[Mining] Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad Company Check

Item Details

[Mining] Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad Company Check, Issued by John Ryan to Clarence M. Resor on the Account of Borax Smith--June 13, 1906

Check measures 8 1/2 x 3 5/8 inches. Perforated at top and bottom. Two date stamps to face. Previously folded vertically. Two stamped endorsements on verso plus manuscript endorsement by Rasor. Good condition.

An amazing trifecta of Southern California Mining names coming together on one check from 1906. Check Number 178 drawn on the Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad Company was signed by John Ryan for whom the town of Ryan was named. John Ryan (1849–1918), was the General Manager of the Pacific Coast Borax Company until his death in 1918. 

Francis M. "Borax" Smith created the Pacific Coast Borax Company in 1890. Pacific Coast Borax produced the famous 20-Mule Team Borax Brand and its iconic logo. Smith created the Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad Company in 1906 in part to ship borax but also to carry freight and passengers. The railroad was envisioned to run all the way to San Diego (Tidewater) but never made it. 

Rasor, California, about 50 miles east of Barstow is best known today for its network of off-road trails, near the 19th century Mojave Road. Clarence M. Rasor was the Chief Engineer of the Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad, through the 1920's.  Rasor never had its own post office.