MTLmc199.xml Guide to the Montana Chamber of Commerce records 1931-1967 Montana Chamber of Commerce records Finding aid prepared by Bill Summers, 1989 Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Montana Historical Society 2006
Helena, MT
Finding aid encoded by Ellie Arguimbau with assistance by Cuadra Assoc.2006 Finding aid written in English. Finding aid based on DACS ( Describing Archives: A Content Standard 2nd Edition) 2023 January 23 Finding aid revised to reflect correction of grammatical errors. Edited by Aaron Rau. Montana Historical Society Archives MC 199 Montana Chamber of Commerce Montana Chamber of Commerce records 1931-1967 7.5 linear feet The Montana Chamber of Commerce was founded as Montanans, Inc. in 1931 to promote business and professional interests and industrial development. The name was changed in 1946. Records (1931-1967) include general correspondence, financial records, legal documents, minutes, news releases, organizational records, printed materials, reports, speeches, subject files, and miscellany. 12:2-1 English Historical Note:

The Montana Chamber of Commerce, a private non-profit membership organization that advocates for the state's business and professional interests, was established as Montanans, Inc. on January 30, 1931, in Helena. The organization adopted its present name in July 1946. The Chamber's committees and staff promote tourism, foreign trade (especially with Canada), agricultural and industrial development, and lobby the state and federal legislatures for measures favorable to its constituency, such as lower property taxes and a sales tax.

Staff members included Gerald J. Skibbins who held the position of manager of the Montana Chamber of Commerce in the 1950s. Patrick E. Lee, a former Carroll College instructor, was the Chamber's publicity director from 1957 until 1959. William H. Browning began serving as executive vice president of the Montana Chamber of Commerce in 1956. He joined the Chamber staff as director of travel and publicity, and was promoted to manager in 1951. Browning also served concurrently as the first secretary of the Montana Citizens Freight Rate Association from 1951 to 1952. He was named national director of the Outdoor Writers Association of America and promoted Missoula as the location for that organization's national convention in 1953.

The records of the Montana Chamber of Commerce consist of general correspondence (195l-1967, undated) relating to the organization's day-to-day activity; financial records (1945-1966, undated); legal documents (1949), minutes (1943-1944, 1950-1966); news releases (1958, undated); organizational records (1957), including the articles of incorporation of Montanans, Inc.; printed materials (1955); reports (1945-1960); speeches (1958, undated); subject files (1944-1967); miscellany (1942-1967), including membership lists (1959-1967, undated), and "Montana Directory Questionnaires" (1954) used to compile the 1955-1956 edition of the Industrial Survey and Directory of Manufacturers of Montana, which provide information not used in the published version of the directory; and clippings.

Arranged by series. Some material housed in Archives Map Case. See inventory below for more information.

Collection is open for research.

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.

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

Acquisition information available upon request

Artifacts, maps, photographs, and printed materials have been transferred to the Museum, Library Map Collection, Photograph Archives, and Library respectively.

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the Montana Historical Society Archives catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search under these terms.

Montana Chamber of Commerce Alaska Highway Knowles Dam (Mont.) Reichle Dam (Mont.) Agriculture, Cooperative--Montana Boards of trade--Montana Centennial celebrations, etc.--Montana Christmas tree growing--Montana Coal liquefaction--Montana Commercial law--Montana Conservation of natural resources--Montana Dams--Montana Dude ranches--Montana Economic development--Montana Energy development--Montana Environmental policy--Montana Federal government Forest management--Montana Freight and freightage--Rates--Montana Guides for hunters, fishermen, etc.--Montana Industrial laws and legislation--Montana Industrial promotion--Montana Iron mines and mining--Montana Newspapers--Montana Outdoor recreation--Montana Petroleum industry and trade--Montana Phosphate mines and mining--Montana Pollution--Montana Promotional societies Public lands--Montana Research, Industrial--Montana Sales tax--Montana Sugar beet industry--Montana Taxation--Montana Tourist trade--Montana Transportation and state--Montana Travertine--Montana Trucking--Montana Water--Pollution--Montana Water-supply--Montana Wildlife conservation--Law and legislation--Montana Wood-pulp industry--Montana Wool industry--Montana Montana Civic Activism Detailed Description of the Collection

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

General Correspondence 1 / 1 Art J. Baker (re sales of memberships) 1956-1957 1 / 2 Noel Carrico (includes "Tour of Pine, Cabin Creek, and Gas City Oil Fields") 1955 1 / 3 Inquiries 1959-1960 1 / 4 Charles G. McGlave 1960-1965 1 / 5 Harry Preston 1960-1963 1 / 6 C.M. "Neil" Wall 1951-1959 1 / 7 Lee Wulf (re television movie on Montana fishing) 1964-1965 1 / 8 Miscellaneous (re Polson tourist accommodations; Montana State Planning Board; Montana Power Company gas import case; etc.; also includes copies of Montana Chamber of Commerce circulars) 1951-1955 1 / 9 Miscellaneous (re Montana Taxpayers' Association survey of state's school needs; Senator Lee Metcalf's support of improvement and development of forest recreation; H.B. 71 re Nurses Employment Practices; Armed Forces Day; etc.) 1957 January -April 1 / 10 Miscellaneous (re U.S. Customs stations at Del Bonita, Turner, Opheim, and Morgan; Montana Day; income tax reduction; Lewis and Clark Highway; Fort Peck Yacht Club's Missouri River Cruise; etc.; also includes copies of Montana Chamber of Commerce circulars) 1957 May-December 1 / 11 Miscellaneous (re Dude Ranchers Association opposition to access roads on National Forest lands; proposed Paradise Dam; freight transportation tax; Cooke City- Red Lodge highway; billboards; proposed Columbia River Development corporation bill; Clark Fork River and Thompson River fish rehabilitation programs; etc.; also includes resolutions of the Montana Conservation Council) 1958 January -May 2 / 1 Miscellaneous (re unemployment compensation; Montana Day; etc.; also includes copies of Montana Chamber of Commerce circulars) 1958 June-1960 September 2 / 2 Miscellaneous (re Montana Highway Users Conference; etc.; also includes Montana State AFL-CIO list of Montana right wing organizations) 1963-1964 2 / 3 Miscellaneous (re use of name "Big Sky Country" for other states; Montana Dismantlers Association and highway beautification; dams within the Bob Marshall Wilderness; Lincoln Back Country Protective Association and the "Lincoln Back Country-Scapegoat Mountain" area; etc.) 1965-1967 Financial Records 1 Account ledger [OVERSIZE: See Archives Map Case] 1961 2 / 5 Annual statements of operations and financial statistics (includes monthly financial reports, November-December 1950; proposed operational budget, 1950; statement of assets and liabilities, January 1950; "Supplemental Data Embracing Proposed Features of the 1952 Budget on Operational Expenditures"; and special convention issues, 1953-1955) 1950-1955 2 / 6-7 Audit reports (includes Montanans, Inc.; Montana Chamber of Commerce Industrial Development Division; also includes financial statement, July 1947-April 1948) 1945-1949 2 / 8 Bank account deposits 1957 2 / 9 Budget 1960 2 / 10 Checking account ledger register 1950 2 / 11 Comparative income reports (includes budget requirements for 1948) 1946-1948 2 / 12-13 Financial statements and statements of operational statistics (also includes audit report, 1959) 1956-1959 3 / 1 Payroll 1950 November - 1951 December 3 / 2 Proposed annual budgets 1960-1963 3 / 3 Schedules of operating expenses and balance sheets 1960-1966 Legal Documents 3 / 4 Certification of name change from Montanans, Inc. to Montana Chamber of Commerce 1948 August 3 / 5 Lease with Helena Building and Realty Company for office 1949 Maps 3 / 6 List of maps transferred to Library Map Collection undated Minutes 3 / 7 County Board of Directors meeting (includes lists of members of Boards of County Directors, 1954-1956) 1953 November 3 / 8 Minutes (Montanans, Inc.) 1943-1944 3 / 9-12 Minutes and related materials 1950, 1953-1966 3 / 13 Trades and Services Division 1953 February Organization 3 / 14 Montanans, Inc. articles of incorporation and bylaws 1931 November 3 / 15 Bylaws 1957 Press releases 3 / 16-17 Miscellaneous 1955, 1958, undated Photographs 3 / 18 List of photographs transferred to Photograph Archives undated 3 / 19 List of printed material transferred to Library undated 3 / 20 Miscellaneous (includes promotional brochures) undated Reports 3 / 21 Aviation Committee report 1960 3 / 22 Budget Committee report 1948 3 / 23 Fort Peck: construction and operating expenses (includes "Air Engineering Development Center Site Questionnaire," by Gerald J. Skibbins) 1949 3 / 24 "Future Goals for the Industrial Development Division," by Gerald J. Skibbins 1949 3 / 25 "Highlights of the Proceedings Which Determined the Montana Industrial Mobilization Program," Industrial Mobilization Division 1948 4 / 1 "Montana Chemical Industry Report," Montana Chemicals Industry Task Force 1948 4 / 2 "Montana Forest Industries Report," Montana Forest Industries Task Force 1948 4 / 3 "Montana Mining and Smelting Industries Report," Task Force on Mining and Smelting 1948 4 / 4 "The Montana Proposal for Locating the AEC [Atomic Energy Commission] Reactor Research Installation," by Gerald J. Skibbins 1949 4 / 5 "Montana Research Facility Report," Montana Research Facility Task Force 1948 4 / 6 "Montana's Metal-Working Industry Report," Metal Industries Task Force 1948 4 / 7 "Oil and Synthetic Fuel," by Gerald J. Skibbins 1948 4 / 8 "Montana Petroleum and Gas Report," Montana Petroleum and Gas Task Force 1948 4 / 9 "A Preliminary Inventory of Montana Mineral Resources," by Francis A. Thomson 1948 4 / 10 Report on policy and program 1960 4 / 11 "Turkey Production," Industrial Development Division 1945 4 / 12 "Wood Sugar Molasses Pilot Plant and Research Program," Montana Wood Molasses Advisory Committee undated 4 / 13 "The Work of the Division," Industrial Development Division 1948 Speeches 4 / 14 Speech (re cooperative planning in recreational development) 1958 April 4 / 15 Statement of William H. Browning before the Subcommittee on Flood control, Rivers and Harbors (re Columbia River Basin) 1958 December Subject Files 4 / 16-17 Agriculture Committee 1950-1953, 1962-1964 4 / 18 Alaska-Canada-Montana Relations Committee 1962-1963 4 / 19-20 Alaska Highway Paving Project 1957-1963 5 / 1-3 Alaska Highway Paving Project 1964-1967 5 / 4-6 Alaska Air Tour 1961 5 / 7 Alaska relations 1958=1959 5 / 8 All-Montana Canadian Tour [clippings] 1956 5 / 9 American Chemet Corporation (includes material re Columbia Paint company; air pollution survey; etc.) 1947 5 / 10 Asbestos 1945-1946 5 / 11 Beef tariff 1964 5 / 12 Bricks (re Fromberg brick factory) 1946 6 / 1-7 Canadian relations (includes minutes of Alberton Section, Joint Trade Committee, May 2, 1957) 1953-1963 6 / 8-10 Canadian Relations Tour 1955-1959 6 / 11 Canadian Tourists Project 1957 6 / 12 Canadian trade 1956-1957, undated 6 / 13 Changing World of Beef Tour 1961-1966 7 / 1 Christmas tree industry (includes Marketing Montana Christmas Trees, by Ben Huey and S. Blair Hutchinson, 1949; Management Policies for Christmas Tree Production, by C.A. Wellner and A.L. Roe, 1947; "Christmas Tree Production in Western Montana, 1939," and "The Christmas Tree Industry of Western Montana," by E.F. Ragpraeger, 1939 1939-1955 7 / 2 College-Business Symposium 1966 7 / 3 Committee on Committees 1953-1954 7 / 4 Community Development Conference, Great Falls 1965 7 / 5 Commercial Division (includes minutes) 1950-1951 7 / 6 Conference on Government 1958-1960 7 / 7-10 Conventions 1954, 1959, 1961, 1962 8 / 1-3 Conventions 1964-1966 8 / 4 Council of State Chambers of Commerce 1965-1966 8 / 5 County advisors 1961-1963 8 / 6 Defense contracts procurement 1951-1952 8 / 7 "Eastern Montana Oil Meeting" (includes minutes; "A Field Survey of Oil Developments in the Dakotas and Montana as a Source of Business Expansion"; E.G. Booth; etc.) 1952 8 / 8 Elections of county directors 1954-1957 8 / 9 Emergency Lead-Zinc Committee 1963 8 / 10 Federal budget 1952 8 / 11 Federal legislation (re recreational license for national forests and expansion of social security benefits) 1952 8 / 12 Federal-State Relations Committee (includes minutes) 1954-1955 8 / 13 Federal-State Relations Project 1953-1954 9 / 1 Finance Committee (includes budget materials) 1962-1964 9 / 2 Flour Milling Division 1948 9 / 3 Forests (includes "Pulp Mill Sites in Eastern Montana in Relation to Effect on Water Quality of the Upper Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers," by L.F. Warrick and H.A. Anderson) 1951-1954 9 / 4 Freight rates 1948-1962, undated 9 / 5 Governors' Conference 1959-1960 9 / 6 Highway finance 1952-1956 9 / 7 Homesteading (includes "Some Points to Consider in Selecting and Buying a Farm," by R.B. Tootell) 1944 9 / 8 Industrial Committee (includes minutes) 1960-1964 9 / 9-10 Industrial Development Division (includes "The Development of Montana," by Gerald J. Skibbins; minutes and organizational chart of Rocky Mountain Wool Council; minutes of meeting with Montana Woolgrowers Association and Governor Sam Ford; progress report; minutes; "General Prospectus on Sidney, Montana, Establishment of Industry"; etc.) 1946-1959 9 / 11 Industrial directory 1951-1956 9 / 12 Iron ore (includes "A Memorandum Report on a Deposit of Iron Ore, Montana-Idaho Area," by M.R. Cooper) 1946-1950 9 / 13 Knowles Dam 1962-1963 9 / 14 Legislation 1962-1963 10 / 1 Legislative reporting 1964-1965 10 / 2 Legislative services 1966 10 / 3 Lignite coal (includes "Coal Processing Possibilities in Montana," by Dick Setterstrom; "A Summary of Information on the Coal Resources Tributary to the Milwaukee Railroad West of Mobridge, S.D." by J.W. Melrose) 1951-1954, undated 10 / 4 Magazines: Field and Stream (includes "The Month the Madison [River] Goes Mad" re fishing) 1965-1966 10 / 5 Magazines: miscellaneous 1956-1966 10 / 6 Malmstrom Air Force Base 1964 10 / 7 Membership 1965-1966 10 / 8 Minimum wage 1965 10 / 9 Missouri [River] Basin Survey 1952 10 / 10 Montana Centennial Train 1963-1964 10 / 11-13 Montana Citizens' Freight Rate Association (includes minutes, financial statements, reports) 1952-1957, undated 10 / 14 Montana Day 1957 11 / 1 Montana Industrial Laboratory (includes articles of incorporation, minutes, membership, bylaws; also includes oversize drawing of the Browning Road De-Icer, by John W. Browning, inventor) 1950-1959 11 / 2 Montana Industrial Mobilization Program (includes "Interim Report of Task Force on Manpower and Technical Training..."; etc.) 1948-1949 11 / 3 Montana Inventors Congress 1964-1967 11 / 4 Montana Manufacturers' Association 1966 11 / 5 Montana Power Company 1966 11 / 6 "Montana Product Listings Survey" (re products marketable in Canada) 1957 11 / 7 Montana products (includes Montana Industrial Mobilization Program survey of canning industry; product brochures; "Production of Basic Chemicals in Montana"; "Montana Chrome, Inc., Red Lodge Operation Report #10" etc.) 1942-1950 11 / 8 Montana store hours 1964 11 / 9 Montana Typographical Conference 1965 11 / 10 Movie: "Flathead Lake--a Vacation Utopia" 1962-1965 11 / 11 National Boy Scout Jamboree 1964-1965 11 / 12 National Forest use fees 1953-1954 11 / 13 National Park Committee (re proposed purchase of Yellowstone National Park concessions by State of Wyoming; includes "Secretary's Report Absaroka Conservation Committee") 1953-1955 11 / 14-15 "Outdoor Editors Tour" 1951-1953 12 / 1 "Outdoor Editors Tour" 1954 12 / 2-4 Outdoor Writers' Association of America, 1953 Missoula convention (includes dude ranch promotional materials, etc.) 1951-1953 12 / 5 Phosphates 1948-1949 12 / 6 Public Land Law Review Commission 1965 12 / 7 Railroad memberships (re Northern Pacific Railway and Union Pacific Railway) 1950-1952 12 / 8 Regional meetings ("Little Aircade") 1965 12 / 9 Reichle Dam 1967 12 / 10 Remington Farms 1962-1964 12 / 11 Rendering plant 1946 12 / 12 Sales tax 1960-1962 12 / 13 Schools (re post-Labor Day opening and reorganization) 1965-1966 12 / 14 Social Security 1953 12 / 15 Speakers Bureau (re anti-communist education program) 1960 13 / 1-2 Sugar beet industry 1951-1953 13 / 3 Synthetic liquid fuel from coal 1948-1949 13 / 4 Tariffs on lead and zinc (includes correspondence with Anaconda Company) 1957 13 / 5 Taxation 1952 13 / 6 Taxation of cooperative businesses 1961-1967 13 / 7 Transportation Committee 1963 13 / 8 Travel Division 1952-1953 13 / 9 Travel Promotion Committee 1962-1965 13 / 10 Travertine 1945-1948 13 / 11 Unemployment compensation 1961 13 / 12 Unemployment Compensation Committee 1964 13 / 13 Unemployment compensation legislation 1966 13 / 14 U.S. Internal Revenue (re activities of the Montana Chamber of Commerce) 1948 13 / 15 Upper Midwest Research and Development Council (includes minutes of organizational meeting and proceedings) 1958-1959, 1964 13 / 16 Vermiculite (includes "Report on the Vermiculite Deposits Owned by S.H. Chamberlin and Geo. H. Garnet in Ravalli County, Montana") 1947-1950 13 / 17 Voting records (re Montana delegation to Congress) 1959-1962 13 / 18 Water pollution 1951-1956 13 / 19 Water resources (includes Montana Water Resources, by Gerald J. Skibbins) 1950, 1954 14 / 1 Women's Division 1960 14 / 2 Wood molasses 1948-1950 MC 199-215 Drawings of "Wood to Molasses Pilot Plant, Bozeman, Montana" [OVERSIZE: See Archives Map Case folder MC 199-215] 1948-1950 14 / 3 Wool cleaning plant 1948-1951 Writings 14 / 4 Magazine articles by Patrick E. Lee 1957-1959 14 / 5 "A Water Use Policy for Montana: a Statement by Montana Chamber of Commerce before the Task Force on Water Resources and Power, of the Commission on Organization the Executive Branch of Government" (includes Irrigation Pays, Montana Reclamation Association) 1952, 1954 Miscellany 14 / 6 Absaroka Conservation Committee secretary's report on Yellowstone Park meeting 1951 14 / 7 "Annual Survey for 1959 Program of Work" [blank form] 1958 14 / 7a Billings Chamber of Commerce, "Community Capital Improvements Study" 1964 14 / 8 Committee membership lists 1959-1966, undated 14 / 9 Contracts to advertise county products and resources undated 14 / 10 Convention programs 1950-1966 14 / 11 A Directory of Chambers of Commerce of Montana 1958 14 / 12 Directories of local chambers of commerce 1953, 1966-1967, undated 14 / 13 "Ground Effect Machine" (re invention by Leonard Grayson) 1959 14 / 14 Industrial surveys (Bozeman, 1951; Roundup, 1952; Three Forks, 1956) 1951-1952, 1956 14 / 15 List of artifacts transferred to the Museum undated 14 / 16 List of Montana local chambers of commerce and service organizations 1955 14 / 17 List of Montana trade associations 1956 14 / 18 List of women's organization presidents 1961 14 / 19 Membership lists (new members, January-April; cancelled members, February-April; also includes list of contributors to Montana Citizen) 1959 14 / 20-22 Membership lists (arranged by county within each year) 1959-1960 15 / 1-3 Membership lists (arranged by county within each year) 1961-1962 15 / 4 Membership lists (arranged by type of business) 1962-1966, undated 15 / 5-6 Membership lists (arranged by county within each year) 1963-1964 16 / 1-2 Membership lists (arranged by county within each year) 1965, 1967 16 / 3 Membership program ballots 1954-1955 16 / 4 Membership survey (includes lists of members by classification) 1959 16 / 5 Miles City Chamber of Commerce annual report 1953 16 / 6 Miles City request to U.S. Civil Aeronautics Board for additional regularly scheduled airline service 1952 16 / 7 Montana Council on Corrections material (includes list of members and speech "Citizen Leadership in the Correctional Field," by W.J. Billings) 1957 16 / 8-12 "Montana Directory Questionnaire" (arranged by town: A-G) 1954 17 / 1-5 "Montana Directory Questionnaire" (arranged by town: Great Falls-Z) 1954 17 / 6 "Montana Directory Questionnaire" (newspapers and printing, arranged alphabetically by town) 1954 18 / 1 Montana Motor Hotel Association and Montana Hotel Association convention programs 1958 18 / 2 "Montana's Production in Relation to War Needs" 1942 18 / 3 The Montana Products Directory 1958 July 18 / 4 Montana State Apprenticeship Council annual report 1956 18 / 5 Montana State Farm Bureau Federation statement to Missouri Basin Commission (re irrigation) 1952 18 / 6 Public Contractors Licensed with the Montana State Board of Education, Montana Contractors' Association, Inc. and the Montana Building Chapter, Inc. 1955 18 / 7 "Payments in Lieu of Taxes by Valley Authorities," by A.L. Libra, Montana State University Law School undated 18 / 8 Pulp Mills (includes "Report on Proposed Pulp Mill in Montana in Relation to Mill Effluent Effects on Quality of Waters of the Upper Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers" [includes photos]; "Resource Factors Affecting the Feasibility of Pulp Mills in Eastern Montana," by S.B. Hutchinson and J.H. Wikstrom; "Report of Conversations Regarding Establishment of a Pulp Mill in Montana," by Lloyd Berg) 1952-1955 18 / 9 Speech by R.A. Dightman, Montana Climatological Section, U.S. Weather Bureau, Helena (re rain making) 1951 18 / 10 State Advertising Advisory Committee minutes 1958 September 18 / 11 "A Statement of Policy from the Montana Chamber of Commerce to President's Water Resources Policy Commission, Spokane Conference" 1950 June 18 / 12 "Statement on the Economy of Montana Prepared for the Montana Citizens' Freight Rate Association" (before the Interstate Commerce Commission, Transcontinental-Mountain-Pacific Class Rate Investigation), by Harold J. Hoflich and Maxine Johnson 1954 February 18 / 13 Survey of new tourist attractions, aids, facilities (by municipality) 1955 18 / 14 "Testimony of Perry F. Roys, Director, Montana State Planning Board" (before the Interstate Commerce Commission re Montana economy) undated 18 / 15 "Travel Week" packet 1951 Clippings 18 / 16 Miscellaneous undated