Oregon Historical Society Research Library
Allen and Lewis records
Allen and Lewis (Portland, Or.)
Mss 786
2 cubic feet
2 document cases, 1 flat box, 4 custom boxes, 1 oversize folder, 3 oversize folders in shared box
1853-1931
Records of a mercantile firm in Portland, Oregon, that was founded by Cicero Hunt Lewis and Lucius H. Allen. The records date mainly from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and include financial ledgers, business correspondence, real estate and land records, contracts, stock certificates, and materials relating to the widening of West Burnside Street in downtown Portland, due to construction of the Burnside Bridge. The collection also includes papers relating to George Good.
English
Collection is open for research.
Gift of Mason L. Bingham, December 13, 1951.
The collection is arranged in two series:
- Series 1: Account books and ledgers, 1858-1930
- Series 2: General financial and land records, 1853-1927
The wholesale grocery firm of Allen and Lewis was a prominent fixture of the commercial scene in Portland, Oregon, from the 1850s through the early 20th century. Beginning as one of the town's only general stores in 1851, the firm was founded by Cicero Hunt Lewis (also known as Cicero Horatius Lewis) and Lucius H. Allen. Lewis (1826-1897) was a native of Cranbury, New Jersey, and after his arrival in Portland, he began a rapid rise to prominence. In 1857, he married Clementine Couch, daughter of John Heard Couch, who had platted the city's northern section. Lewis was also involved in a number of significant Oregon ventures in addition to his mercantile firm, including the Oregon Central Railroad, the Willamette Bridge Company, and efforts to establish telegraph service between Portland and San Francisco.
Long after Lewis's death, in 1924, property owned by his heirs at Front Avenue and West Burnside Street was subject to appropriation by the the City of Portland due to the construction of the approach to the new Burnside Bridge.
Allen and Lewis records, Mss 786, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
A small collection of the papers of Cicero Hunt Lewis is designated Mss 787 in the Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Records of Allen and Lewis, a mercantile firm in Portland, Oregon, that was founded by Cicero Hunt Lewis and Lucius H. Allen. The records date mainly from the late 19th and early 20th centuries and include financial ledgers, business correspondence, real estate and land records, contracts, and stock certificates. Also included are materials relating to the widening of West Burnside Street in downtown Portland in preparation for the construction of the Burnside Bridge, which involved property owned by the Pioneer Real Estate Company and the heirs of Cicero Hunt Lewis; and papers relating to George Good. Of note are the original partnership agreement between Allen and Lewis, signed in 1853, and a notebook, circa 1887-1888, detailing wholesale prices of grocery items.
The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.
Good, George
Lewis, Cicero Hunt, 1826-1897
Allen, Lucius H. (Lucius Hamilton), 1817-1887
Allen and Lewis (Portland, Or.)--Records and correspondence
Pioneer Real Estate Company (Portland, Or.)
Burnside Bridge (Portland, Or.)
West Burnside (Portland, Or.)
Grocers--Oregon--Portland
Merchants--Oregon--Portland
Streets--Oregon--Portland
Bridges--Oregon--Portland--Design and construction
Portland
Businesses and Corporations
City Planning
Retail Trade
business records
property records
ledgers (account books)
maps (documents)
blueprints (reprographic copies)
Account books and ledgers
Series 1
1858-1930
Journal (old volume 1)
1905 November-1906 July
1
1
Journal to private ledger (old volume 2) and loose papers found in ledger
1898-1930
undated
1
2-3
Ledger (old volume 3)
1858 February 1-1862 January 31
3
1
Ledger (old volume 4)
1865-1867
4
1
Private ledger (old volume 5)
1898-1930
1
4
Private ledger (old volume 6)
1898-1904
5
1
General ledger (old volume 7)
1905-1908
6
1
Invoice book
1858-1861
7
1
General ledger (old volume 8) and loose papers found in ledger
1912-1925
1
5-6
Ledger balances, with total produce sales and commission; and trial balances
1896-1913
1
7
Tax and insurance register, including mortgages (old volume 9), and loose papers found in register
1893-1910
1
8-9
Eugene branch account book, including general ledger, journal, capital stock, profit & loss (old volume 10)
1913-1925
1
10
Handbook of merchandise and prices (old volume 11)
circa 1887-1888
2
1
Real estate and tax record (old volume 12) and loose papers found in ledger
1903-1930
2
2-3
General financial and land records
Series 2
1853-1927
Partnership papers of Lucius H. Allen and Cicero Hunt Lewis
1853-1897
2
4
Correspondence and receipts for purchase of stock
1861-1925
2
5
Business contracts and papers
1868-1896
2
6
Includes contracts with D. S. Baker, 1887, and with Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Co., 1896; and papers concerning land on Puget Sound, 1868-1870.
Stock certificates
1893-1925
Oversize 1
Deeds
1874-1910
2
7
Federal land grant certificates
1872-1906
Oversize 2
Abstracts of title
1881-1911
2
8
Mortgage
1881-1882
Oversize 3
Abstract of estate of Margaret West
1911
2
9
General papers
1883-1927
undated
2
10
Pioneer Real Estate Company--Papers concerning widening of West Burnside Street and construction of the Burnside Bridge
1924
2
11
Pioneer Real Estate Company--Blueprints and maps relating to the widening of West Burnside Street
1924
Oversize 4
Pioneer Real Estate Company--Blueprints and maps concerning property owned by the company and Lewis Investment Company
circa 1881-1920
Oversize 3
Includes plat of Wilson's Addition in Northwest Portland, 1881.
Papers relating to George Good
1873-1913
2
12