THE TOWNSITE

The minesite on the south side of Railroad Creek had accommodations for 100 people, but accommodations for 450 people were needed after 1937. A townsite was located on the north side of Railroad Creek and consisted of four 50-man dormitories, ten family homes, guest house, a 264-person dining hall, a one-room school, and staff house for single engineers and management staff. The town was completed in 1938 and two more dormitories, an addition to the school, recreation hall, and hospital were added. The hospital had rooms for patients, dentist office and apartment for the resident doctor.

The largest town building and center of the community was the recreation hall. It contained a commissary, county library, and a multi-purpose gymnasium for theater, movies, dances, community meetings and religious services, plus a four-lane bowling alley, lockers and showers, pool tables, card room, and barber shop.

The architecture of the company buildings and homes was rustic with high pitched roofs and wood shingle siding stained in shades of greens, rusts and browns to blend with the surrounding forest. At the request of some of the workers for a family campsite, the company surveyed and platted a site west of the main townsite, put in sewers, water mains, and electric lines and rented the 50'x100' lots with facilities for $20 per year and electricity at one cent per kwh. Because the camp was inside a national forest, the homes had to adhere to Forest Service requirements. Approximately 100 neat and attractive homes were built by the employees. This addition separated the community geographically and socially, leaving single workers and management in the main part of town and working class families in the residential addition.

Holden was a company town, and no private businesses were allowed. Salesmen were allowed to visit, families placed their grocery orders with a store in Chelan, and merchandise could be ordered by mail. Because of lack of a bank, the company made tin 50 cent pieces, packaged them in $5.00 bundles, employees and spouses signed receipts at the commissary when they needed money, and receipts were deducted by the payroll office from the employee's wages. The company did not allow a liquor store on the premises, and employees placed orders for liquor with the bus driver who traveled daily between the lake and mine. A town constable was employed to maintain fire-fighting equipment, outdoor recreation facilities and serve as the company's representative to state and federal agencies dealing with forest, fish, game, and criminal regulations.