The
The Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and
Printed Ephemera
Henry Francis du Pont
5105 Kennett Pike, Winterthur,
Delaware 19735
Telephone: 302-888-4600 or 800-448-3883
OVERVIEW OF
THE COLLECTION
Creator: Selborne Farms, Inc.
Title: Corporation papers
Dates: 1914-1948
Call No.: Col. 965
Acc. No.: 10x110
Quantity: 4 boxes, 2 rolls
Location: 41 H 5 and rolled storage
BIOGRAPHICAL
STATEMENT
Selborne Farms, Inc. received its incorporation
certificate from the state of Delaware on May 21, 1914. It was formed in order to buy, hold, lease,
develop, and sell real estate. It also
proposed to acquire power plants, water-works, and gas-works in order to
provide utilities, and to raise livestock and crops. The original stock holders were Harry G.
Haskell, Henry M. Canby, and Christopher L. Ward. Henry Francis du Pont was also involved with
the corporation. A letter from 1946
stated that the corporation was originally formed to start a golf club.
The Selborne Land Company received its incorporation
certificate from the state of Delaware on June 23, 1914. It was formed in order to buy, hold, lease,
and sell real estate. The original stock
holders were Christopher L. Ward, Lawrence W. E. McCarthy, and M. E. Grubb.
The corporations came to own property near
Centreville, Delaware, part of which fronted along Kennett Pike. The property lay in both New Castle County,
Delaware, and Pennsbury township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. Although the corporation proposed building a
country club on the property, that never came to fruition, and the land was instead
rented to farmers.
SCOPE AND
CONTENT
Correspondence, tax returns, dividend receipts,
financial statements, receipts, some minutes from meetings of stockholders, and
other papers pertaining to the land owned by the corporation Selborne Farms. A booklet published in 1924 set out the
corporation’s plans for building a golf course/country club. Of especial interest are two plans from 1919,
Schemes A and B, showing proposed layouts of a country club. Scheme A, the more ambitious one, included a
club house, golf course, bowling green, polo field, tennis courts, a canoe
house, an open air theater, an orchard, and vegetable gardens. Scheme B eliminated the theater and
orchard. Both plans were drawn by Harold
Tattersall, a civil and landscape engineer in Wilmington, Delaware.
ORGANIZATION
Legal size files are in Box 4.
LANGUAGE OF
MATERIALS
The materials are in English.
RESTRICTIONS
ON ACCESS
Collection is open to the public. Copyright restrictions may apply.
PROVENANCE
Gift of Rodman Ward (grandson of Christopher L. Ward).
ACCESS POINTS
Topics:
Selborne Land Company.
Country clubs –
Design and construction.
Golf courses –
Delaware – Centreville.
Gold courses –
Design and construction.
Taxation – Delaware.
Taxation – Pennsylvania.
DETAILED
DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION
Location: 41 H 5 and rolled storage
Box 1:
Folder 1: Annual
reports for Delaware corporations, 1914, 1916-1917, 1926-1947
Folder 2: Bank
statements, 1944-1947
Folder 3: Capital
stock reports, 1926-1936
Folder 4: Capital
stock returns, 1926-1945
Folders 5-10: Correspondence,
1914-1935
Box 2:
Folders 1-3: Correspondence,
1936-1948
Folder 4: Delaware
state corporation returns, 1927-1928
Folders 5-6: Federal
income tax returns, 1926-1947
Folders 7-8: Financial
statements, 1920, 1926-1945
Folder 9: Miscellaneous
Folder 10: Minutes
of meetings
Box 3:
Folder 1: Officers,
directors, and stockholders of Selborne Farms
Folder 2: Real
estate: notes, plat maps
Folders 3-4: Receipts
and bills, 1917, 1928-1948 [many of these are for taxes]
Folder 5: Rent
bills, 1929-1943 [Selborne Farms charging rent for its property]
Folder 6: Schoolhouse
in Centreville: rental of property
Folder 7: Selborne
Club, Selborne Farms, Inc., 1924 [booklet]
Folder 8: Selborne
Farms, Inc.: audit, 1943
Folder 9: Selborne
Farms, Inc.: liquidation
Folder 10: Selborne
Farms, Inc.: organization and incorporation papers, 1914-1919
Folder 11: Selborne
Land Company: incorporation papers, 1914
Box 4: [legal
size files]
Folders 1-2: Dividend
notices and income records
Folder 3: Indentures
and mortgages
Folder 4: Insurance:
policies, some correspondence and bills
Folders 5-6: Pennsylvania:
various tax reports, 1935-1948
Folder 7: Profit
and loss statements, 1945-1948
Folder 8: Stock
certificates: book of cancelled certificates, 1946
Roll 1: Scheme A, Oct. 1919, by
Harold Tattersall, civil and landscape engineer, Wilmington, Delaware.
This is a
proposed scheme for developing the Selborne Farms property into a country club,
including a club house, golf course, bowling green, polo field, tennis courts,
a canoe house, an open air theater, an orchard, and vegetable gardens.
Note: brittle; handle with care; ask for assistance in unrolling in
order to prevent further damage.
Roll 2: Scheme B, Oct. 1919, by
Harold Tattersall, civil and landscape engineer, Wilmington, Delaware.
This is a
simpler proposed scheme for developing the Selborne Farms property into a
country club, including a club house, golf course, bowling green, polo field,
tennis courts, a canoe house, and vegetable gardens, but eliminating the open
air theater and orchard.
Note: brittle; handle with care; ask for assistance in unrolling in
order to prevent further damage.