Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Milton Simpson Collection, 1885-1942
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Simpson, Milton, 1899-1976
- Title
- Milton Simpson Collection
- Dates
- 1885-194218851942
- Quantity
- 1 folder
- Collection Number
- Collection 0035, MtBC, us (collection)
- Summary
- The Milton Simpson Collection consists of eighteen photographs of the Simpson ranch and cattle, 1903-1942, two receipts for taxes and horse purchases by Charles Simpson, a 1941 letter from the Montana Stockgrowers Association to Milton Simpson, and an 1885 memoranda book kept by Arthur H. Sanborn.
- Repository
-
Montana State University Library, Merrill G. Burlingame Special Collections
Montana State University-Bozeman Library
Merrill G Burlingame Special Collections
P.O. Box 173320
Bozeman, MT
59717-3320
Telephone: 4069944242
Fax: 4069942851
- Access Restrictions
-
This collection is open for research.
- Languages
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Milton Simpson was born in Volborg, Montana on December 7, 1899. He was the son of Charles M. Simpson, a cattle rancher and former member of the Montana state legislature. Charles Simpson was born in Massachusetts and raised in Texas where he learned the cattle trade. In 1887 he arrived in Montana with a cattle drive and remained there the rest of his life. He filed on a homestead claim on Pumpkin Creek in Custer County and added to his holdings until reaching a combined size of over 10,000 acres. Charles and his wife, Maggie Shy Simpson, were married on November 16, 1898. Their son, Milton, also remained in the area, operating his family ranches, becoming active in the Montana Stockgrowers Association and taking an interest in local history. In 1963 he responded to a solicitation by the librarian at Montana State College for historical documents and provided the materials in this collection. He died in February 1976.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
The Milton Simpson collection consists of eighteen photographs of the Simpson ranch and cattle, 1903-1942, two receipts for taxes and horse purchases by Charles Simpson, a 1941 letter from the Montana Stockgrowers Association to Milton Simpson, and an 1885 memoranda book kept by Arthur H. Sanborn. Sanborn was a civil engineer from Massachusetts who worked as a ranch foreman for Charles Chandler Stephens and kept the memoranda book to record his expenses during trips into Miles City, Montana, for supplies between June 27, 1885 and September 16, 1886. In 1886, Sanborn filed for water rights on Pumpkin Creek in Custer County, but his holdings were likely absorbed by Charles Simpson before Sanborn moved on to Berkeley, California with his wife, Julia Stephens Sanborn and her children. The information Sanborn recorded in his memoranda book include items and services purchased, along with the price paid, in chronological order. The photographs each have some identification written on the verso, and actual titles of individual images have been put in quotation marks.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
| Description | Dates |
|---|---|
| Receipt, horse sale from J.A. Ramer to Charles Simpson | December 21, 1892 |
| Receipt, Custer County collector, for taxes paid by Charles Simpson, | November 12, 1894 |
| Letter, Montana Stockgrowers Association to Milton Simpson | June 2, 1941 |
| Memoranda book, Arthur H. Sanborn | 1885-1886 |
| Photograph #1. Cattle drive, crossing Missouri River | September 1903 |
| Photograph #2. Cattle drive, crossing Missouri River | September 1903 |
| Photograph #3. "Milton Simpson on "Mugs" in front of bunk house" | |
| Photograph #4. Charles Simpson and Maggie Shy Simpson | July 1921 |
| Photograph #5. Charles Simpson and Maggie Shy Simpson | 1929 |
| Photograph #6. Charles Simpson on "Old Ribbon" | |
| Photograph #7. Charles Simpson and Alice Simpson (sister) | |
| Photograph #8. Roundup at branding time | June 8, 1937 |
| Photograph #9. Milton Simpson with cattle | June 1925 |
| Photograph #10. "Simpson ranch, 2 year old heifers and calves | May 1925" |
| Photograph #11. "2 year old heifers with calves at branding time | June 1937" |
| Photograph #12. "Simpson ranch, cows and calves | October 1, 1938" |
| Photograph #13. "Calves being moved to winter quarters | January 1, 1934" |
| Photograph #14. "Calves arriving at winter quarters | January 1, 1934" |
| Photograph #15. "Simpson ranch, yearling heifers | 1942" |
| Photograph #16. "Simpson ranch, cows and calves | October 1, 1938" |
| Photograph #17. "Simpson ranch, top horse "Maginty" | June 1940" |
| Photograph #18. "Simpson ranch, cows and calves | 1940" |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Cattle-Montana-Custer County-Photographs
- Ranches-Montana-Custer County-Photographs
- Ranching-Montana-Custer County
Family Names
- Simpson family-Photographs
Geographical Names
- Custer County (Mont.)-Photographs
Other Creators
-
Personal Names
- Sanborn, Arthur H. (creator)
- Simpson, Charles M.,-1867-1930 (creator)
Kim Allen Scott, 2009
September 11, 2015
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
