#MA31
1899
Quarto (27,5x21,5 cm or 11x8,5 in). 2 pp. Black ink on bluish lined laid paper with the printed letterhead of the “Sumdum Mining Company. E. J. McCUTCHEN, President. H. T. Tripp, Superintendent. W. H. Payson, Secretary. Office 172 Crocker Building, San Francisco, Cal.” Fold marks, small ink stain in the lower part of the first page affecting two words, minor tear on fold, later pencil note on the first page, but overall a very good letter written in a legible hand.
A historically interesting Klondike Gold Rush-era private letter written on the official letterhead of Sumdum Mining Co. The firm, incorporated in San Francisco in the mid-1890s, bought, sold, and developed mines across the country. From 1895 to 1903, the company owned a Sumdum Chief Mine in Alaska (south of Juneau), producing over 24,000 ounces of gold and about the same amount of silver. The company abandoned the site in 1903 after the ore deposits were finally exhausted.
The letter, addressed to “Dear Folks at Home,” was written by one of the earliest Alaskan business owners and an executive-level employee of Sumdum Mining Co. on 23 September 1899.
In the text, the letter writer discusses his early mine-developing company, details the mine-selecting process, and complains about foul weather during his recent prospecting in the mountains. Importantly, the author also mentions his business partners, Sumdum’s pioneer entrepreneurs, H. T. Tripp and John C. Mcbride (1873-1933). At the time of the letter’s writing and until 1903, the two worked as superintendent and assistant superintendents at the Sumdum Mining Co. In the other passages, the author talks about being “full of hope,” his excellent health, and common acquaintances (including “The Boss”). Near the close, the letter writer invites his friends back home to Sumdum and complains about his hectic lifestyle, adding, “that’s the tenor of life up here, everyone is in a rush.”
Overall, a historically interesting original autograph manuscript letter, giving a vivid insight into the life of an early Alaskan business owner.
