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J. Henry Strachan letterpress copybook.
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Title:
J. Henry Strachan letterpress copybookJohn Henry Strachan letterpress copybook
Creator/Contributor:
Strachan, J. Henry, 1847-, creator, correspondent.Creator/Contributor:
Smith, Francis Marion, 1846-1931, correspondent.Abstract:
Letterpress copybook of J. Henry Strachan in his role as superintendant of Francis Marion Smith's mining company, Teels Marsh
Borax Mining Company, containing letters dated from July 9, 1887 to August 24, 1890. All letters are signed by J. Henry Strachan
and include correspondence, invoices, reports, supply orders, operational details, etc.
Date:
1887 (issued)Subject:
n-us-ca -- n-us-nvBorax mines and mining -- California
Borax mines and mining -- Nevada
Borax -- Mines et extraction -- Californie
Borax -- Mines et extraction -- Nevada
Borax mines and mining
California
Nevada
Teels Marsh Borax Company.
Pacific Coast Borax Company.
Pacific Coast Borax Company.
Strachan, J. Henry -- 1847- -- Correspondence
Smith, Francis Marion -- 1846-1931 -- Correspondence
Smith, Francis Marion -- 1846-1931
Note:
Gift Of Suzy Green ; 2017.
Related collection: Pacific Coast Borax Company letters (BANC MSS 2004/425 c).
John Henry Strachan (born July 1847 in New York ; date of death unknown in Alameda, California) was the general manager for
Francis Marion Smith's borax mining operations. In 1887, Strachan was sent to California to oversee Smith's expansion of operations
helping to form the Pacific Coast Borax Company in 1890.
The Pacific Coast Borax Company history begins in Mineral County, Nevada, east of Mono Lake where, in 1872, a goldminer by
the name of Francis Marion Smith spotted Teels Marsh while looking westward from the upper slopes of Miller Mountain where
the only nearby trees were growing. Smith and two assistants visited Teels Marsh and collected samples that proved to assay
higher than any known sources for borate. Smith and his helpers staked claims and laid the foundation for his career as a
borax miner. Mining operations began under the name, Smith and Storey Brothers Borax Co. The Storey brothers interests were
subsequently acquired in 1873 and the name was shortened to Smith Brothers Borax Co. and then changed to Teels Marsh Borax
Company in circa 1884. In 1888, Smith acquired W.T. Coleman's bankrupt California borax holdings and formed the Pacific Coast
Borax Company in 1890.
J. Henry Strachan letterpress copybook, BANC MSS 2017/249, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
In English.
Type:
letterpress copybooks.Personal correspondence.
Physical Description:
print
1 (500 31 x 26 cm
Language:
English