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Larry Penberthy - Holden Copper Mine, 1938-1940

This book contains many fine B&W photos of the production facilities at the Howe Sound mine, as well as life in Holden at the end of the 1930s. Larry Penberthy was a mill sampler at the mine from 1938 to 1940. He got his job at Holden after hiking 21 miles from Darrington across Cloudy Pass on a tip from a friend, bypassing the hiring office in Chelan.

p. 6: James H. Holden was a dedicated prospector who found a mineral outcropping on Copper Peak, above Railroad Creek, in 1896. He staked four claims and maintained them until 1918. Ownership passed to Crocker Perry of Chelan, who ten years later sold the partially developed claims to Howe Sound Mining Company. Serious development began in 1928 but halted in 1931 when copper prices fell too low. Work was resumed in 1936 and pushed through to first production in March, 1938. The mine shut down in 1957, due to exhaustion of ore rich enough to mine.

p. 34: Photo of the assay lab, with Lynn Bennet, Bud Ostlund and Jack Dewey, chief assayer, at work.

p. 36: Photo of miners playing basketball in the gymnasium at Holden. "How the miners had energy left for basketball is a mystery."

p. 41-42: Photos of the Holden buildings and streets under snow and a snow blower clearing the road.

p. 43: "He floats through the air..." A skier layed out in mid-air, about to either front-flip or belly-flop, probably the latter.

p. 44: Photos from a 16mm movie of a skier going over a bump, then somersaulting in soft snow.

p. 46: Photo of bunkhouses and the main street in early spring, with deep snow still on the ground.

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