University of Idaho
logo

Manuscript Group 187

BUNKER HILL COMPANY. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT DIVISION

Records, 1922-1982
8 cubic feet


The records of the Research and Development Division of the Bunker Hill Company were donated to the University of Idaho Library by the company between November 1986 and January 1987. They were processed by Judith Nielsen in February and March 1990.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE BUNKER HILL COMPANY

The Bunker Hill Company was founded following the discovery of the Bunker Hill Mine in 1885; it was incorporated in 1887. It grew from a strictly mining enterprise to a large industrial complex capable of carrying out every step in the production process from removing ore from the ground to fabricating finished metal products. The company was an important supplier of the nation's requirements for lead, zinc, silver, and cadmium. The lead smelter had the capacity to produce 135,000 tons of refined lead per year, or 17% of the U.S. capacity, while the electrolytic zinc plant produced 104,000 tons, or 14% of the U.S. capacity. The company also produced over 9 million troy ounces of silver, over one million pounds of refined cadmium, and a variety of by-products including 1000 ounces of refined gold. In 1968 Bunker Hill merged with Gulf Resources.

SCOPE AND CONTENT

The records of the Bunker Hill Research and Development Division span the years 1922 to 1982, with the bulk of the material covering the years 1945 to 1975.

The papers include brochures issued by the company, organizational manuals, reports on various research and development projects, papers dealing with Washington Water Power requests for rate increases, drawings of plant flow sheets, aerial views of the plant and smelter, and visitors registers.

Two other Bunker Hill groups in the University of Idaho Special Collections Library are MG 130 and MG 188, both of which deal with the mining aspects of the company and contain legal documents relating to mining claim litigations.

ARRANGEMENT AND DESCRIPTION

Most of the papers in this record group were in labeled file folders or three ring notebooks, but were in no discernible order. Therefore, while folder and notebook headings were retained, a series order was imposed during processing. The folders in each series are in alphabetical order and the original order of the material is maintained throughout.

The first series contains material concerning the overall organization of the division, including budget manuals, policies manuals, supervisors manuals, and work rules.

The second series, or research files, is divided into two subseries, one is the material that was originally in file folders, the second is the material originally contained in notebooks. Most items in this series deal with the operation of the plant, and various experiments performed. There is a section on patent applications, and a list of patents held by the company.

The Washington Water Power rate increase requests are arranged by case number. Included are petitions and other legal documents, transcripts of testimonies, and occasionally legal documents from court cases resulting from the application.

The final series contains blueprints of the lead and zinc plants, aerial views of the zinc plant and smelter, a University of Idaho thesis, flow sheets, and two visitors registers.

Annual reports of the Bunker Hill Company, and the session papers of the American Mining Congress were removed from the collection and sent to the library's gift receiving office for possible cataloging into the library's main collection. Suppliers catalogs, annual reports from other companies, and duplicate materials were discarded. Material from notebooks was transferred to file folders. By these means the bulk of the records was reduced by 7 cubic feet.

SERIES LIST

I. 	Organization, 1966-1981	1
II. 	Research Files, 1922-1982	1-6
	A.	File Folders, 1922-1982
	B.	Notebooks, 1929-1981
III.	Washington Water Power Cases, 1966-1982	6-8
IV.	Other Material, 1956-1980	8

BUNKER HILL COMPANY
INVENTORY

I. Organization, 1966-1981

1	1	Brochures, 1968-1980	7
	2	Building and equipment manual, 1975	1
	3	Capital budget procedures, 1974-1981	15
	4	Capital expenditure manual, 1973	1
	5	Chart of accounts, 1976	1
	6	Keys, 1979	4
	7	Library filing index, 1966-1968	2
	8	Marketing division manual, 196-?	1
	9-10	Policies and procedures manual, 1979	1
	11	Quality Control Preventative Maintenance Program Plan, by John Benjamin, 1979	1
	12	Supervisor's manual, 1967	1
	13	Supervisor's handbook, 1973	1
	14	Supervisor's newsletter, 1980-1981	4
	15	Warehouse catalog, 1981	1
	16	Work rules, 1974	1

II. Research Files, 1922-1982

A. File Folders, 1922-1982

	17	American Journal of Mining: facsimile of first issue in 1886, 1941	1
	18	Assay ranges, 1970-1972	1
		Battelle Northwest	
	19	Air pollution, 1968-1970	12
	20	Bunker Hill research, 1965-1969	57
	21	Carbon Sorbates, 1968-1969	21
	22	Cl, F, and SB removal from solution of ZnO fume in acid, 1969-1970	36
	23	Development of a Fused Salt Catalytic Extraction Process for Removal of So2 from Flue Gas, 1970	2
	24	Monitoring equipment (Y-40539), 1968-1969	23
	25	Proprietary agreement, 1968	2
	26	Bunker Hill lead and zinc concentrates, 1981	7
	27	Bunker Hill medallion, 1981-1982	17
	28	Byproducts, 1978	7
	29	Cadmium, 1974-1975	10
	30	Cadmium - Gould contract, 1975	8
	31	Calcium-lead alloy, 1974-1981	7
	32	COD, 1975	4
	33	Colombia samples, 1980-1981	91
	34	COMINCO, 1981	1
	35	Concentrates, 1975-1976	4
	36	Copper, 1961	1
	37	Correspondence, submissions, 1978	1
	38	Determination of lead in ores, 1973-1982	4
	39	Exide Management and Technology Company, 1980	3
2	40	Gould MF-10 alloy, 1977-1980	38
	41	Henwood, Arthur B., 1903-1968	10
	42	ILZRO Program Review Committee, 1969	1
	43	International Precious Metals Institute, 1978-1980	8
	44	Investigation of Arkansas bauxite, 1948	1
	45-46	Lead, 1972-1978	24
	47	Lead-antimony alloy, 1978	1
	48	Literature search on process for removal of lead from zinc fume, 1975	1
	49	LME (London Metal Exchange), 1974-1980	32
	50	Material safety data sheets, 1971-1981	39
	51	Memos, 1976	2
	52	Miller, J.L., 1981	4
		Patent Applications	
	53	Ammonium chloride, 1929-1931	33
	54	Hydrometallurgical process for removing chlorides from chloride bearing zinc oxides, 1970-1971	9
	55	Precipitating arsenic from solution, 1968-1970	10
	56	Process for the hydrometallurgical treatment of argentiferous tetrahedrite minerals, 1971	9
	57	Recovering indium from leach solutions, 1967-1970	14
	58	Recovery of lead from waste storage batteries, 1976	5
	59	Recovery of metallic values from phosphorus electric furnace dust, 1968-1969	6
	60	Simultaneous leaching of zinc and manganese ores, 1956-1970	20
		Patents	
	61	Abstracts of, 1942-1964	25
	62	Bethune/Bunker Hill, 1960-1965	6
	63	Bunker Hill patents, 1969-1976	1
	64	Canadian patents	10
	65	Pleasant Valley Coal District, Utah, n.d.	3
	66	Prospective shippings, 1975	4
	67	Request for analysis, 1976-1978	4
	68	Research and development, 1978	28
	69	Research progress reports, 1977	44
	70	Review of chemical abstracts related to electrolytic zinc deposition, 1948-1963	1
	71	Sample preparation, 1967-1969	15
	72	Sample storage and preparation, 1967	6
	73	Sampling, 1969-1977	6
	74	Sampling and preparation, 1973	7
	75	Scrap, 1977-1978	4
	76	Silver, 1977-1979	4
	77	Skeen International Company, 1978	6
	78	Smelter, 1978	 1
	79	Sulfuric acid, 1972-1978	27
	80	Supervision, 1968-1977	21
	81	Volcanic ash, 1980-1981	6
	82	Weekly mercury analyses of sulfuric acid plants, 1972-1981	24
	83	X-Ray values, 1978	10
	84	Zinc, 1970-1978	37
	85	Zinc, samples of, 1922-1928	1
	86	Zinc alloys, 1977	1
	87	Zinc concentrate sampling, 1972	2
	88	Zinc dust - Pasco, 1967-1975	65
	89	Zinc oxide flue dust, 1974	5
	90	Zinc oxide fume to zinc plant, 1981	6

B. Notebooks, 1929-1981

	91	Aluminum and alumina, 1957-1959	11
		American Society for Testing and Materials	
	92	Committee B-2, Nonferrous Metals and Alloys, 1966-1981	14
	93	Committee B-2-02, 1977-1981	32
	94	Committee B-2-04, 1974-1980	15
	95	Committee B-2-05, 1977-1980	10
	96	Committee B-6, Die Cast Metals and Alloys, 1973-1981	22
	97	Committee B-6-02, 1967-1976	12
	98	Committee E-2-06, Development of Lead Standards, 1976	3
	99	Committee E-3-05.09, Silver, 1977	5
	100-101	Committee E-16, Taskforce on Lead and Zinc, 1969-1976	130
3	102	American Zinc Institute Symposium on Plating of Zinc Die Castings, 1959	1
	103	Antimonial and arsenical lead production, 1946-1960	40
	104	Antimony and its Smelting, by Walter Wendt, 1951	1
	105	Arsenic control program, 1954-1959	28
	106	Arsenic purification Burt solution, 1941	1
	107	Baghouse, 1954-1962	53
	108	Barium chemicals, 1957	40
	109	Battelle Memorial Institute, 1954-1964	45
	110	Budget, 1953-1961	26
	111	Bunker Hill-Bailey Meter Density Recorder and Controller, by Alvin F. Kroll, 1964	1
	112-113	Bunker Hill zinc plant expansion and cell room mechanization study, 1973	2
	114	By-Products, 1976-1977	1
	115	Cadmium plant, letters, experiments, etc., 1947-1965	33
	116	Casting, 1954-1961	23
	117	Charge preparation and pelletizing plant, 1949-1963	59
	118	Cobalt information, 1956-1957	2
	119	Combustion burners, 1950-1955	10
	120	Comparison and weighted averages on zinc concentrates and cadmium sponge purchased, 1957-1964	1
	121	Computers, 1968-1970	5
	122	Continuous softening, 1950	6
	123	Copper dross smelting, 1955-1963	18
	124	Copper matte and speiss, 1953-1963	42
	125	Cost distribution and economics, 1953-1954	47
4	126	Cost statements, analytical lab, 1967	1
	127	Cost Statements, combined lab, 1967-1981	1
	128	Cost Statements, Coeur d'Alene lab, 1972-1981	1
	129	Cottrell, 1956-1960	7
	130	Dechloridizing-Defluorodizing zinc fume, 1950-1962	5
	131	De-Golding, de-Silverizing, 1962	1
	132	Diversification, 1956-1959	28
	133	Drossing, 1955-1964	17
	134	Dry ore plant, Sb ore reports, 1940-1942	38
	135	Economics - smelting margins, 1957-1959	19
	136-137	Electric furnace, 1950-1964	116
	138-139	Environmental health, 1970-1977	63
	140	Environmental health - lead, 1978-1980	7
	141	Environmental Sciences Associates, blood lead, 1973-1979	22
	142	Environmental Sciences Associates, lead testing, 1977-1979	25
	143	Experimental laboratory notebook, 1930-1936	1
	144	Foundry alloys, 1980	8
	145-146	Fuming plant, 1943-1963	120
	147	Hard lead run costs, 1954	2
	148	Indirect cost and general expense, 1953-1958	3
	149	Laboratory notebook, n.d.	1
	150	Laboratory notebook, 1971	1
	151-153	Lead hygiene, 1972-1979	61
	154-155	Lead refinery, 1931-1960	90
5	156	Lead uses, 1953-1959	62
	157	Material flow and balances, 1950-1959	18
	158-159	Material specifications and analysis, 1975-1981	1
	160	Mining and metallurgical qualifications for engineering and construction. Wellman-Power Gas, Inc., 1972	2
	161	Miscellaneous, 1954-1962	77
	162	New Cottrell, 1954-1957	34
	163	Optical emission quantometer fortran programs, 1979	1
	164	Optical emission specification limits, 1971	1
	165-166	Ore purchases, 1952-1963	334
	167	Ore receiving and handling, 1953-1961	9
	168	Ore settlements, cost distribution, 1947-1952	4
	169	Ore stock and smelting rate, 1954-1955	10
	170	Other plants, 1955-1959	22
	171	Other plants - visits, 1952-1961	24
	172	Outside work, 1953-1959	43
	173	Overtime and absences, 1980-1981	1
	174	Patent: Beasley combustion igniter, 1929-1931	190
	175	Product certification, 1979-1981	12
	176	Proposed sintering plant, 1954-1960	11
	177	Research and development procedures notebook, n.d.	1
	178	Retreatment of cobalt residue, n.d.	1
	179	Retreatment of zinc plant residue, 1930-1936	4
	180	Sales, 1954-1959	61
	181	Sherrit Gordon Mines, Ltd., 1966-1967	7
	182	Silver manuscript by Donald B. Macurda, 1964?	4
	183	Silver refinery, 1942-1963	55
	184	Sinter plant and Cottrell, 1953-1963	30
	185	Sintering, 1951-1959	12
6	186-187	Slag fuming plant, 1942-1943	6
	188-190	Slag fuming plant, operating data, 1953-1965	1
	191	SO2 in Peabody effluent, L. Hoffman notes, 1972-1978	9
	192	Super pure antimony, 1957-1964	89
	193	Unidentified scientific notes, 1941-1942	3
	194	Vacuum dezincing, 1954-1960	13
	195	Wheelabrator baghouse, 1953-1962	53
	196	Zinc alloy manual, 1970	1
	197	Zinc oxide benefication, 1956-1965	50
	198-199	Zinc plant melting furnace, 1956	60
	200	Zinc plant research work, 1956-1962	31

III. Washington Water Power Cases, 1966-1982

	201-203	WWP standard prepared testimonies and exhibits for rate cases, 1981	2
7	204	Case P-300-16. Consideration of essential needs rates, 1980-1981	6
	205	Case P-300-18/U-1008-144. Consideration of certain ratemaking standards, 1981	4
	206	Case U-1006-159. Application of Idaho Power Company for authority to increase rates and charges, 1981	2
		Application of the Washington Water Power Company for an Order Approving Revised Rates and Charges for Electric/Gas Service in the State of Idaho.	
	207	Case U-1008-86. Reporter's transcript. 1974	1
	208	Case U-1008-93/94, 1975-1981	19
	209	Case U-1008-109. WWP surcharge, 1978	1
	210-212	Case U-1008-101/102, 1966-1967	7
	213	Case U-1008-112, 1977-1980	20
	214	Case U-1008-117. WWP vs. Bunker Hill, 1977-1978	17
	215-216	Case U-1008-133/134. Testimony, 1979	3
	217	U-1008-144/145. Rebuttal testimony, 1980	2
8	218-219	Case U-1008-147. Legal documents and testimony, 1980-1981	35
	220	Case U-1008-154/155, 1981	2
	221-222	Case U-1008-155/156, 1980-1981	48
	223	Case U-1008-161, 1981	3
	224	Related material, 1981-1982	21
	225	Related material - Bonneville Power Co., 1981	2
	226	Idaho Public Utilities file of J.E. McKay, vice president for Technical Services, 1973-1975	60
	227	Idaho Public Utilities Commission. Summary of utilities activities, 1980-1981	8

IV. Other Material, 1956-1980

	228	Blueprints of lead and zinc plants, 1966-1976	11
	229	Aerial views of zinc plant and smelter, 1977	2
	230	Publications about Bunker Hill and the Coeur d'Alene mining area, 1956-1980	5
	231	Thesis: Decopperizing Lead with Arsenic and Sulphur, by Denton Mark Tucker, University of Idaho, 1962	1
	232	The Gold Ingot Mark Book, n.d.	1
	233	Metals recovery facility flow sheet, 1967	2
	234	Copper dross flue dust recovery flow sheet, 1967	1
	235	Metals recovery plant general arrangement, 1967	2
	236	Unidentified drawing, n.d	1
	237-238	Visitors registers, 1969-1970	2

November 1995 / mg187.htm

UI Library | Special Collections