Product Details

Beautifully engraved antique bond certificate from the Highland Valley Power Company dating back to the early 1900's. This document, which is signed by the company President and Treasurer, was printed by the Lakeside Printing Company, and measures approximately 10" (w) by 16 1/2" (h).

This certificate's intricate vignette features a hydroelectric plant on a river in the moutains.

A full page of coupons remains attached at the top margin.

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Historical Context

The Highland Valley Power Company was founded in 1902 by Thomas Ellis Brown and Albert Merrill (Merrill has signed this pieces as the company Treasurer.) Though the company was incorporated in Maine, it operated placers on Boise River, 18 miles southeast of Boise City, Idaho. The property consisted of 400 acres above the Highland Dam (which the company constructed in 1902 and 1903.) The capacity of the plant was 2,000 horsepower, which was more than sufficient power to operate the placers.

In 1904, the dam gave way when the raging Boise River undermined the structure. The Highland Valley Power Company’s power plant was washed into the river, but somehow managed to stay mostly intact. The company decided to rebuild, and the dam was once again operational in 1908.

But soon after the dam reopened, a series of legal challenges crippled the company - the most “damning” being that the company did not have a clear title for the land on which the dam and power plant were built.

With its legal problems mounting, and the federal government backing the construction of a newer, bigger dam (Arrowrock) just to the north, the company was doomed.

In 1915, the United States Reclamation Service purchased the land rights and assets of the Highland Valley Power Company at a receivership sale for $2,000. The claims against the company were eventually settled, and the dam dismantled.