John Daniell Papers mssDaniellj
Gayle Richardson
The Huntington Library
April 2020
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
reference@huntington.org
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: John Daniell papers
Creator:
Daniell, John, 1839-1898
Creator:
Daniell, John, 1875-1945
Identifier/Call Number: mssDaniellj
Physical Description:
4 Linear Feet
(29 volumes, 3 boxes, 1 oversize folder)
Date (inclusive): 1868-1945
Date (bulk): 1868-1923
Abstract: A collection of correspondence,
documents, and photographs related to the mining careers of John Daniell (1839-1898) and his
son, John Daniell (1875-1945).
Language of Material: Materials are in
English.
Conditions Governing Access
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at
the Huntington Library for more information.
Conditions Governing Use
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from
or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The
responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining
necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item]. John Daniell papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino,
California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchased from Mr. and Mrs. Earl Wiitanen, January 1973.
Biographical / Historical
John Daniell, Sr. (1839-1898) came to the United States from Cornwall, England, in 1863. He
supervised a gold mine in California for a brief time but was superintendent of a group of
copper mines in Michigan's Lake Superior region from 1872 to 1894; the mines were owned by
the Boston investment firm of A. S. Bigelow and Joseph Clark. In addition to developing the
Michigan mines, Daniell also made consulting trips to Montana and Arizona for his firm. His
advice led to their investment in mines which were later amalgamated to form the Anaconda
Copper Mining Company of Montana. John Daniell, Jr. (1875-1945), graduated with a B.S. and
E.M. from the Michigan School of Mines. He worked for the Franklin Mining Company from 1899
to 1904; Badger Lead and Zinc, Wolverine, Superior and Great Lakes Copper from 1907 to 1910.
From 1910 to 1913 he was in Finland with the Finnish American Mining Company (graphite),
then in Arizona, Oregon, and Virginia City (Montana) where he managed the J. H. and W.B.
Millard Mining Company, during the years 1922 to 1923.
Scope and Contents
The collection consists of 790 items from 1868 to 1945; it includes correspondence
(including 29 letter books), documents, and photographs related to the career of John
Daniell, Sr. (1839-1898) and his son, mining engineer John Daniell, Jr. (1875-1945).
Subjects include: the operation and development of the Michigan mines and related railroads;
labor conditions; the activities of rival companies; mining finance; stock market
speculations; and national and international mining syndicates. There is also some
information on mining in Arizona and Montana. Over 500 letters in the collection addressed
to John Daniell, Sr. are chiefly from Albert S. Bigelow and officers of the Bigelow-Clark
Syndicate in Boston, Massachusetts. Three letter books and correspondence belonging to John
Daniell, Jr. (1875-1945) are chiefly concerned with mining in Finland, Arizona, and Montana,
where the younger Daniell worked as a mining engineer from 1899 to 1923.
Processing Information
Processed by Huntington Library Staff, circa 1975. In 2020, Gayle Richardson created the
finding aid derived from a legacy in-house summary report.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in the following series: 1. Bound volumes; 2. Correspondence and
documents; 3. Photographs.
General
Former call number: mssDaniell papers.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Copper mines and mining --
Michigan
Copper mines and mining --
Montana
Mines and mineral resources --
Arizona
Mines and mineral resources -- Finland
Mines and mineral resources --
Michigan
Mines and mineral resources --
Montana
Mining corporations -- Montana
Mining engineers -- Montana
Documents -- United States -- 19th century
Documents -- United States -- 20th century
Letter books -- United States -- 19th century
Letter books -- United States -- 20th century
Letters (correspondence) -- United States -- 19th century
Letters (correspondence) -- United States -- 20th century
Photographs -- United States -- 19th century
Photographs -- United States -- 20th century
Bigelow, Alfred S.
Volumes
1868-1923
Physical Description: 1 Linear
Feet(29 volumes)
Volume 1-26
John Daniell (1839-1898): journals, copy books, and letter books
1868-1894
Volume 27-29
John Daniell (1875-1945): Letter books
1910-1923
John Daniell (1839-1898): correspondence and documents
1872-1894
Physical Description: 1 Linear
Feet(2 boxes)
Box 1, Folder 1-6
Correspondence and documents
1872-1889
Box 2, Folder 1-5
Correspondence and documents
1890-1894
John Daniell (1875-1945): correspondence and documents
1900-1945
Physical Description: 1 Linear
Feet(1 box)
Box 2, Folder 6-12
Correspondence and documents
1900-1945
Photographs
undated
Physical Description: 1 Linear
Feet(1 box, 1 oversize
folder)
Box 3
Photograph of John Daniell (1839-1898)?; 29 photographs, probably of the
Finnish American Mining Company, Orijarvi, Risko, Finland
undated
Folder 1
7 oversize photographs, probably of the Finnish American Mining Company,
Orijarvi, Risko, Finland.
undated
