Showing only minor signs of age, wear and handling - mostly light toning. Expected fold creases from posting. No major issues to note. Eye-catching legible writing. Overall, in good to very good condition. Will display well in your collection. You will receive the exact sheet shown in the photos. It measures approx. 4 1/2" x 7"

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HISTORICAL REPORT: 1896 Montana Territory Pioneer Stage Line Document — Camp in Canyon SECTION 1: TRANSCRIPTION & LITERAL READING • Heading Line: Camp in Canyon Oct 23/96 (October 23, 1896) • Recipient Line: Am Holter & Bro • Salutation: Please • Body Text: Send by Barer the Stage driver 2 baskets of Tea • Signature: R S Ells • Reverse Docketing: R. S. Ells / Oct 23 / 96 / Holter & Bro SECTION 2: THE HISTORICAL SETTING & PROVENANCE In October 1892, Montana's expanding mountain networks relied entirely on mobile industrial bases to fuel the workers carving out the frontier. Lacking localized brick-and-mortar storefronts, remote wilderness crews communicated with urban distributors by intercepting the regional stage lines that traversed the mountain passes. This brief pencil note serves as an outstanding primary source documenting frontier logistics. A remote operator drafts an emergency request for caffeinated provisions, counting on a specific horse-drawn stagecoach operator ("Barer the Stage driver") to physically handle the cash transaction and carry the bulk goods back into the wilderness. SECTION 3: THE SENDER — R. S. ELLS R. S. Ells was a prominent early Montana pioneer, lumberman, and miner who arrived in the territory during the initial 1862 James L. Fisk expedition. Operating logging crews, timber outfits, and charcoal camps throughout central Montana, Ells was a frequent business correspondent of both the James Fergus family and the Holter lumber empire. This document tracks him in the field managing a temporary camp crew, ensuring they stayed supplied through the turning autumn weather. SECTION 4: THE ORIGIN — "CAMP IN CANYON", MONTANA The distinct heading line reads "Camp in Canyon," a direct reference to a mobile lumber, railroad tie, or mining camp situated deep within one of Montana's major industrial thoroughfares, such as the Gallatin or Prickly Pear Canyons. During the 1890s, when logging operations rapidly moved down river basins to supply timber for regional mines and expanding rail lines, supervisors commonly bypassed formal post office towns entirely, labeling their mail simply by the physical camp location where the crew was stationed. SECTION 5: THE RECIPIENT — A.M. HOLTER & BROTHER Anton M. Holter and his brother Martin were premier pioneer industrialists who established Montana's very first commercial steam sawmills during the 1860s gold rushes. Operating their massive retail, hardware, and grocery warehouse on Main Street in Helena, their business acted as the ultimate supply hub for remote operators across the Pacific Northwest, filling bulk commercial orders ranging from heavy sawmill hardware down to crates of food and baskets of tea. SECTION 6: CONDITION REPORT • Authentic unruled scrap correspondence paper dating exactly to October 23, 1896. • Clear, fully legible graphite pencil handwriting showing both the original order face and the processing docket on the reverse side. • Features original horizontal mailing folds from being folded up and tucked into the stage driver's pocket for delivery. • Superb historical preservation with structurally sound margins, minor natural handling folds, and light uniform paper toning.

**Shipped securely in a poly sleeve, sandwiched in cardboard, inside a small rigid mailer via USPS Ground Advantage service w/ tracking**

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