View XML QR Code

Henry Elling papers, 1864-1911

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Elling, Henry, 1842-1900.
Title
Henry Elling papers
Dates
1864-1911 (inclusive)
Quantity
55 linear feet
Collection Number
MC 262
Summary
Henry Elling was a banker in Virginia City, Montana, with extensive mercantile, mining, and ranching interests. Collection consists primarily of incoming correspondence (1864-1881). There is one outgoing letterpress book (1892), general ledgers (1873-1901), journals (1873-1901), miscellaneous financial records (1872-1880), and a property abstract volume (circa 1890). There are subgroups for Elling, Knight, and Company; Montanian Publishing Company; Silver Spring Grist Mill; William Elling; and Mary B. Elling.
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 open for research.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Return to Top

Biographical Note

Henry Elling was born in Germany on December 9, 1842. After the death of his parents when he was about 15, he emigrated to the United States with a younger brother. The two boys settled in Missouri to live with an older brother. While learning English, Henry supported himself working as a farm laborer. He then secured work in a mercantile business. In 1861 he moved to Levenworth, Kansas, and then followed the Colorado gold rush to Denver in 1862. He earned enough there as a clerk in a clothing business to purchase a stock of goods which he hauled by ox team to Virginia City, Montana Territory. He opened a store in October 1864. The following year he moved to Helena where he started another store and also dealt in gold dust. At first he did very well, but prices dropped and his business failed. He moved back to the Midwest to try to recoup his losses.

After several years in the Midwest, Elling returned to Virginia City, Montana. He at first opened a mercantile business, but after 1873 was predominantly a banker. He established the Banking House of Henry Elling, a private bank. His business was based on his personal evaluation of his customers and his extensive knowledge of gold dust. Many considered his loans rash, but his instincts usually served him well. He also helped organize banks in a number of other communities, including the Carbon County Bank in Red Lodge, the State National Bank of Miles City, the Bank of Fergus County, and the Union Bank and Trust Company of Helena. In 1899 Elling reorganized his Virginia City bank as the Elling State Bank. This bank continued to operate after Elling's death. under the management of S.R. Buford, Mary B. Elling, and Karl Elling.

In addition to his banking business, Elling maintaining his mercantile interests through partnerships with others. He was the "and Company" of S.R. Buford and Company. He was also a partner in the Elling and Buford ranch; the Elling and Hyndman flour mill; the Elling, Morris and Word quartz mill; the Elling, Hickman and Olds mining claim; the Elling, Knight and Buford hardware business; and others. In 1872 Elling became a partner in Ramsey, French and Company to build and operate the Silver Spring Grist Mill. The mill later was operated by a series of lessees.

Elling became one of the largest landowners in Madison County. An abstract of his property ownership covers 80 pages of a register. Included were extensive ranch and farm lands, mining claims, and city lots and buildings.

Fraternally, Henry Elling was a member of the Masons, the Knights Templar, the Ancient Order of United Workmen, and the Elks. Politically he was a Republican, but unlike his activist Democratic partner S.R. Buford, Elling refused to become involved in politics.

Henry Elling married Mary B. Cooley, daughter of W.A. Cooley, in 1870. The couple had ten children, seven of whom survived Elling. Henry Elling died of pneumonia on November 14, 1900, after an illness of only four days.

Return to Top

Content Description

Papers consist primarily of mixed personal and business incoming correspondence (1864-1881). The correspondents include relatives, friends, and business associates. Many of the letters discuss in considerable detail the operations of mines, mills, and other enterprises for which Elling's bank had provided the money. In addition, there is one outgoing letterpress book (March-July 1892); financial records (1872-1881), consisting of general ledgers (1873-1901), journals (1873-1901), collections, invoices, and receipts; and a bound volume (circa 1890) of Henry Elling's property ownership abstracts.

The collection also includes subgroups. Records for Henry Elling and Company, a Sheridan general mercantile business, include one ledger (1893-1894) and a small amount of incoming correspondence. Records of Elling, Knight and Company/Elling, Knight, and Buford/Elling and Knight a Virginia City hardware business, consist of two letterpress books (1892-1900), daybooks (1883-1910), general ledgers (1880-1910), journals (1885-1911), and miscellaneous financial records. Records of the Montanian Publishing Company; consist of scattered correspondence and account statements (1873-1878). Records of the Silver Spring Grist Mill consist of interoffice correspondence (1871-1880) and miscellaneous financial records, articles of copartnership, and a subject file on the building of the mill (1871). There are minor subgroups for William Elling, a nephew and for Mary B. Elling, Henry's wife.

Return to Top

Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of the Montana Historical Society Library & Archives. The Library & Archives does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collection. In some cases permission for use may require additional authorization from the copyright owners. For more information contact an archivist.

Preferred Citation

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

Return to Top

Administrative Information

Arrangement

Arranged by series. Some materila housed in Manuscript Volumes. See inventory below for more information.

Location of Collection

13:5-4

Location of Collection

149:1-7 (Volumes)

Processing Note

Processing Information:

The Henry Elling Papers are a portion of the manuscript material collected by Charles Bovey in Virginia City. Bovey and his staff intermingled the papers of Elling, S.R. Buford, Flora McNulty, and others, and arranged the correspondence by town of origin. The original provenance of the records was thus destroyed. The incoming correspondence to Henry Elling only covers the years 1872-1881. What may have become of later correspondence is unknown.

Many of the signatures on the letters are barely legible. Some names in this inventory may be misspelled. Researchers should thus try a variety of possible spellings. All miscellaneous folders are filed at the end of that letter (e.g. "Ba" miscellaneous folder is filed after "Burton"). Towns from which correspondents are writing are enclosed in brackets after the name. Towns are in Montana unless stated otherwise.

Acquisition Information

Acquisition information available upon request

Return to Top

Detailed Description of the Collection

Detailed Description of the Collection

Finding aid prepared by MHS staff. Updated in 2023 by Aaron Rau.
2004

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

About Creative Commons Licenses in Archives West