Homestake Survey Records

Collection

Identifier: 5019

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection includes the records of surveys conducted by several departments of the Homestake Mining Company including the Surveying Office, Engineering Office, and the Timber Department as well as records from independent contractor surveys.

Series 1 Survey Field Notes and Computations consists of notes from land, mineral, timber, and water surveys. Computation books and triangulation sketches are also found in this series. Of particular note is a 1977 overview of the shorthand used in survey books. This series makes up the bulk of the collection.

Series 2 Survey Worksheet and Cards consists of several boxes of computer-generated data and worksheets of underground surveys, land survey triangulation cards, and drill hole surveys. The bulk of this collection dates from the mid-1970s to the early 1990s.

Series 3 Survey Correspondence, Reports, and Information Booklets consists of several folders of correspondence between the federal government and Homestake as well as internal communication dating from the late 1880s through 1999. Completed reports from companies carrying out surveys for the Homestake Mining Company as well as published works by Homestake employees can also be found in this series, with a focus on Induced Polarization and Magnetometer surveying.

Series 4 Aerial Surveys consists of aerial photographs taken by several different companies in the Black Hills areas of South Dakota and Wyoming. A large amount of material related to the H.M. Jenks v. Homestake Mining Company case is found in this series.

Dates

Majority of material found within Bulk, 1881-1993
1877-2001

Creator

Abrahams Aerial Survey Corp. (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is housed at the Homestake Adams Research and Cultural Center with no restrictions to access. The collection may be utilized during normal operating hours or by appointment.

Biographical / Historical

Mine surveying includes the measurement, calculation, and mapping of both the surface and underground levels to document information at all stages of the mining process (prospecting to profit). Founded in 1877 in Lead, South Dakota, Homestake Mining Company conducted surveys of different varieties for all 124 years of its operation.

Surface surveys were utilized to stake mining and timber claims, mark boundaries, determine grades for ditches, flumes, pipelines, and railroads, and set baselines. In November 1879 Richard Blackstone, the chief engineer for Homestake, established the baseline, coordinate, and triangulation systems that all subsequent surveys were based off.

Surveys were transferred from the surface to the underground levels either by creating a new tunnel or hanging wires down vertical shafts. When done correctly, the underground coordiants were then in relation to the surface boundaries and buildings. Homestake's extensive use of surveys meant that errors in measurements and coordinates rarely occurred.

The records of the earliest surveys were written in field books by the various surveyors and their crews who would then return to the office to carry out computations and create maps for use by the company. Usually, these men were part of the Engineering Office and had other tasks to complete beyond surveying. As Homestake continued to grow, the need for employees solely focused on surveying became apparent. The company developed a Survey Office with employees dedicated to going into the field to carry out surveys and employees dedicated to processing the information brought back from those surveys.

Technology and surveying equipment rapidly improved in the late 19th and early 20th century and Homestake began to utilize numerous new instruments and methods including aerial photography in the 1930s and technical programs such as Winsurv in the late 1980s. By the 1950s the company also began to hire survey companies on contract to complete surveys that were unusually large in scale, outside of the Black Hills area, or required specialized equipment.

Extent

59.46 Linear feet (57 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

The Homestake Survey Records are an artificial collection consisting primarily of survey and field books dating from 1877 to 1986. The collection also includes data and worksheets, survey cards, correspondence, and several aerial photographs.

Arrangement

This collection has been arranged into four series. Documents originally housed in binders have been rehoused for preservation purposes but retain their original labels. Whenever possible original order was maintained. Oversize items, some photographs, and fragile volumes have been housed separately from the collection and are described by separation notes.

Series 1 Survey Field Notes and Computations has been arranged into sub-series to reflect original order of the materials when received from Homestake Mining Company.

Sub-Series A Survey and Computation Books: These books have been arranged by the number given by Homestake. See box list for information.

Sub-Series B Survey Books and Fields: Items with alpha-numeric numbers from Homestake have been arranged in alpha-numeric order. Remaining items have been arranged by type and thereunder chronologically. See box list for more information.

Series 2 Survey worksheets and Cards: Items have been arranged by type and thereunder by level. See box list for more information.

Series 3: Correspondence, Reports, and Information Booklets: Items have been arranged by subject and thereunder chronologically. See box list for more information.

Series 4 Aerial photos: See box list for more information.

Related Materials

Additional archival materials related to the Homestake Survey Records can be found in the Homestake Mining Company Collection including the following: Homestake Map Collection, 5000 Homestake Vested Water Rights Collection, 5001 Homestake Mine Engineer Files, 5002 Homestake Timber Contracts Paperwork, 5018 Bureau of Mines Publications, Diamond Drill Records, Stope and Plug Records, Assay Records and James A. Noble maps.

Separated Materials

Separation notes within the collection describe items housed separately from the collection due to size or preservation issues. These include photographs, books, and maps.

Processing Information

This collection was processed March 2019 - July 2019 by Hannah Marshall Bawden. Assistance provided by Claudia Howell, Jim Petersen, and Randi Sue Smith.

An index of survey books describing their contents is available in Excel Spreadsheet format at the Homestake Adams Research Center.