Frank L. Worden, the fifth child of Francis and Lucretia Worden, was born in Missoula in 1875 and attended Missoula schools. He graduated from the Shattuck Military Academy in Fairbault, Minnesota, and worked for a time in Washington, DC, before returning to Missoula. He started a store at Frenchtown, Montana, which he sold out, then started a general merchandise store at Ravalli, Montana, which he operated for ten years. He farmed in Saunders County until 1924, when ill health sent him back to Missoula. He was the state deputy humane officer under Governor Joseph Dixon until 1925, and operated the Bus State Depot in Missoula in 1925. He died in 1927.
The collection consists of financial records from two of Frank Worden's businesses: his general merchandise store at Ravalli, Montana, and the Bus State Depot in Missoula, Montana. There are also financial records from a livery stable that operated in Ravalli and Kalispell, Montana. These financial records document customer purchases, mostly individual items by customer name, as well as internal financial operations of the businesses.
The collection is arranged in three series:
Series I: Ravalli store, 2 volumes and 1 folder, 1906-1918
Series II: Bus State Depot, 2 volumes, 1925
Series III: John Weightman Stable and Stage, 3 volumes, 1903-1915
Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of Archives and Special Collections, the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, and The University of Montana--Missoula.
Researchers are responsible for using in accordance with 17 U.S.C. and any other applicable statutes. Copyright not transferred to The University of Montana.
[Name of document or photograph number], Frank L. Worden Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, The University of Montana--Missoula.
The materials were in the possession of the Worden family until donation to the archives.
Gift of Jane Worden Muchmore McAlear, 1987.
The collection was originally processed as LC 211. In 2004, the collection was reprocessed and numbered Mss 382.
One ledger from Worden and Company, Francis L. Worden's business, was moved to collection Mss 021.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.
This series consists of financial records from Worden's general merchandise store in Ravalli, Montana. The store sold groceries, dry goods, and boots and shoes. The general journal details transactions with the store's suppliers, and the sales record contains names and purchases of individual customers.
Pages 150-151 only
This series consists of financial records from the Bus State Depot, which Worden operated in Missoula, Montana, in 1925. The first ledger, which also contains materials in Series II, contains lists of magazines purchased for the depot from a broker in Spokane, Washington. The second volume is a check register for the depot from Missoula Trust and Savings Bank, which documents individual purchases.
This series consists of financial materials from the John Weightman Stable and Stage, a livery business in Kalispell and Ravalli, Montana. The business does not appear in city directories after 1917. Connection, if any, with Worden is unknown. The ledgers from the Kalispell stable document the livery orders of area residents, including prominent families like the Conrads.