Deseret Live Stock Company records
Collection
Identifier: MS 0105
Scope and Contents
The Deseret Live Stock Company records (1886-1958) consist of legal documents, financial papers, correspondence, subject files, minutes, and other materials. The Deseret Live Stock Company was formed in 1891 by several northern Utah sheep ranchers to promote "stock raising, slaughtering, butchering, mercantile business, and other commercial enterprises in the Territory of Utah and other states in the U.S."
Items donated to the collection include various legal papers from James D. Moyle; legal papers from the law firm of McKay, Burton, McMurray, and Thruman; and two short articles written about the company. In arranging this collection an effort was made to follow the original order, where possible. However, some minor reorganization was necessary in a few instances.
The Deseret Live Stock Company's subject files constitute the first major section of the collection. These cover a wide range of subjects, including correspondence, maps, reports, and receipts. Each folder had been given a title and then filled with those items the company wished to keep together. The original folder composition and order have been maintained where feasible. The papers where filed in simple chronological order with no effort made to alphabetize them within the folders.
Correspondence comprises the next portion of the collection and includes papers for the years 1901 to 1946. These papers were found d in bundles scattered about in shipping boxes and were not filed according to subject content, therefore, kept separate from the correspondence contained in the subject files. The correspondence is arranged in simple chronological order.
The collection's next section, the financial papers, consists mainly of receipts and statements from firms doing business with the company. Although there are a few items for the years 1893 to 1941, the bulk of the papers are receipts for the year 1951. These have been alphabetized within the year.
Legal documents constitute a fourth division of the collection. These papers are primarily deeds, contracts, and miscellaneous documents created by the company and several of its subsidiaries during the years 1886 to 1943.
The miscellaneous papers are those items not included in any other group of papers and could not clearly be assigned to any of the other categories. Often these items were found loosely scattered about in shipping boxes. An effort was made to arrange them in chronological order where possible.
The minutes in the collection include bound books and loose pages recording the meetings of the Deseret Live Stock Company and some of its subsidiary or predecessor companies. These latter companies were the Echo Land and Stock Company, the Bountiful Livestock Company, and the Chapman Canal Company. The minutes mostly record the activities of either the stockholders of the board of directors.
Also in the collection are assorted record books. These include field notebook, account book, and stock certificate books. Two of the stock certificate books belonged to the Echo Land and Stock Company.
The addendum consists mainly of legal documents concerning federal land leases, water rights, and miscellaneous stockholders papers.
Items donated to the collection include various legal papers from James D. Moyle; legal papers from the law firm of McKay, Burton, McMurray, and Thruman; and two short articles written about the company. In arranging this collection an effort was made to follow the original order, where possible. However, some minor reorganization was necessary in a few instances.
The Deseret Live Stock Company's subject files constitute the first major section of the collection. These cover a wide range of subjects, including correspondence, maps, reports, and receipts. Each folder had been given a title and then filled with those items the company wished to keep together. The original folder composition and order have been maintained where feasible. The papers where filed in simple chronological order with no effort made to alphabetize them within the folders.
Correspondence comprises the next portion of the collection and includes papers for the years 1901 to 1946. These papers were found d in bundles scattered about in shipping boxes and were not filed according to subject content, therefore, kept separate from the correspondence contained in the subject files. The correspondence is arranged in simple chronological order.
The collection's next section, the financial papers, consists mainly of receipts and statements from firms doing business with the company. Although there are a few items for the years 1893 to 1941, the bulk of the papers are receipts for the year 1951. These have been alphabetized within the year.
Legal documents constitute a fourth division of the collection. These papers are primarily deeds, contracts, and miscellaneous documents created by the company and several of its subsidiaries during the years 1886 to 1943.
The miscellaneous papers are those items not included in any other group of papers and could not clearly be assigned to any of the other categories. Often these items were found loosely scattered about in shipping boxes. An effort was made to arrange them in chronological order where possible.
The minutes in the collection include bound books and loose pages recording the meetings of the Deseret Live Stock Company and some of its subsidiary or predecessor companies. These latter companies were the Echo Land and Stock Company, the Bountiful Livestock Company, and the Chapman Canal Company. The minutes mostly record the activities of either the stockholders of the board of directors.
Also in the collection are assorted record books. These include field notebook, account book, and stock certificate books. Two of the stock certificate books belonged to the Echo Land and Stock Company.
The addendum consists mainly of legal documents concerning federal land leases, water rights, and miscellaneous stockholders papers.
Dates
- 1886-1958
Creator
- Deseret Live Stock Company (Organization)
Language of Materials
Collection materials are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.
Conditions Governing Use
The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.
Organizational History
In January of 1891 several prominent sheep ranchers in northern Utah joined together to form the Deseret Live Stock Company in order to promote "stock raising, slaughtering, butchering, mercantile business, and other commercial enterprises in the Territory of Utah and other states of the U.S." The newly organized company--consisting of over 28,000 sheep, a few horses, and miscellaneous equipment--was valued at $90,000. In all there were ninety-five investors in the enterprise, however, control of the company rested principally in the hands of the Moss and Hatch families.
The company prospered, and after only six months of operation declared a ten percent cash dividend to stockholders. As profits climbed, the company enlarged its sheep herd to more than 50,000 and also began raising cattle as well. The increase in livestock was accompanied by an increase in the purchase of land for grazing, lambing, shearing, and raising crops. Numerous purchases of land were made in Utah's Rich and Morgan counties from the Union Pacific Railroad, the State of Utah, and private individuals.
The greatest period of land acquisition occurred following America's entry in World War I. Due to the demand for wool, beef, and mutton by the government, the Deseret Live Stock Company reaped massive profits, making available large amounts of money which was in turn used to purchase several needed ranches in 1917 and 1918. The first purchase was that of the Iosepa Ranch in Skull Valley. This property cost $150,000 and provided land for agricultural purposes, as well as giving the company a base for its winter operations. The company next bought out one of its neighbors along the Wyoming border, paying $275,000 for the holdings of the Neponset Land and Livestock Company. This provided Deseret Live Stock with a number of acres of irrigated farm land as well as a large ranch house. Before the ink was barely dry on the Neponset contract, the company bought the property of Thomas Jones for $250,000. This acquisition expanded the Deseret Live Stock lands into Wyoming for the first time. These and other purchases made the company the largest land-owning ranch in the state, with a total of 220,000 acres under its control.
The merchandizing efforts of the Deseret Live Stock Company were centered primarily at Woods Cross, Utah, where a company store was established. The store opened for business in 1891 in order to supply the needs of the company, its stockholders, and the public. Operating under the motto "If we haven't got it, we'll get it," the store returned profits regularly for over thirty years. However, in the 1920s problems developed and profits shrank. The store's decline was attributed to poor management and the overextension of credit, especially to stockholders and their families. Company officials belatedly replaced the manager in an effort to make the store a profitable operation, but all efforts proved fruitless. The store continued its downward slide, floundering in a sea of red ink until the Depression caused it to close its doors in 1933.
After years of high profits and regular dividends, the opening years of the 1930s wrought many changes upon the Deseret Live Stock Company. Seemingly overnight the bottom dropped out of the livestock industry, causing sheep and cattle to be valued at less than one-third their 1929 prices. From 1930 to 1938 the company was unable to pay dividends to it s stockholders, despite a drastic reduction in operating expenses. At this low point in the company's history several dominant figures among the directors passed away and a new general manager, Walter Dansie, was appointed. With the aid of government loans and the reduction of the sheep and cattle herds, Mr. Dansie was able to start the company along the road to financial recovery. It was not, however, until the coming of World War II and its resultant demand for wool, beef, and mutton, that the Deseret Live Stock Company began showing sizable profits and dividends once again.
Riding the wave of postwar prosperity, the Deseret Live Stock Company attempted to expand its operations and created the Deseret Salt Company. Unfortunately, the salt business proved unprofitable and was eventually abandoned by the parent organization. During the early 1950s the company lost its grazing rights to much of the government land it had been leasing near Dugway, Utah. This necessitated the purchase of property near Pilot Peak in eastern Nevada for a winter grazing area, spreading the company's holdings across three states. During this same period a "syndicate" of Utah businessmen bought up large quantities of the company's stock, and eventually gained control. The new board of directors continued to raise sheep and cattle on a large scale, but they were also interested in developing any mineral deposits on the property.
After two decades of continued prosperity, the syndicate attempted to sell their holdings in the Deseret Live Stock Company to the State of Utah for $8.5 million. The proposed sale created quite a controversy in the state, and after a stormy debate the bill was narrowly defeated in the state legislature. Following the state's refusal to buy, the company was soon sold to a foreign investor, Mr. Joseph Hotung, with the provision that the previous owners retain the mineral rights to most of the land. By 1976 it was determined that much of the company's property was located over potentially rich oil and gas reserves, and drilling operations were expected to tap large pools of oil.
The company prospered, and after only six months of operation declared a ten percent cash dividend to stockholders. As profits climbed, the company enlarged its sheep herd to more than 50,000 and also began raising cattle as well. The increase in livestock was accompanied by an increase in the purchase of land for grazing, lambing, shearing, and raising crops. Numerous purchases of land were made in Utah's Rich and Morgan counties from the Union Pacific Railroad, the State of Utah, and private individuals.
The greatest period of land acquisition occurred following America's entry in World War I. Due to the demand for wool, beef, and mutton by the government, the Deseret Live Stock Company reaped massive profits, making available large amounts of money which was in turn used to purchase several needed ranches in 1917 and 1918. The first purchase was that of the Iosepa Ranch in Skull Valley. This property cost $150,000 and provided land for agricultural purposes, as well as giving the company a base for its winter operations. The company next bought out one of its neighbors along the Wyoming border, paying $275,000 for the holdings of the Neponset Land and Livestock Company. This provided Deseret Live Stock with a number of acres of irrigated farm land as well as a large ranch house. Before the ink was barely dry on the Neponset contract, the company bought the property of Thomas Jones for $250,000. This acquisition expanded the Deseret Live Stock lands into Wyoming for the first time. These and other purchases made the company the largest land-owning ranch in the state, with a total of 220,000 acres under its control.
The merchandizing efforts of the Deseret Live Stock Company were centered primarily at Woods Cross, Utah, where a company store was established. The store opened for business in 1891 in order to supply the needs of the company, its stockholders, and the public. Operating under the motto "If we haven't got it, we'll get it," the store returned profits regularly for over thirty years. However, in the 1920s problems developed and profits shrank. The store's decline was attributed to poor management and the overextension of credit, especially to stockholders and their families. Company officials belatedly replaced the manager in an effort to make the store a profitable operation, but all efforts proved fruitless. The store continued its downward slide, floundering in a sea of red ink until the Depression caused it to close its doors in 1933.
After years of high profits and regular dividends, the opening years of the 1930s wrought many changes upon the Deseret Live Stock Company. Seemingly overnight the bottom dropped out of the livestock industry, causing sheep and cattle to be valued at less than one-third their 1929 prices. From 1930 to 1938 the company was unable to pay dividends to it s stockholders, despite a drastic reduction in operating expenses. At this low point in the company's history several dominant figures among the directors passed away and a new general manager, Walter Dansie, was appointed. With the aid of government loans and the reduction of the sheep and cattle herds, Mr. Dansie was able to start the company along the road to financial recovery. It was not, however, until the coming of World War II and its resultant demand for wool, beef, and mutton, that the Deseret Live Stock Company began showing sizable profits and dividends once again.
Riding the wave of postwar prosperity, the Deseret Live Stock Company attempted to expand its operations and created the Deseret Salt Company. Unfortunately, the salt business proved unprofitable and was eventually abandoned by the parent organization. During the early 1950s the company lost its grazing rights to much of the government land it had been leasing near Dugway, Utah. This necessitated the purchase of property near Pilot Peak in eastern Nevada for a winter grazing area, spreading the company's holdings across three states. During this same period a "syndicate" of Utah businessmen bought up large quantities of the company's stock, and eventually gained control. The new board of directors continued to raise sheep and cattle on a large scale, but they were also interested in developing any mineral deposits on the property.
After two decades of continued prosperity, the syndicate attempted to sell their holdings in the Deseret Live Stock Company to the State of Utah for $8.5 million. The proposed sale created quite a controversy in the state, and after a stormy debate the bill was narrowly defeated in the state legislature. Following the state's refusal to buy, the company was soon sold to a foreign investor, Mr. Joseph Hotung, with the provision that the previous owners retain the mineral rights to most of the land. By 1976 it was determined that much of the company's property was located over potentially rich oil and gas reserves, and drilling operations were expected to tap large pools of oil.
Extent
14 Linear Feet
Abstract
The Deseret Live Stock Company records (1886-1958) consist of legal documents, financial papers, correspondence, subject files, minutes, and other materials. The Deseret Live Stock Company was formed in 1891 by several northern Utah sheep ranchers to promote "stock raising, slaughtering, butchering, mercantile business, and other commercial enterprises in the Territory of Utah and other states in the U.S."
Separated Materials
Photographs were transferred to the Multimedia Division of Special Collections (P0105).
Processing Information
Processed by David L. Washburn in 1976 and 1991.
Creator
- Deseret Live Stock Company (Organization)
- Title
- Inventory of the Deseret Live Stock Company records, 1886-1958
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by David L. Washburn
- Date
- © 1976 (last modified: 2019)
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid encoded in English in Latin script.
Repository Details
Part of the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Repository
Contact:
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu