The ACMI was organized in June 1881 in Snowflake, Arizona, to operate a store in Holbrook for the Little Colorado and Eastern Arizona stakes, with the intention of having the parent store furnish goods to branch stores in both stakes. Jesse N. Smith, David K. Udall, and Joseph Fish were appointed as a committee to draft a constitution and bylaws. The store opened for business on 1 November 1881, but in January 1882 the railroad moved its telegraph office two miles away. This made the enterprise unworkable, so the store was then moved to Woodruff and did not return to Holbrook until 1888. The ACMI incorporated under the laws of Arizona Territory in October 1888, with its primary operations at Holbrook. An expanding market allowed for a long period of sustained growth, with high dividends being paid to stockholders for many years. The ACMI continued its business operations until March 1933, when a group of Snowflake businessmen bought the operation and ran it under the name of The Co-op Store, although the corporate name continued to be the Arizona Cooperative Mercantile Institution.
From the guide to the LR 8367 32 ACMI records 1883-1914 (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Church History Library)
