Utah Construction Company/Bowman Collection, 1890-1945
P0328

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Scope and Content:

The Utah Construction Company/Bowman photograph collection consists of 422 photographs most of which were removed from Bowman family scrapbooks. Part of the images document daily ranch life including herding cattle and sheep, harvesting hay, working on machinery, and recreational activities on the San Jacinto and other company owned ranches in northern Nevada and southern Idaho. Also included are scenes of ranch buildings, irrigation, and water works such as the Salmon Creek Falls Dam and the Milner diversion dam. The second part of the collection consists of photos from around Susanville, California taken by P.J. Thompson during the construction of the Fernley-Lassen branch of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1913 and 1914.

Historical Note:

Utah Construction Company.
Edmund O., William H., and Warren L. Wattis founded the Utah Construction Company in January 1900, in Ogden, Utah. Early investors such as David Eccles, Thomas D. Dee, and James Pingree helped it to become a major national (and later international) company. Much of its early work consisted of building the South Pacific Railroad but the company also branched out into ranching and dam building. In addition to being one of five companies that built Hoover Dam in the 1930s they also worked on the Grand Coulee, Pineview, Hetch Hetchy, and Wanship Dams. During WWII the Utah Construction Company completed many World War II defense contracts. After the war it became involved with mining (coal and iron), dredging, and land development. Changing their name to the Utah Construction and Mining Company, and then to Utah International, Inc., headquarters were relocated to San Francisco, California. Much of the mining was conducted in Peru and Australia, and in 1976 a friendly take over by General Electric led to another sale to Broken Hill Proprietary (an Australian company) in 1983.

Company Owned Ranches.
In 1868 a Texas cattleman named John Sparks brought a herd of Texas Longhorns into Northeast Nevada. By partnering with neighboring ranchers and buying out others, Sparks managed to create a huge, successful operation. In 1908 the ranch owned three major brands: the Shoesole, Winecup, and HD. Sparks sold the ranch (which ran east to the Minidoka Forest Reserve, west to Bruneau, Idaho, north to the Snake River, and south to the Great American Desert, Nevada) to the Vineyard Land and Stock Company. The Utah Construction Company then purchased the ranch and increased the holdings to 3 million acres. The acreage was divided into 38 ranches and occupied most of the Northeast corner of Nevada as well as parts of Utah and Idaho. The ranch was headquartered in Montello, Nevada and would be managed by Archie (A.W.) Bowman. Bowman lived at San Jacinto located thirty miles south of Rogerson, Idaho. In 1945 the Company's ranch holdings were sold to Wilkins and Wunderlich of Denver, Colorado, and eventually divided into smaller lots for resale.

Biographical Note:

Archibald Warren Bowman (1884-1967) was born on October 8th in South Weber, Utah. In 1919 he met Nora Linjer (born August 28, 1893 in Alexandria, Minnesota), a schoolteacher friend of his sister Verna. The two married on February 20, 1920 in River Falls, Wisconsin while he was the Superintendent of the San Jacinto Ranch. They would have one daughter, Verna Lou. After the ranch was sold in 1945 they moved to Elko, Nevada. Archie died in January 1967 in Salt Lake City and Nora passed away in March 1973.

Provenance:

Donated by Nora Linjer Bowman and Anthony Will Bowman.

Researcher Note:

Before the photo albums came to Special Collections & Archives, old photographs were ripped out and replaced with new images leaving the torn remnants behind.

References.
Bowman, N. J., (1958) Only the Mountains Remain.
The University of Utah, Media Solutions website at: http://www.media.utah.edu/UHE/u/UTAHCONSTRUCTION.html.
File MS678, Report on the Utah Construction Co. Ranch located in Nevada and Southern Idaho, Utah State University, Special Collections & Archives, Merrill Library.

Register completed by Jennifer Feik and Daniel Davis, December 2003.

Inventory:

Box 1.
Folder One. Ranch Scenes
1:01:01. Branding sheep.
1:01:02. Unknown man and woman on horses w/pack mules.
1:01:03. Cow herd in snow.
1:01:04. Cattle in corrals.
1:01:05. View of ranch land.
1:01:06. Sheep herders.
1:01:07. Flood conditions, Ridge Ranch, March 18, 1939.
1:01:08. Unknown man with horse, ca. 1930s.
1:01:09. View of ranch buildings.
1:01:10. Cattle.
1:01:11-13. Cattle on range.
1:01:14. Cow camp.
1:01:15. Cattle on range.
1:01:16-17. Horse.
1:01:18-19. Ranch land.
1:01:20. Cattle grazing.
1:01:21. Mules.
1:01:22. Cattle grazing.
1:01:23. Rounding up cattle.
1:01:24-25. Pack trip in the Humboldt Reserve, ca. 1929.
1:01:26-28. Trees and mountains.
1:01:29-30. Bulls.
1:01:31-34. Cattle.
1:01:35-36. Cattle run.
1:01:37-38. Cattle.
1:01:39. Three unidentified people on horseback.
1:01:40. Horse and dog on top of Gollifer Mountain.
1:01:41. Cow outfit bedded down.
1:01:42. Catching horses in rope corral.
1:01:43. Bill Evans on horse.
1:01:44. Bill Trotter on horse.
1:01:45. Men in camp.
1:01:46. Rounding up horses.
1:01:47. Cowboys.
1:01:48. Cattle.
1:01:49. Record Bluff near Montello, Nevada.
1:01:50-51. Ranch buildings, probably San Jacinto.
1:01:52. Cowboy cook.
1:01:53. Large "dust devil" (twister).
1:01:54. Goose Creek Ford.
1:01:55. Formation near Record Bluff.
1:01:56. Henry Harris, ca. 1890s.
1:01:57. Cattle.
1:01:58. Man with horses.
1:01:59-60. Horses.
1:01:61. Man pointing.

Folder Two. Photo Album Pages
1:02:01. Horses.
1:02:02. Two horses.
1:02:03. Potatoes.
1:02:04-05. Houses.
1:02:06. Unknown man.
1:02:07. Cattle.
1:02:08. View of ranch.
1:02:09-12. Cowboys.
1:02:13. Horse.
1:02:14-19. Cowboys.
1:02:20-21. Unidentified man.
1:02:22. Cowboys.
1:02:23. Horse on range.
1:02:24-26. Cowboys.
1:02:27. Horses.
1:02:28. Cowboy.
1:02:29-31. People, horses, and cars in snow.
1:02:32-33. Cattle (sugar beet factory in distance).
1:02:34-35. Cowboys.
1:02:36-38. Ranch land.
1:02:39-42. Cowboys.
1:02:43. Horses.
1:02:44. Utah Construction Company building, Montello, Nevada.
1:02:45. Cowboys.
1:02:46. Horse.
1:02:47-48. Cowboys.
1:02:49-51. Ranch views, with buildings.
1:02:52-55. Cowboys.
1:02:56-57. Cows.
1:02:58. Man with hogs.
1:02:59. Man with horse.
1:02:60. Calves.
1:02:61-68. Cattle in Nevada, 1918.
1:02:69-70. Houses.
1:02:71. Montello Nevada train depot, ca. 1918.
1:02:72. Dirt Road.
1:02:73-75. Horses.
1:02:76-78. Unloading sheep from train.
1:02:79. Man and woman with Coyote skins, ca. 1920s.
1:02:80. Newspaper article about the ranch being sold. April 5, 1945.

Folder Three. Photos Removed from Scrapbook.
1:03:01. 280 men shoveling 6 ft. of snow for Fernley-Lassen branch of South Pacific railroad, duplicate of 1:04:17, 1913-1914.
1:03:02. Flooded fields, May 15, 1917.
1:03:03. Trailing cattle from Rancho Grande to San Jacinto.
1:03:04. Cows.
1:03:05. Sheep.
1:03:06. Cattle.
1:03:07. Unidentified man with axe.
1:03:08. Unidentified woman, ca. 1918.
1:03:09. Unidentified man with three unidentified women, ca. 1918.
1:03:10. Unidentified man on roof.
1:03:11. Unidentified man.
1:03:12-13. Unidentified fisherman.
1:03:14. Unidentified woman, ca. 1925.
1:03:15. Family swimming in mountains, ca. 1920s.
1:03:16. Three unidentified women, one unidentified man, ca. 1930s.
1:03:17. Three women, two men, ca. 1926
1:03:18. Cyanotype of haying scene.

Folder Four. Photos Removed from Boards. (Photos probably taken by P.J. Thompson)
1:04:01. San Jacinto Cowboys: Dennie Lane, Gib Jones on "Red," Dave Richards, ___Galerrica, Eddie Frank, Bill Bailey, Willis Drake, Lonnie White, 1918.
1:04:02. San Jacinto cattle in fields, 1920s.
1:04:03. Steam shovel working on Fernley-Lassen branch of South Pacific Railroad near Susanville, California. depot.
1:04:04. Railroad construction near Susanville, California. Feb. 1914.
1:04:05. 20 mule train hauling freight, 1913
1:04:06. 20 mule train hauling freight in Susanville, California for Fernley-Lassen Branch of South Pacific Railroad, see A-1401.
1:04:07. Steam shovel in operation near Susanville, CA. Working on Fernley-Lassen Branch of South Pacific Railroad.
1:04:08. Steam engine.
1:04:09. Fork in Fernley-Lassen Branch of Railroad, Feb. 1914.
1:04:10. Work crew on Fernley-Lassen Branch of South Pacific railroad, 1914.
1:04:11. Railroad construction work train; Fernley-Lassen Branch, 1914.
1:04:12. Railroad construction on Fernley-Lassen Branch near the summit.
1:04:13. Laying track near Susanville, California, for Fernley-Lassen Branch, Feb. 1914.
1:04:14. Railroad construction, clearing snow for Fernley-Lassen branch of South Pacific.
1:04:15. Shoveling snow for construction of Fernley-Lassen branch of South Pacific, near Susanville, California.
1:04:16. Fernley-Lassen branch of South Pacific Railroad. Shoveling snow near Susanville, California, 1914.
1:04:17. 280 men shoveling 6 ft. of snow for Fernley-Lassen branch of South Pacific railroad, 1913-1914.
1:04:18. "Solitude," Trees in the snow.
1:04:19. Steam shovel in operation near Susanville, California, for Fernley-Lassen branch of South Pacific.
1:04:20. Susanville, California, construction on Fernley-Lassen branch of South Pacific Railroad, 1913.

Box 2.
Scrapbook of scenes of the San Jacinto Ranch.
2:01. Hereford cattle on the range.
2:02. Chuck wagon and bed wagon.
2:03. Hereford cattle at trough.
2:04. Hereford cattle on the range.
2:05. Cow camp.
2:06. Tent.
2:07. Three unidentified people eating.
2:08-09. Two women and one man working on harvester(?) labeled "Red River Special."
2:10. Cow camp with wagon.
2:11. Donkey, "Pinto Jack."
2:12. Cow camp with wagon.
2:13. Sheep in corral with train in background.
2:14. Cowboys herding cattle on the range.
2:15. Cowboy with lasso and horses.
2:16. Interior of Bowman ranch house.
2:17-18. Hereford cattle on the range.
2:19. Cowboy driving sheep, duplicate of 2:56.
2:20. Hereford cattle in corral.
2:21. Cat with kittens.
2:22-23. Hereford cattle.
2:24. Two men and one woman standing by Hotel in Contact Nevada, ca. 1918.
2:25. Bowman ranch house.
2:26. Trailing cattle in snow, duplicate of 1:03:03 and A-1399b.
2:27-28. Hereford cattle.
2:29. Loading Hereford cattle onto boxcars.
2:30. Branding, Ray Wattis, duplicate of A-1399d.
2:31-34. Family camping trip, ca. 1918.
2:35. Windmill.
2:36-37. Family camping trip, ca. 1918.
2:38. Man in car, ca. 1918.
2:39. Car stuck in ditch, ca. 1918.
2:40. Trough and corral.
2:41. Roping a horse.
2:42. Measuring water flow, San Jacinto, Nevada, 1919.
2:43. Salmon Dam, Idaho, ca. 1912.
2:44. Dipping Cattle.
2:45. View of canyon below Salmon Dam.
2:46-47. Salmon Dam, ca. 1912.
2:48. Sheep on range.
2:49. Ranch land.
2:50. Side of house with trees in winter.
2:51. Cowboys sleeping.
2:52. Mules feeding on hay.
2:53. Pigs being fed by hand.
2:54. Roping a colt.
2:55. Cowboy on horse.
2:56. Cowboy driving sheep, duplicate of 2:19.
2:57. Cowboy.
2:58. Corral and troughs.
2:59. Hereford cattle on the range.
2:60. Two women on fence.
2:61. Three women with dead sage grouse in Nevada, ca. 1918.
2:62. Four men and three women in camp, ca. 1918.
2:63. Wagon team crossing water.
2:64. Cattle on the range.
2:65. Camp.
2:66. Cowboys on horses.
2:67. Wild horse roundup.
2:68. Cookhouse and dining room.
2:69. Bowman ranch house.
2:70. Horses in corral.
2:71. Hereford cattle in snow.
2:72-74. Hereford cattle on range.
2:75. Malad river Canyon, Hagerman, Idaho.
2:76. Paynie Ferry.
2:77. Milner Diversion Dam, Idaho.
2:78. Thousand Springs, Idaho.
2:79. View of Milner(?) Dam.
2:80. Man by Milner(?) Canal.
2:81. Hereford cattle in corral.
2:82-83. Views of Milner Diversion Dam.
2:84. Hereford cattle on the range.
2:85. Coyote pelts.
2:86. Cattle in snow.
2:87. Hops covered bunk house with three unidentified people outside.
2:88. Three cowboys and wagon.
2:89. Mountian view.
2:90. cowboys and cattle on range.
2:91. Cowboy roping calf.
2:92. Cowboy in corral.
2:93-96. Cattle on the range.
2:97. View of small ranch.
2:98-100. Cowboys pushing cattle.
2:101. Cowboys and horses.
2:102-104. Cattle on the range.
2:105. Interior of Bowman's San Jacinto ranch house.
2:106. Longhorn cattle in corral.
2:107. Interior of Bowman's San Jacinto ranch house.
2:108. Cattle drive to loading pens, Tecoma, Nevada, 1920.
2:109. Flooding.
2:110. Dipping cattle, 1920.
2:111. Interior of Bowman ranch house.
2:112. Men and women in mountains with horses and pack-mules.
2:113. Two men sitting on car.
2:114. Girl with two dead grouse, ca. 1919.
2:115. Two men with string of trout.
2:116. Young boy with baby pig.
2:117. Changing horse shoes.
2:118. Bunk house.
2:119-120. Ranch houses.
2:121. Turkeys in pen.
2:122. Three women, ca. 1919.
2:123. Two cowgirls.
2:124. Unidentified woman, ca. 1919.
2:125. Cattle on range.
2:126. Cowgirl.
2:127. Picnic lunch, ca. 1920.
2:128. Old man next to young boy on horse.
2:129. Young boy on horse.
2:130. Unidentified woman.
2:131. Cowgirl.
2:132. Young cowboy.
2:133. Group of people on horseback.
2:134. Girl on horse.
2:135. Two unknown women and one unknown man.
2:136. Man and horse.
2:137. Two unknown women and one unknown man.
2:138. Two colts.
2:139. Two colts and mother.
2:140. Angus cow.
2:141. Coyote.
2:142. Horse.
2:143. Young girl with dogs.
2:144. Man and woman.
2:145. Cowboy relaxing.
2:146. Cowboys in corral.
2:147. Chicken and turkeys.
2:148. Sheep in corral.
2:149-152. Cowboys loading cattle onto train.
2:153. Mock hold up.
2:154. Cowboy fun, spanking.
2:155. Three cowboys.
2:156. Calf in loading pen.
2:157. Man and women with dog and cat.
2:158. Dogs with dead wolf.
2:159. Outhouse.
2:160. Chickens next to house.
2:161. Sheep on the range.
2:162. Longhorn cattle in corral.
2:163. Man with gun and dead deer, "My 1918 Buck W.A.K."
2:164. Man sitting on chuckwagon.
2:165. Wagon and horses.
2:166. Camp scene.

Historic Photo-Board Collection.
San Jacinto Ranch
A-1389a-b. Butchering beef for winter, ca. 1920.
A-1389c. Shearing sheep, ca. 1920.
A-1390a. Verna Lou Bowman on tire swing.
A-1390b. Dennie Lane and Eddie Frank in a car, 1918.
A-1390c. Loading ice onto truck, 1918.
A-1390d. Car stuck in mud, 1918.
A-1391a. Man with horse, 1918.
A-1391b. Man holding dead bobcat, 1918.
A-1391c. Coyote pelts, 1918.
A-1391d. Horses in corral, 1918.
A-1392a. Trail Camp on cattle drive through Nevada, 1918.
A-1392b. Bed wagon on cattle drive through Nevada, 1918.
A-1392c. Cowboys shooting craps on cattle drive through Nevada, 1918.
A-1393. Branding Irons of the Utah construction Company San Jacinto Ranch, Wine cup and Shoe sole ranches, 1914-1946.
A-1396a-d. Interior of Bowman's San Jacinto ranch house, 1920s.
A-1397a. Wild horses in corrals, 1920s.
A-1397b. Loading pins at Tecoma, Nevada, 1920s.
A-1397c. Cattle drive to Tecoma, Nevada, 1920s.
A-1397d. Goshute Indians in camp, 1920s.
A-1398a. Montello, Nevada, Utah Construction Company Ranch headquarters, 1921.
A-1398b. Buggy at post office, San Jacinto, Nevada, 1917.
A-1398c. Post office at San Jacinto, Nevada, 1917.
A-1398d. Old freight stop (stone building), San Jacinto, Nevada, 1920s.
A-1399a. Roping cattle, 1920s.
A-1399b. Trailing herd through deep snow, 1920s.
A-1399c. Cattle dips, 1920s.
A-1399d. Branding, man without hat is Ray Wattis, 1920s.
A-1400a. Cowboy breaking a horse at San Jacinto, 1918.
A-1400b. Ray Wattis (foreground) watching cowboy break a horse, 1918.
A-1400c. Paul Jones bucked off while breaking a horse.
A-1680a. A.W. Bowman in field, 1918.
A-1680b. Bunk house, 1918.
A-1680c. Cook house with bells, 1918.
A-1681a. Shoeing horses in corral, 1918.
A-1681b. Loading ice in ice house, 1918.
A-1681c. Ranch buildings and equipment, 1918.
A-1684a. Man in mountains, 1920s.
A-1684b. "The U C Land & Cattle Co. 12 Mile Ranch," 1920s.
A-1684c. Ranch building, 1920s.
A-1688a. View of mountains, 1918.
A-1688b. Cars in snow, 1918.
A-1688c. Chuckwagon and cook, 1918.
A-1689a. Remuda, 1915.
A-1689b. Mules, 1915.
A-1689c. Cowboy on horse, 1915.
A-1690a. Drilling(?) equipment, 1920s.
A-1690b-c. A.W. Bowman's car in mountains, 1920s.
A-1690d. Cowboys eating with Chuckwagon, 1920s.
A-1694a-b. Coyote hides, 1920s.
A-1694c. Cattle in loading corrals at Tecoma, Nevada, school in background, 1920s.
A-1695a. Branding, 1918.
A-1695b. Goshute Indians in Canyon, 1918.
A-1695c. Trail camp, 1918.
A-1695d. Cowboy with lariat, 1918.
A-1697a-b. San Jacinto ranch buildings, 1918.
A-1697c. Reinforced banks of river-bed (Probably Salmon Falls Creek Nevada), 1918.
A-1698a. Cowboys, 1918.
A-1698b-c. Mules, "Pinto Jack," 1918.
A-1699a. Three Cowboys with lariats, 1918.
A-1699b. Unidentified northeast Nevada ranch, 1918.
A-1699c. San Jacinto Ranch buildings, Nevada, 1918.
A-1712a. Man with two-wheeled wagon, 1920s.
A-1712b. Wild horses in corral, 1920s.
A-1712c. Men feeding hogs, 1920s.
A-1712d. Butchering hogs, 1920s.

Utah Contruction Company
A-1403. The Holts Caterpillar; Susanville, California, photo by P.I. Thompson, 1913.
A-1420. Southern Pacific Railroad near Susanville, California, Fernley-Lassen Branch, photo by P.L. Thompson, 1913-1914.
A-1601. Susanville, California, scenic view, photo by P.L. Thompson, 1913.
A-1606. Hauling a Steam Boiler(?), ca. 1913.
A-1623. Mt. Lassen in Eruption, photo by P.J. Thompson, Aug. 22, 1914.

For more information: 435/797-2663; Photograph Librarian.
Special Collections & Archives, Merrill Library, Utah State University Libraries, Logan, Utah 84322-3000