Homestake Mining Co. - 1957 dated $1,000 California Mining Bond

$1,000 Specimen Bond printed by Franklin Lee Division - American Bank Note Company. Coupons remain at right of bond. Rare!

Homestake Mining Company was one of the largest gold mining enterprises in the United States and operated the renowned Homestake Mine in Lead, South Dakota. Founded in 1877, the company was acquired by Barrick Gold in December 2001. Notably, Homestake holds the record for the longest continuous listing on the New York Stock Exchange. The company was established on November 5, 1877, when George Hearst (father of William Randolph Hearst), Lloyd Tevis, and his brother-in-law James Ben Ali Haggin purchased the 10-acre Homestake Mine from its original discoverer, Moses Manuel, for $70,000.

Homestake became a public company on January 25, 1879, with its initial public offering being the first mining stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The company expanded its operations by establishing hydroelectric plants in 1910 and 1917, which were later sold to the city of Spearfish, South Dakota, in 2004. Paul C. Henshaw served as President from 1970 to 1977. In 1981, Homestake acquired its partner’s stake in its uranium joint venture, United Nuclear Corporation, for $23 million and took over four uranium mines and a mill. The company also acquired an additional 34% of a Bulgarian mine in March 1996 and, in April 1998, purchased Plutonic Resources Limited for $640 million, adding mines in Australia to its portfolio. In December 1998, Homestake acquired the remaining 49.4% of Prime Resources Group. However, by September 2000, the company decided to close the Homestake Mine by January 2002, and it was eventually acquired by Barrick Gold in December 2001.