Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1936-05-23

! pector. He was a man full of hope ano
/ enthusiasm; and so long as he had q
/ few dollars in his pocket he walked with
the comfortable feeling of a million
aire The vein he discovered proved to
have pay ore for length Of about 1000
feet and in short time several mills
were crushing ore from it. The banner
year Of its productiveness was in 1858
when 1t yielded nearly 100000.
In october, 1865, Whitlatch inter-
ested Theodore and James A. Roose-
welt, father and uncle of the late Theo-
dore Roosevelt, in the property and in
the formation Of the National Mining
and Exploration Co. A small settlement
had been made near the mine and 1t
was called Owyhee Park. Whitlatch
changed the name to Roosevelt but the
gentlemen of that name objected and
the name was changed to Unionville.
Whitlatch was not an inexperienced
miner when he came to Montana. As
a boy but Is years of age, he had
owned one of the richest claims in the
Black Hawk placer diggings-where
Central City, Colo now stands.
He had prospected in Nevada where
he had discovered a rich gold quartz
mine on Reese creek. He had disposed
Of that and returned to Colorado, where
he was led to come to the new discov-
cries in what is now Montana
Whitlatch was a good advertiser of
himself, a great believer in the coun-
try and great booster of things of a
progressive nature. He was largely in
Strumental in having the Montana
Post removed from Virginia City to
Helena and he supplied Fisk Bros.
with the money necessary to get press
and other needed equipment to make
the Herald the first paper of conse-
quence in the state He was one of the
men who influenced Col. W. F. Sanders
to move from Virginia to Helena, where
he retained him as his attorney.
The Whitlatch building on the site
of the Masonic temple was a prominent
Helena land mark for years.
With the decline in production of the
mines Whitlatch left the territory. He
went to New York and soon thereafter
opened a hotel in Brooklyn. He had
some qualities which go to make good
hotel keeper, but he lacked in that
attention to the business details so eS-
sential to success in any enterprise and
he was so generous that he was easily
imposed upon, even after his broad ex-
perlence In this western country.
He closed out his interests In the
east and struck out into what to him
was the land Of enchantment, the land
Of the mountains, where he believed he |
would again retrieve his fallen fortunes. |
In the wilds of Mexico he met with /
an accident, whereby thigh bone was
broken. When he recovered he found |
himself cripple for life, with failing |
syesight.
In the Sandia mountains of New
Mexico he eventually found rich gold
nine and he realized q fortune from 1t. /
This went from him very RAPIDLY and /
ne was again seeker after wealth. 1
-Ater he endeavored to promote the /
ale Of the Great Eastern, large body
If low grade ore in Emigrant gulch,
hen owned by BoZeman parties. His |
Efforts were abortive and a year or
wo later he was at Spokane making
trenuous efforts to accumulate some
hing to leave for his four boys and
heir mother
In August, 1890, he was in San Fran
iSco where he was hopeful of putting
Iver two sales of considerable magni-
ude. 1t was at time when 1t was not
asy to interest capital and his physical
nd mental strength had been severely
axed for years; with waning powers,
lis reason deserted him temporarily and
lis life was ended in a San Francisco
otel by bullet fired by his own hand.
Whitlatch was the man Of the hour
or Helena. The mine he discovered
1aS at the height of its productiveneSs
rhen the placer mines were worked
ut. His discovery encouraged prospect
1g that led to the finding of such a
lumber Of good mines as made the city
Helena the richest city in the United
tates, in proportion to its population.
Whitlatch was genial, wholesouled,
beral, and generous to fault Every
ne who knew him spoke well of him
18th kindly memories He led the way
D a storehouse of wealth, taking for
imSelf but a small part of It.