Eastern Washington State Historical Society (Northwest
Museum of Arts & Culture), Joel E. Ferris Research Library and Archives
2316 W. First Avenue
Spokane, WA 99201
Phone: (509) 363-5342
Email: archives@northwestmuseum.org
Ms
12
John W. Graham & Co.
(Spokane, Wash.)
John W. Graham Company Records
1891-1950
4.8 ft.
Established by John W. Graham in 1889 as a book and
stationery business, which grew to include the sale of photographic supplies, leather goods,
paint and wallpaper, school books and supplies, and art supplies. Financial statements and
expense ledgers (1891-1947), store catalogs (1909-1950), advertising scrapbook (1948), and
fragmentary correspondence (1903-1945).
Materials are inEnglish.
Biographical Note
John W. Graham arrived in Spokane Falls immediately prior to the fire of 1889. He opened a
book and stationery business following the disaster and established a company that grew to
include photographic supplies, leather goods, paint and wallpaper, school books and
supplies, and art supplies. The store motto was “If it’s made of paper, we have it.”
The collection includes financial statements and expense ledgers, 1891-1947; store
catalogues, 1909-1950; advertising scrapbook, 1948; and very fragmentary correspondence,
1903-1945.
The collection is arranged into 4 series, with series 1 and 3 containing subseries:
- Series 1, Biographical Material
- Subseries 1.1, Advertising
- Subseries 1.2, Correspondence - Trial Balance Book 1
- Series 2, Catalogues
- Series 3, Ledger Sheets
- Subseries 3.1, Stock Certificates
- Series 4, Trial Balance Ledgers
Collection is not restricted.
Copyright has not been assigned to the Eastern Washington State Historical Society. All
requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to
the Museum Archivist. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Eastern
Washington State Historical Society as the owner of the physical items and is not intended
to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the
researcher
John W. Graham Company Records (Ms 12), Eastern Washington State Historical
Society/Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture, Spokane, WA.
Donated by Chester Seeley.
Nolan, Edward W.
A Guide to the Manuscript Collections in the
Eastern Washington State Historical Society (Spokane, WA: Eastern Washington State
Historical Society, 1987).
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the Online Computer Library
Center (OCLC) WorldCat database. Researchers desiring materials about related topics,
persons, or places should search WorldCat using these headings.
John W. Graham & Co.
(Spokane, Wash.)--Archives
Graham, John W., of Spokane,
Wash., fl. 1889-1892
Spokane (Wash.)--Business,
industries, and trades
Washington (State)--Business,
industries, and trades
Spokane
Washington
(State)
Retail
Trade
Series 1
Biographical Material
Introduction and Inventory
1
1
Biographical Material re
John W. Graham
1860-1941
1
2
Newspaper Clippings re
Graham and the John W. Graham Store
1922-1973
1
3
Advertising
Subseries 1.1
Art work
1
4
Clippings
1903
1
5
Clippings
1904
1
6
Clippings
1906
1
7
Clippings
1907-1910
1
8
Clippings
1911-1912
1
9
Clippings
1913
1
10
Clippings
1914
1
11
Clippings: Miscellaneous
1
12
Clippings
May 5,
1948-March 31, 1949
1
13
Post Cards
1
14
Correspondence - Trial Balance Book 1
Subseries 1.2
Correspondence and Records: William
Donahue
1941-1954
1
15
Eureka News Co. and IXL Fraction
1897-1909
1
16
Eureka News Co. and IXL Fraction Lode
1910-1923
1
17
Inventory of Furniture and Pictures for Grahama
Block, Tablet Factory and Culbertson Book
January 31, 1925
1
18
Miscellaneous
1
19
Miscellaneous: Allison's Coupon Books, Catalogue and Sample
1
20
Newsletter for Employees: "Echo"
February 28, 1949-July 1950
1
21
Comparative Sales Record Book
1917-1918
1
22
Financial Statements
1913/1944
1
23
Journal
April 1916-June 1922
1
24
Journal
July 1922-January 1928
1
25
Trial Balance Book, Vol. 1
1891-1906
1
26
Series 2
Catalogues
Gifts
2
1
Gifts
1949
2
2
"Gifts for Christmas"
2
3
Handicrafts
2
4
Office Machines
2
5
Office Supplies
c. 1910
2
6
Office Supplies: "Tools for Better Schools"
2
7
"Wholesale School Apparatus and Supplies"
1910?
2
8
"Wholesale School Apparatus and Supplies"
1910?
2
9
"Wholesale School Furniture, Apparatus and Supplies"
1911?
2
10
"Wholesale School Furniture, Apparatus and Supplies"
1912-1913
2
11
"Wholesale School Furniture, Apparatus and Supplies"
1913
2
12
"Wholesale School Furniture, Apparatus and Supplies": Catalogue #17
1914
2
13
"Wholesale School Furniture, Apparatus and Supplies": Catalogue #14
1915
2
14
"Wholesale School Furniture, Apparatus and Supplies": Catalogue #31
1916
2
15
"School Furniture, Apparatus, Kindergarten Supplies, Books" (#38)
1917
2
16
"Better Schools" (#45)
1918
2
17
"Better Schools" (Second Edition)
1919
2
18
"Better Schools" (3rd Edition)
1920
2
19
"Better Schools" (#55, 4th Edition)
1921
2
20
"Better Schools" (5th Edition)
1922
2
21
"Better Schools" (6th Edition)
1923
2
22
"Better Schools" (7th Edition)
1924
2
23
"Better Schools" (8th Edition)
1925
2
24
"Better Schools" (9th Edition)
1926
2
25
"Better Schools" (10th Edition)
1927
2
26
"Better Schools" (#105)
2
27
"Better Schools" (50th Anniversary Edition)
1929
2
28
"Better Schools" (#110)
2
29
"Better Schools" (#125)
2
30
"Better Schools" (#131)
2
31
"Better Schools" (#134)
2
32
"Better Schools" (#139)
2
33
"Better Schools" (#142)
2
34
"Better Schools" (#144)
2
35
"Better Schools" (#144)
2
36
"Better Schools" (#147)
2
37
"Better Schools" (#154)
2
38
"Better Schools" (#164)
2
39
"Better Schools" (#170)
2
40
"Better Schools" (#181)
2
41
"Better Schools" (#185)
2
42
"Better Schools" (#187)
2
43
"General Classroom Supplies"
2
44
"School Furnishings" (#45)
2
45
"Teachers Aids"
2
46
"Teachers Aids (Tools for Better Schools)"
2
47
"Teachers Aids"
2
48
"Tools for Better Schools" (#190)
2
49
"Tools for Better Schools" (#215)
2
50
"Tools for Better Schools" (#260)
2
51
"Tools for Better Schools"
2
52
"Tools for Better Schools: Furniture"
2
53
Wholesale School Supplies
c. 1950
2
54
Wholesale School Supplies
2
55
Easy Order Sheet
2
56
Series 3
Ledger Sheets
1906-1914
3
1
A - Baldwin
1923-1936
3
2
Banks
1930-1936
3
3
Bellingham Auto Investment - Bills Receivable
1929-1936
3
4
Bonds
1924-1936
3
5
Bowling Team Reserve - Dean
1924-1936
3
6
Deerwater Button Co.
1928-1932
3
7
Dittman - E Sales
1927-1936
3
8
Ellensburg Book and Stationery
1928-1936
3
9
Evans - Geiter
1926-1936
3
10
Graham Accounts
1926-1936
3
11
Guarantee Deposit on Contract Interest and Discount
1927-1936
3
12
Interest on Bonds
1924-1936
3
13
Investment (Auto) - L Sales
1929-1936
3
14
La Grande Book and Stationery Co.
1928-1936
3
15
Huberte Large - Profit and Loss
1926-1936
3
16
R - S
1907-1936
3
17
T - W
1925-1936
3
18
Yakima Store
1929-1933
3
19
A
1941-1949
3
20
B - B W Sales
1945-1949
3
21
Banks
1945-1947
3
22
Bills Receivable - Cooke
1942-1949
3
23
D - E
1933-1949
3
24
F - G
1925-1949
3
25
H - J
1926-1949
3
26
K - M
1926-1949
3
27
O - R
1943-1949
3
28
S - Y
1932-1949
3
29
Expense
1917-1943
3
30
Stock Certificates
Subseries 3.1
John W. Graham and Co.
February 1, 1896-June 18, 1901
3
31
Burch Holding Co.
March 20, 1916-November 10, 1945
3
32
Graham Realty Co.
February 21, 1917-April 15, 1944
3
33
Spokane Warehouse Co.: Bill Payable
1907-1909
3
34
Series 4
Trial Balance Ledgers
Yearly, Vol. 2
1907-1939
4
1
Yearly, Vol. 3
1940-1948
4
2
Yearly, Vol. 5
1920-1927
4
3
Yearly, Vol. 6
1910-1913
4
4
Yearly, Vol. 7
1915-1919
4
5
Yearly, Vol. 8
1914-1924
4
6
Yearly, Vol. 9
1924-1929
4
7
Yearly, Vol. 10
1929-1933
4
8
Yearly, Vol. 11
1934-1939
4
9
Yearly, Vol. 12
1939-1943
4
10
Yearly, Vol. 16
1927-1932
4
11
Yearly, Vol. 17
1931-1934
4
12
Yearly, Vol. 18
1933-1937
4
13
Yearly
1949
4
14