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David S. Brown and Company records
The David S. Brown & Company records include financial and other records of the firm David S. Brown & Company and related companies in which David Sands Brown played an active role. The collection spans from 1820, shortly before David Sands Brown joined the firm Hacker, Brown & Co., unti...
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| Collection: | David S. Brown and Company Records |
| Collection Number: | 1586 |
| Format: | Manuscript |
| Language: | English |
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| Item Description: |
Location of resource: D. S. Brown processed boxes (1-101) are in the 4th floor stacks, shelves 52G-53I
D. S. Brown unprocessed boxes are in 2V, shelves 91b-g, 92b-g, 93b-g, and 94b-g.
D. S. Brown volumes are in Basement Room 2, shelves 28a-e, 29a-d, 30a-d, 31a-d, 32a-d, 33a-d, 34a-d, 35a-d, 36a-d, 37a-d, 40a-b, 41a, and 42a. Processing Information: This guide represents the small portion of the David Sands Brown collection that has been processed. There is also an inventory of 942 volumes, which is currently available at HSP. The remaining unbound materials are completely unprocessed and very difficult to use because of their physical condition, arrangement, and/or housing. For information about the unprocessed materials, or to use the inventory of volumes, please contact HSP archives staff. |
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| Physical Description: |
40.4 Linear feet 101 boxes |
| Access: |
The boxes of papers in this inventory are open for research, as are a number of volumes that have been inventoried. (Inventory available in repository.) Please contact HSP archives staff regarding access to the unprocessed portion of the collection. |
| Summary: |
The David S. Brown & Company records include financial and other records of the firm David S. Brown & Company and related companies in which David Sands Brown played an active role. The collection spans from 1820, shortly before David Sands Brown joined the firm Hacker, Brown & Co., until three decades after the end of his life.
The processed portion of the collection includes 101 boxes (40.4 linear feet) of unbound records and approximately 940 manuscript volumes (131 linear feet). An additional 66 linear feet of unprocessed records (boxes densely packed with bundles of folded documents) are closed to researchers for physical access reasons.
The processed unbound records are divided into eleven subgroups: Account Sales & Statements, Bills, Cancelled Checks, Cancelled Drafts, Invoices, Letters, Miscellaneous, Orders & Returns, Papers concerning Specific Persons and Companies, Schedules, Inventories, and Fabric Samples, and Transaction Receipts. This material spans from 1820-1880 (bulk 1832-1845) and mainly documents the day-to-day sales and operations of David S. Brown & Company. The largest subgroups are Invoices and Letters. Most of the letters are general business correspondence, but there are also two boxes of letters to N.D. Wetmore (D.S. Brown’s agent/attorney ) and one box of private letters.
Brown was born in New Hampshire, and the connections that he maintained in New England are evident in the records. A sizable portion of the correspondence and transactions are made with companies in Boston and a few other cities in Maine, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
The volumes are organized by name of firm and within each firm by type of record. Firms represented include Hacker, Brown & Company (1826-1831, 2 volumes); Brown, Hanson & Company (1830-1847, 55 volumes); David S. Brown & Company (1833-1900, 609 volumes); Washington Manufacturing Company (1842-1892, 60 volumes); Gloucester Manufacturing Company (1855-1890, 31 volumes); Gloucester Gingham Mills (1871-1905, 25 volumes); Gonic Manufacturing Company (1843-1846, 5 volumes); Gloucester Iron Works (1871-1911, 30 volumes); Ancona Printing Company (1871-1885, 109 volumes). There are also 109 volumes whose company of origin has not been identified, and 2 volumes of David Sands Brown’s personal outgoing correspondence (circa 1839-1841).
The volumes are predominantly financial records, including ledgers, cash books, order books, sales books, invoices, stock books, payroll, checkbooks, dividends, and other records. There is some correspondence, chiefly in the David S. Brown & Company, Washington Manufacturing Company, Gloucester Manufacturing Company, and Gloucester Gingham Mills sections. There are also some Washington Manufacturing Company stockholders’ minutes and Gonic Manufacturing Company record of incorporation. |