Snowy Peak Mining Company Records, 1906-1916

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Snowy Peak Mining Company
Title
Snowy Peak Mining Company Records
Dates
1906-1916 (inclusive)
Quantity
0.5 cubic feet
Collection Number
MG249 (collection)
Summary
Organizational and stock, financial, and other records of a silver-lead mine in the Lelande and Placer Centre Mining Districts in the Coeur d'Alene region of Idaho.
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
Funds for processing were provided by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, the U.S. Department of Education HEA Title II-C "Strengthening Research Library Resources" program, the Library Associates of the University of Idaho and other donors.
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Snowy Peak Mining Company was incorporated in the State of Washington on July 24, 1906, for the purpose of buying certain unpatented claims in Lelande and Placer Center mining districts, Idaho, from Daniel H. Brien for 1 million shares of stock and $5,000 in cash. The original claims purchased were: Il Medico, Il Medico Fraction, Silent Friend, Franc and Trillium. The first meeting of incorporators and stockholders was held in Spokane on August 4, 1906. Ownership of at least some of the claims purchased from Brien, who became president of the new concern, was in fact contested between Brien and the Tamarack & Chesapeak Mining Company, from whose leadership Brien had just been ousted by Harry Day.

Brien lost in several court fights against the Tamarack & Chesapeak and on July 29, 1913, Brien and the two other Snowy Peak trustees resigned. He later sold off his stock, allegedly receiving less than one-half-cent a share. The new board of trustees for Snowy Peak included Eugene Day as president, John H. Wourms, and Edward Boyce. Between August 1906 and August 1912 approximately $14,000 was spent on development. On May 28, 1914 the board levied an assessment against the capital stock of Snowy Peak in order to pay debts and the expenses of patenting the corporation's claims. Except for holding idle claims, Snowy Peak remained inactive and on July 1, 1916 it was dissolved by the Washington secretary of state for non-payment of fees.

Most of the books of the Snowy Peak Mining Company were lost when John H. Pelletier, then secretary, left for military service during World War I. Around 1925 the Tamarack & Custer Consolidated Mining Company, then the largest holder of Snowy Peak capital stock, became interested in Snowy Peak's holdings. Attorney John H. Wourms, secretary since about 1917, attempted to revive the company. As the time limitation for reinstatement of the Washington charter had lapsed, Wourms first sought to reorganize Snowy Peak as an Idaho corporation, but when Jerome Day, president of Tamarack & Custer, offered $50,000 to buy Snowy Peak's holdings, Wourms concluded that selling out would be preferable.

With a stock certificate book and stock ledger recovered from the office of the Spokane Auditing Co., Wourms attempted to reconstruct the list of stockholders. Eugene R. Day, the former company president, was now deceased and Wourms and Edward Boyce, trustees for the stockholders as the two surviving trustees of the defunct corporation, filed a court suit to validate the transfer of Snowy Peak assets to the Tamarack & Custer. Up until this last liquidating dividend, Wourms characterized the history of the corporation as "a misery to its stockholders." Records of the liquidation of the company, as well as minutes, 1906-1912, may be found among the papers of John H. Wourms.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The records of the Snowy Peak Mining Company span the years 1906 to 1916. Included are a list of stockholders, a cash book, stock and financial ledgers and journals, vouchers, and check registers.

This portion of the records of the Snowy Peak Mining Company consists mainly of bound volumes. These records are divided into two series: Capital Stock Records, 1906-1914; and Financial Records, 1906-1916.

The only items discarded from this collection were a ring binder and some blank checks.

Of particular note in these records is item 3. Labelled a journal, and bearing E.R. Day's name, it contains only the names of stockholders and some figures. If it is a stock ledger it has very little of the information usually found such volumes.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Acquisition Information

The records of the Snowy Peak Mining Company are part of the records of Day Mines, Inc., donated to the University of Idaho by Henry Day in 1984 and 1985.

Processing Note

Initial processing of this manuscript group was done by Judith Nielsen in October 1988.

Related Materials

Related materials can be found in the records of John H. Wourms and the Tamarack & Custer Consolidated Mining Company.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Series I. Capital Stock Records , 1906-1914Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
1/1
Lists of stockholders
1912, undated
1/2
Ledger
1906-1912
1/3
Journal (ledger)
1914

Series II. Financial Records , 1906-1916Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
1/4
Ledger
1914-1915
1/5
Journal
1914-1916
os/6
Cash book
1906-1912
1/7
Check registers
1911-1916

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Lead mines and mining -- Idaho -- Coeur d'Alene Mining District -- History -- Sources
  • Mining corporations -- Records -- Idaho -- Coeur d'Alene Mining District
  • Silver mines and mining -- Idaho -- Coeur d'Alene Mining District -- History -- Sources

Other Creators

  • Corporate Names
    • Snowy Peak Mining Company