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Holter Family papers, 1861-1968

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Holter, Anton M., 1831-1921
Title
Holter Family papers
Dates
1861-1968 (inclusive)
Quantity
95 linear feet of shelf space
Collection Number
MC 80 (collection)
Summary
Anton M. Holter (1831-1921) was a pioneer Helena, Montana, lumberman and founder of the A.M. Holter Hardware Company. Papers (1831-1921) include correspondence, and organizational and financial records relating to mining, agriculture, lumber, real estate, and oil interests of three generations of the family, headed successively by Anton M. Holter, Norman B. Holter, and Norman J. "Jeff" Holter. Many of the enterprises were in partnership with Samuel T. Hauser. Interests include the A.M. Holter Hardware Company; Holter Realty; Holter Research Foundation; Judith Farms; Montana Flour Mills; and the Helena and Frisco, Helena and Victor, the Maginnis mining companies, and many others.
Repository
Montana Historical Society, Library & Archives
Montana Historical Society Research Center Archives
225 North Roberts
PO Box 201201
Helena MT
59620-1201
Telephone: 4064442681
Fax: 4064445297
mhslibrary@mt.gov
Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Additional Reference Guides

A name index to the inventory is in the repository.

Languages
English. A very small portion of the material is written in Norwegian.
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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Biographical Note

Through three generations and for more than one-hundred years, the Holter Family was an active and influential participant in the history and growth of Montana. The contributions made by the family, particularly to the economic and social development of Helena, have made the name Holter of special historical significance to that city.

Anton M. Holter (1831-1921) arrived in America from his native Norway in 1854 at the age of 23. Working as a carpenter, he traveled in Iowa and Minnesota before reaching the Pikes Peak gold fields during the Colorado gold rush. From there, Holter joined with Alex Evinson in 1863 to journey by wagon to what is now Madison County, Montana, where they established the first sawmill in the territory at Ramshorn Gulch near Virginia City. From this rustic start with makeshift machinery, Holter was to become the "father of the lumber business in Montana," establishing lumber yards in Virginia City, Nevada City, Helena, Great Falls, Sun River and Fort Benton. Holter's personal account of his days in Virginia City and the sawmill business is given in "Pioneer Lumbering in Montana."

Holter was particularly attracted to the Helena area because of the rich gold strikes at Last Chance Gulch and the subsequent need for building and other supplies. In 1865, he established a sawmill eight miles southwest of town on Ten Mile Creek. Two years later, after dissolving Holter and Evinson, he formed a general merchandise company in partnership with his brother, Martin Holter (1835-1920), located on Main Street in Helena near his lumber yards. The firm of A. M. Holter and Brother operated until 1886 when Holter incorporated the A. M. Holter Hardware Company.

Holter Hardware was located at 113 N. Main Street in the three-story Holter Block built in 1887. In addition to the main store building, the firm also had two warehouses for shipping and receiving. The first merchandise to reach the company was shipped up the Missouri River to Fort Benton and hauled to Helena by ox team. By offering wholesale and retail merchandise including general hardware, mining supplies, mining and milling machinery, and a selection of gift items, the company became one of the largest of its kind in the Northwest. A. M. Holter Hardware Company was the oldest commercial business in Montana, surviving until 1958 (advertisements claimed "since 1867"). Liquidation came in an effort to preserve assets from increasing operating losses when the firm was sold to S. W. Shames and Associates of Denver.

In addition to his lumber and hardware interests, Anton M. Holter was also active in other business enterprises and activities, many of these in partnership with Samuel T. Hauser. In 1865, he was instrumental in founding the Virginia City Water Company, the first corporation organized in the territory. The first door, blind, and sash factory is also credited to Holter, being built in 1868. He invested in several local utility companies and was a major promoter of the United Missouri River Power Company which was responsible for dam construction near Helena. Investments were made in Alaska fish packing, Oregon timber lands, mercantile companies, sheep and cattle ranches, flour mills, railroads, and land companies. Holter was also a heavy speculator in mining properties, investing in small one-man mines and in large incorporated mining companies located from Alaska to Mexico. In Montana Territory he is credited with revolutionizing quartz mining by being the first to make use of ore concentrators. Properties Holter invested in included the Elkhorn Mining Company, the Maginnis Mining Company, Seven Devils Mining District, Helena and Victor Mining Company, Blue Canyon Coal Company, Helena and Frisco Mining Company, and the Little Ben Mining Company.

A Republican, Holter was a member of the first territorial council, the first state legislature, and the first school board in Helena.

Anton M. Holter married Mary Pauline Loberg of Chicago in 1867. Their first child, born in 1868 in the back of the family mercantile store, was Norman Bernard Holter (1868-1959). It was Norman Holter who returned to Montana after graduating from Columbia University in 1891 as a mining engineer to assume major responsibility for the family enterprises after his father's retirement. He served also with the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, Montana Flour Mills, Montana Power Company, Western States Taxpayers' Association, and the Liberty Loan campaigns in Montana during World War I.

In addition to the A. M. Holter Hardware Company, two other family corporations were created. In 1902, the Holter Company was founded. This closed-end investment company was owned primarily by family members and was designed for the handling of stock investment transactions and for the conduct of other general commercial business. Heavy investments were made through the Holter Company in numerous mining ventures, in California real estate, and in oil properties. The name of the company was changed in 1960 to The 25 West 6th Avenue Company. Liquidation came in 1963 to protect stockholders "from the hazards of one-man management." Another family enterprise, the Holter Realty Company, came into existence sometime around 1917. This company handled primarily the rental of Helena business properties it owned, although it also managed some California real estate. Holter Realty also had an investment program where the working capital of the company was invested in the stock market. The company was liquidated in 1968.

Other members of the Holter family active in the business interests included three of Norman's brothers: Edwin 0. Holter (1871-196?), a lawyer in New York City, assisted with stock market investments; Albert L. Holter (1874-1921) managed one of the family ranches at Silver Star; and Aubrey M. Holter (1883-1945) held corporate offices in all of the Holter companies. Clara Holter Kennett (1869-1951), the only sister, was a major stockholder in each of the family concerns.

The retirement of Norman B. Holter brought his youngest son, Norman Jefferis (Jeff) Holter (1914-1983) into the family businesses. A chemist and physicist, Jeff Holter was a member of the Navy teams conducting atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll and hydrogen bomb tests at Eniwetok Atoll. After his return to Helena in 1946, he served as a corporate officer for Holter Hardware, Holter Company, Holter Realty, Montana Flour Mills, and Mountain States Telephone and Telegraph Company. In addition, he founded and worked as research director for the Holter Research Foundation, Inc. This small, non-profit research laboratory was founded in 1947 and financed by private funds and Public Health Service grants. Being involved with the field of medical physics, the foundation is credited with the discovery of several important heart monitoring devices and for the creation of "Dynamic Electrocardiography."

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Content Description

This collection is arranged into several major subgroups. The first group is for the Holter Family and allied families. The second major group is for the Holter Family Enterprises. The remainder of the collection consists of records of numerous companies grouped together in categories, including Mining subgroups, Lumber and Timber subgroups, Agriculture subgroups, Real Estate and Investment subgroups, Mercantile subgroups, Oil subgroups, Utility and Transportation subgroups, and Miscellaneous subgroups. Within each subgroup the basic arrangement is alphabetical by the name of the company.

The Holter Family Subgroup of the collection contains correspondence and other materials relating to individual family members. Within this subgroup is a series of family correspondence, which contains letters written between various Holters. The correspondence between Anton M. Holter and his sons, primarily Norman, Edwin, and Aubrey, and the correspondence between the three brothers, provides invaluable information concerning the many facets of the family's business activities and investments. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to read this family correspondence regardless of the topic of interest.

The greatest value of the collection is its completeness and its century-long time span coverage. The materials serve to provide invaluable information on the Holter family; the family companies, particularly the A. M. Holter Hardware Company; the growth and development of Helena and vicinity; and the lumber, ranching, and mining industries in the Northwest. The only weakness in the collection is the lack of any meaningful materials documenting the political activities of the period.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

The Montana Historical Society is the owner of the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from the Research Library before any reproduction use. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from the copyright owners.

Preferred Citation

Item description and date. Collection Title. Collection Number. Box and Folder numbers. Montana Historical Society Research Center, Archives, Helena, Montana.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Arranged by subgroups (Holter Family, Holter Enterprise, Mining, Lumber/Timber, Agriculture, Real Estate/Investments, Mercantile, Oil, Utility/Transportation, Miscellaneous), sub-subgroups, and series. Some material housed in manuscript volumes. Oversize material throughout the collection has been moved to Oversize Box 1. See inventory below for more information.

Location of Collection

4:8-2

Location of Collection

1:1-5 (oversize box 1)

Acquisition Information

Acquisition information available upon request

Related Materials

Holter Research Foundation records from Jeff Holter are catalogued separately in MC 173.

Partner S. T. Hauser's papers are catalogued separately in MC 37.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Detailed Description of the Collection

The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

Personal Names

Geographical Names

Finding aid prepared by Sue Jackson, 1978; additions by Lisa Brennan, 1993 and Ellie Arguimbau, 2002.
2006

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