Harold F. Silver was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on March 15, 1901. He attended Columbia University and the University of Utah, after which he became a prominent inventor, businessman, civic leader, and philanthropist in Denver, Colorado. He won numerous awards for both business and service, and held posts on many boards and committees. Inventions to his credit include a nonflammable dry cleaning process; sugar beet piling equipment; the first successful continuous coal mining machine; and the first successful continuous diffusion extraction process for beet and cane sugar.
The Harold F. Silver papers (1941-1998) contains invoices, bills, and other financial records of the Silver Corporation, of which Harold F. Silver was the president, as well as letters requesting his philanthropic support, from 1956-1985. The bulk of the collection consists of documents related to the sale to American Factors Associates Limited of Silver's patents for inventions in the sugar manufacturing industry. These include correspondence, memos, lists of closing papers, drafts of contracts, assignments, certificates, exhibits, and agreements. The collection also contains a book of engineering schematics for a continuous coal mining machine designed by Silver and built by Silver Engineering Works, Inc (1941-1946). For boxes 4-77, Leonard Arrington and John R. Alley used these materials to write Silver's biography. The material has been loosely organized into eight groups. The first group, housed in boxes 4-11, holds a variety of documents regarding stock statistics, taxes (other than income tax), life insurance, and relationships with the First National Bank of Denver. Boxes 12-17 hold Silver' correspondence and documents regarding his Markedex stock system. A variety of "Old Company Records" and other documents regarding the Silver Corp. are in boxes 18-28. Documents regarding the Silver Corp.'s relations with American Factors, Ltd., including those concerned with litigation involving the two companies, are held in boxes 29-39. Harold Silver's paid invoices are in boxes 40-44, while paid invoices for the Silver Corp. are in boxes 45-48. Boxes 49-61 hold information regarding the Markedex system and the Silver Stock Index. Pension plan and custody account documents are in boxes 62-67, and boxes 68-69 hold miscellaneous newsletters and other publications of concern to the Silver Corp.'s activities. Finally, a variety of ledgers and computer data printouts are in boxes 70-76. Boxes 77-78 are unprocessed.
Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.
The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s
Collection Name, Collection Number, Box Number, Folder Number. Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, The University of Utah.
Boxes 1-3 were donated in 1995. Boxes 4-76 were donated in 1997. Boxes 77-78 were donated in 1998.
Processed by Rebecca Airmet in 1996.
Addendum processed by Mark Jensen in 1998.
This folder contains correspondence, memos, bills, and notes concerning the lease held on 15th Floor First National Bank Building in Denver, as well as a newspaper clipping on the building boom in Denver.
This folder contains correspondence requesting assistance from the Mental Health Association of Colorado, IALAC Children's Center (Montessori Preschool), Need Foundation Incorporated, Options Incorporated, and the Technical Assistance Center.
This folder contains correspondence, service agreements, and invoices from International Business Machines.
This box contains drafts of agreements and exhibits concerning the sale of patents and other assests belonging to the Silver Corporation to American Factors Limited.
This folder contains correspondence, memos, contracts, assignments, exhibits, agreements, lists of closing papers, and other documents concerning the same sale to American Factors Limited.
This folder contains copies of certificates of agreement, schedules, correspondence, lists of closing papers, assignments, and other papers concerning the same sale to American Factors Limited. The folder also contains three certificates, the first from New Mexico stating incorporation as a foreign corporation, the second a license to do business in the state of Utah, and the third a license to do business in the state of Idaho.
This folder contains drafts and versions of contracts and exhibits concerning the sale of assets to American Factors Limited. Included is a letter concerning Harold F. Silver's nomination for an award from the National Association of Manufacturers as well as a professional biography.
This box contains engineering drawings and specifications of the continuous coal mining machine invented and designed by Harold F. Silver and produced by Silver Engineering Works Incorporated.