On lightweight watermarked paper stock. Showing minor signs of age, wear and handling - mostly toning throughout. 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. 7 7/8" x 10"

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1910 Montana Saloon & Hotel Construction Intelligence Letter Transcription: Coburg Mont 7/30 – 10 Bateman & Switzer Great Falls Dear Sir – I have charge of R.M. Trafton’s store at this point. Mr. Trafton has recently sold a lot to a Mr Church who will erect a Hotel, and Bar in connection. If you care to have Mr Church’s business I will see what I can do in the matter. He will be here in a few days to put up the Building. I understand he has already had some correspondence with Great Falls Dealers in regard to Liquor. If you care for his business will do what I can for you Very truly G.W. Eckenbeck Coburg Moore co Historical Background & Collector Context This extraordinary original handwritten business letter, dated July 30, 1910, offers a direct look into the competitive, ground-level mechanics of the pre-Prohibition western liquor trade and the rapid expansion of early 20th-century Montana railway boomtowns. • The Recipient (Bateman & Switzer, Great Falls, MT): Founded in 1890 at 206 Central Avenue, Bateman & Switzer Co. was one of north-central Montana’s premier wholesale syndicates. They supplied a comprehensive "one-stop shop" for saloonkeepers, providing bulk wines and liquors, manufactured sodas, bar glassware, and billiard tables. • The Pitch (Business Intelligence on the Frontier): Written by G.W. Eckenbeck, the manager of R.M. Trafton’s local store, this letter acts as a piece of raw commercial espionage. Eckenbeck intercepts news that a newcomer, "Mr. Church," has purchased a town lot and is arriving in a few days to construct a hotel and connected barroom. Knowing that Church is already corresponding with rival Great Falls dealers, Eckenbeck proactively pitches a backroom deal to Bateman & Switzer, offering to sway the new proprietor's lucrative supply contract to their firm: "If you care for his business will do what I can for you." • The Location (Coburg, Montana): Established around 1890 as a station stop along the Great Northern Railway line in Blaine County (noted here under its parent company alignment), Coburg was a vital shipping hub serving a rapidly expanding dryland farming community during the peak of the Montana Homestead Boom. Towns like Coburg surged overnight with transient construction crews, rail workers, and homesteaders, making a newly built hotel bar a highly profitable goldmine for wholesale liquor suppliers. • The Paper: Written in pencil on a single sheet of lined paper, the document displays gorgeous, authentic age-toning and strong ink/pencil execution typical of early 20th-century frontier correspondence. A stellar archival piece for collectors specializing in pre-Prohibition whiskey and saloon history, western hotel and hospitality development, or early Montana railroad boomtown ephemera.

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**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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