous correspondence, some related to research projects 98 items	1928-1932
1/6	Travel diary 1 item	1928
1/7	Wood flour 7 items	1930-1931
1/8	Research department correspondence 97 items	1929-1932
1/9	Hallowax Corporation 26 items	1931
1/10-11	Skinner, Sherman Esselin, research correspondence 193 items	1929-1930
1/12	Research department correspondence 67 items	1931-1932
1/13	Research department, Densewood 11 items	1931
1/14	Patents for future consideration: patents 142 items	1955-1928
1/15	Patents for future consideration: correspondence 21 items	1931
1/16-19	G.J. Esselin correspondence 208 items	1929-1931
1/20-22	G.J. Esselin patent applications for products developed for Potlatch 106 items	1931-1935
1/23-24	Reports by W.D. Humiston 55 items	1928-1939

Series II. Other Papers, 1893-1941Return to Top

Container(s)	Description	Dates
Box/Folder
2/25	New moulding machine, correspondence and reports 42 items	1937-1941
2/26	Studies and proposals of Roland Johnson 20 items	1937-1940
2/27	Specifications for a saw mill...to be erected for Potlatch Lumber Co. Plans by W.A. Wilkinson 1 item	undated
2/28	Land title certificates 3 items	1893-1903
2/29	Contract: Wisconsin Log and Lumber Company with Potlatch Lumber Company 1 item	April 10, 1903

Series III. Papers from Document Envelopes, 1890-1949Return to Top

Container(s)	Description	Dates
	Potlatch Lumber Company
Box/Folder
2/37	Bunch property 17 items	1906-1923
2/38	Deeds and conveyances 52 items	1892-1909
2/39	Green, James R. vs. Potlatch Lumber Company 20 items	1909-1910
2/40	Insurance policies and claims 56 items	1917-1920
2/41-42	Leases 89 items	1906-1947
	Individual Leases
Box/Folder
2/43	Continental Oil Company 14 items	1915-1926
2/44	Samuel Frei 9 items	1916-1931
2/45	H.H. Lea 15 items	1908
2/46	Moose Lodge 7 items	1946-1948
2/47	Potlatch Dairy Company 21 items	1922-1927
2/48	Potlatch Garage 32 items	1926-1947
2/49	Sawmill tract 7 items	1903-1910
2/50	Leases, correspondence concerning 44 items	1911-1945
2/51	Logging truck privileges 2 items	1949
2/52	Old Palouse records, old deeds and correspondence 39 items	1904-1931
2/53	Potlatch Story 1 item	September 1965
2/54	Palouse property, correspondence 25 items	1903-1908
2/55	Palouse River Lumber Company 6 items	1903-1908
2/56	Releases, old deeds, etc. 29 items	1901-1906
2/57	Rights of way 11 items	1922-1948
2/58	Taxes: Palouse property lists and matters pertaining to taxation and assessments 6 items	1908-1909
2/59	Taxes: Whitman County tax list 1 item	undated
2/60-62	Taxes: Whitman County, Washington 121 items	1896-1909
3/63-65	Taxes: Whitman County, Washington 98 items	1910-1919
3/66	Trespass cases 50 items	1908-1916
3/67	Vacating of Palouse lots 1 item	1922
3/68	Whitman County, miscellaneous papers 6 items	1890-1908
	Washington, Idaho & Montana Railway Company
Box/Folder
3/69	Correspondence concerning cars 50 items	1905
3/70	Crossing agreements 24 items	1905-1918
3/71	Deeds from individuals to William Deary 23 items	1905
3/72	McGiffert Loading Machine 53 items	1905-1906
3/73	Miscellaneous papers 25 items	1905-1915
3/74	Princeton plat maps 3 items	undated
3/75	Rights of way 9 items	1906-1908
3/76-80	Taxes: Latah and Whitman County 242 items	1905-1919
3/81	Abstracts of title: correspondence 15 items	1903-1911
3/82-93	Abstracts of title 19 items	1898-1918
Box/Folder
2/30	Brick Company 26 items	1911-1917
2/31	Dairy Ranch sale 7 items	1927-1934
2/32	Elk River incorporation 9 items	1910-1911
2/33	Field notes from a land survey 3 items	undated
2/34	Flour Mill property 31 items	1903-1913
2/35	Homestead receipts 2 items	1901-1902
2/36	Potlatch Timber Protective Association. Grazing lease 1 item	1910

Series IV. Timber Estimates (Cruise Reports), 1901-1906Return to Top

Container(s)	Description	Dates
Box/Folder
4/94	Estimates on cards 1620 items	1901-1906
5/95-131	Estimate books 54-82 36 items	1903-1905
5/132-133	Estimate sheets 47 items	1901

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

Land titles--Idaho
Lumber trade--Idaho--Potlatch--History--Sources
Lumbering--Idaho--Potlatch--History--Sources
Tax assessment--Idaho--History--Sources

Other Creators

Personal Names
- Humiston, Walter D.
Corporate Names
- Potlatch Lumber Company
- Washington, Idaho and Montana Railway Co.

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