Business Records Collection, 1865-1925
Table of Contents
Overview of the Collection
- Title
- Business Records Collection
- Dates
- 1865-1925 (inclusive)18651925
- Quantity
- 5 linear feet of shelf space., (34 volumes.)
- Collection Number
- Cage 15
- Summary
- Journals, ledgers, cash books, inventories and other account books of general merchants, farmers, saloonkeepers, as well as a hardware merchant, a hotel operator, a farm machinery dealer and a laundry operator, primarily in the State of Washington. Some partially identified, including Knapp, Burrell Co., and Lippitt Brothers.
- Repository
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Washington State University Libraries' Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections (MASC)
Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections
Terrell Library Suite 12
Pullman, WA
99164-5610
Telephone: 509-335-6691
mascref@wsu.edu - Access Restrictions
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This collection is open for research use.
- Languages
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Content Description
The Business Record Collection consists of unidentified or partially identified journals, cash books, ledgers, inventories and other account books kept by general merchants, farmers, grain buyers, saloonkeepers, a hardware merchant, a hotel operator, a farm machinery dealer, and a laundry operator. These businesses were at various locations within the state of Washington, although some appear to be from locales outside this region.
Other Descriptive Information
To some degree, these items are more properly regarded an three-dimensional museum objects than as manuscripts. That is to say, their form is of more interest than their contents. Nevertheless the records are not simply surviving specimens of l9th century bookkeeping, but also contain documentation of historic matters. This documentation is not simply of the small businesses which created the records, but, in some cases, of the communities in which they were located. For instance, the records of an unidentified general merchant in Vancouver, Washington contains many accounts with military personnel and may give some idea of the way of life among the professional military in the 1870s. In another case, the records of a grain dealer on the Snake River in Southeastern Washington contain actual documentation of events in the wheat trade which are otherwise little documented, despite the easy availability of gross statistical data about this trade.
Use of the Collection
Preferred Citation
[Item Description]. Cage 15, Business Records. Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries, Pullman, WA.
Administrative Information
Arrangement
These materials are loosely organized according to what type of business they derive from.
Acquisition Information
The miscellaneous account books which comprise this collection of business records were acquired by the Washington State University Library from various sources over a forty year period. Most items can be identified by type of business, place, or date, but the names of the small firms and proprietorships whose operations are recorded are not fully clear. Accordingly, the records cannot be treated in the same manner as most manuscript materials which are identified by creator, but require description according to content.
Processing Note
This collection was processed by Lawrence Stark in February and March 1975.
Detailed Description of the Collection
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.
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General Merchants
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Description: Ledger. Place unknown, but suggestive of frontier south or west.1 item.Dates: 1865-1867Container: Volume 1
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Description: Journals and ledgers. Vancouver, Washington.11 items.Dates: 1868-1880Container: Volume 2-11
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Description: Sales Journal. Lippitt Brothers, Colfax.1 item.Dates: 1896-1898Container: Volume 11
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Description: Inventory. Colfax.1 item.Dates: 1891Container: Volume 12
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Farmers
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Description: Personal accounts. Pullman (includes records kept while working as teacher and laborer in Wisconsin, 1873-1879).1 item.Dates: 1877-1896Container: Volume 13
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Description: Journal and ledger/payroll. Colfax.2 items.Dates: 1879; 1891-1895Container: Volume 14-15
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Chain Buyer
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Description: Sales and consignment record. Albion.1 item.Dates: 1912-1913Container: Volume 16
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Grain Buyer / Farm Machinery Buyer
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Description: Journals. Colfax, Moscow, and points on the Snake River (probably local manager for Knapp, Burrell & Co., Walla Walla).3 items.Dates: 1881-1885Container: Volume 17-19
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Hardware Merchant
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Description: Journal. Dayton.1 item.Dates: 1914-1915Container: Volume 20
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Saloonkeepers
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Description: Ledgers (4), Journal (1), and Bar Tabs (3). Spokane.9 items.Dates: 1900-1905Container: Volume 21-28
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Description: Ledger. Vancouver, Washington (card parlor and billiard hall).1 item.Dates: 1884-1891Container: Volume 29
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Hotel Operator
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Description: Journals. Vancouver, Washington.4 items.Dates: 1891-1694Container: Volume 30-33
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Laundry
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Description: Journal. Dayton.1 item.Dates: 1924-1915Container: Volume 34
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Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Business records--Washington (State)
Corporate Names
- Knapp, Burrell Company
- Lippitt Brothers
