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: William L. Richmond &
Co. (Hopkinton, R.I.)
Title: Business papers
Dates: 1843-1850
Call No.: Col. 1010
Acc. No.: 2019x53
Quantity: 86 items (5 folders)
Location: 34 J 6
BIOGRAPHICAL
STATEMENT
William L. Richmond & Co. was a textile
manufacturing firm in Hopkinton, Washington County, Rhode Island. The principal of the firm was William Leavens
Richmond, born in Connecticut in 1814, the son of Marcia Leavens and Silas
Richmond. His brother George Waldo
Richmond (born 1817) was associated with him in the firm. William Richmond died in Holyoke,
Massachusetts, in 1896. Nothing was
learned about the firm, other than what the papers in this collection reveal.
SCOPE AND
CONTENT
Collection of business papers addressed to the
textile manufacturing firm William L. Richmond & Co. of the town of Hopkinton,
Rhode Island, with many of the letters addressed to Brand’s Iron Works, which
was an area of Hopkinton. The firm wove
cotton cloth, apparently mostly sheeting and batts. The letters often discussed the quality of
the sheetings being woven; the quality of the cotton bales being purchased for
the mill; or overdue bills. Several
letters concern the purchase of textile manufacturing equipment, such as looms,
mules, cards, and speeders. Some letters
mention of the slowness of the economy; one expressed the hope that a new Whig
administration would encourage an upswing in the economy. Richmond & Co. could be slow in paying
its bills, and this caused distress to the people to whom it owed money. A few letters and invoices mentioned the
purchase of food items, such as dried apples, raisins, flour, and corn [perhaps
cornmeal was meant]. The collection
includes a group of invoices from the Providence Dyeing, Bleaching and
Calendering Company, listing quantities of goods calendered for Richmond &
Co.
ORGANIZATION
The invoices and the correspondence are in separate
folders; each group is in chronological order.
LANGUAGE OF
MATERIALS
The materials are in English.
RESTRICTIONS
ON ACCESS
Collection is open to the public. Copyright restrictions may apply.
PROVENANCE
Purchased
from Michael Brown Rare Books.
RELATED MATERIALS
A
dye book kept by William Cory Snow of the Providence Dyeing, Bleaching and
Calendering Co. is found in this repository, call number Col. 50, acc.
2017x85.77.
ACCESS POINTS
Topics:
Providence Dyeing, Bleaching
and Calendering Co.
Business
correspondence.
Cotton.
Cotton textile
industry - Rhode Island.
Textile
finishing.
Textile machinery.
Textile
manufacturers - Rhode Island.
Invoices.
DETAILED
DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION
Location: 34 J
6
All accession numbers begin with 2019x53.
Most items are addressed to W.L. Richmond & Co. with
some to W.L. & G.W. Richmond, and
others simply to W.L. Richmond.
Folder 1: Invoices
and other financial papers, 1843-1849
.1-.15 invoices from Providence Dyeing, Bleaching
and Calendering Company, Providence, Rhode Island, June 9, 1843-March 17, 1845,
plus two partial invoices, not dated, all except one are addressed to W.L.
& G.W. Richmond, Brands Iron-works, Richmond, R.I. (the remaining one is
addressed only to W.L.. Richmond):
The invoices are for calendering
textiles; work was done for Hopkinton Mills and for Constitutional.
[printed forms]
.16 bill from Richmond & Clark, Providence,
with short letter dated June 30, 1845; unable to discern what the bill was for
.17 bill from Oliver Johnson, March 17, 1847,
for tobacco, dried apples, lead, window glass, and other goods
.18 bill from Oliver Johnson, Providence,
April 29, 1847, for pain killer, Godfreys cordial, cream of tarter, Epsom
salts, essences of peppermint and wintergreen, croup syrup, snuff, shuttles,
tea, sugar, lead, and other goods, which were shipped by railroad
.19 notice from public notary to W.L.
Richmond & Co. that a note endorsed by it had not been paid, done for the
Eagle Bank, Nov. 4, 1847
[printed form]
.20 bill from N. T. Morse, Providence,
January 1, 1848: for sundries, Aug.-Oct. 1847
.21 notice from public notary to W.L.
Richmond & Co. that a note endorsed by it had not been paid, done for the
Eagle Bank, August 18, 1848
[printed form]
.22 notice from public notary to W.L.
Richmond & Co. that a note endorsed by it had not been paid, done for the
City Bank, August 18, 1848
[printed form]
.23 notice from public notary to W.L.
Richmond & Co. that a note endorsed by it had not been paid, done for the
Merchant[?] Bank, January 23, 1849
[printed form]
.24 invoice of goods, from Providence Dying
[sic], Bleaching & Calendering Co., Providence, January 23, 1849, for
calendering brown sheeting and burlap;
Inside: short letter from W. C.
[William Cory] Snow about delivery of goods;
[printed
billhead]
.25 invoice of goods, from Providence Dying
[sic], Bleaching & Calendering Co., Providence, March 6, 1849, for
calendering brown sheeting and burlap
Inside: short letter from W. C.
[William Cory] Snow about delivery of goods;
[printed
billhead]
Folder 2: Incoming correspondence, 1844
[Some letters
are addressed to W.L. & G.W. Richmond, but most are to William L. Richmond
or to W.L. Richmond & Co.]
.26 from Read & Chadwick, Boston, April
15, 1844: about looms and loom parts
.27 from H. Blashfield, Boston, May 11, 1844:
not able to get out to sell his looms, but if go to Killingly, Norman Kelley
can assist him; he might also sell jenny mules
.28 from Oliver Johnson, Providence, May 13,
1844: about an order for dried apples, raisins, and something else; Mr. Sanford
of North Kingston might sell looms
.29 from Asa Pierce, Providence, May 17,
1844: Mr. Bancroft will be there to take dimensions for main shafting of the
new Hopkinton Mill
.30 from John Davis, Methuen, May 31, 1844: sending
cards and some kind of box via railroad
.31 from Tenney & Cowles, Boston, June 1,
1844, letter to William Richmond, but sent to Silas Richmond, postmaster:
thinks a customer for his looms has been found
.32 from Read & Chadwick, Boston, June 4,
1844: when shall we ship your looms? Do
you want the other articles [loom parts]?
Inside: bill for cards
and shipping
.33 from John Davis, Methuen, June 5, 1844:
send cards and boxes of parts belonging to them
.34 from Read & Chadwick, Boston, June
19, 1844: about looms and other equipment (such as treadle irons, picker
pulleys, etc.) necessary for a mill;
Inside: bill for dressers,
section beams, looms with loom beans, and shipping
.35 from Methuen Company, John Davis, agent,
by W. Thaxter, Methuen, July 25, 1844: shipping copper heads for dressers and
other goods
.36 from John Davis, agent, Methuen, August
9, 1844: have shipped dresser brushers;
Penciled inside: work
done by Joseph Church (nothing to do with Davis’ letter)
.37 from Read & Chadwick, Boston, August
23, 1844: adjustment to bill
.38 from Asa Pierce, Providence, September
21, 1844: Mr. Shaw coming to make a finish of the shafting; inquires if the
store cellar is finished; printing cloths had fallen in price but are now
rising again; severe drought causing mills to close
.39 from A.D. & J.Y. Smith, Providence,
December 5, 1844: accept offer on speeder; gives directions to Willimantic; can
have as many bobbins as wish;
Inside: copy of order
from Smiths to Whiting Hayden, Willimantic, Conn., requesting him to deliver
belted speeder and bobbins to Richmond & Co.
.40 from Joseph T. Barber, Hopkinton,
December 10, 1844: writing on behalf of Miss Laura Tefft: her brother
threatened her that she had to come work for Richmond, which she finally agreed
to do, but now has changed her mind because she had promised Shepardson to work
there until spring
Folder 3: Incoming correspondence, 1845
[Some letters are addressed
to W.L. & G.W. Richmond, but most are to William L. Richmond or to W.L.
Richmond & Co.]
.41 from Oliver Johnson, by Daniel Remington,
Providence, February 3, 1845: have sold bales of the company’s goods; please
send more
.42 from Charles F. Tillinghast, Providence,
February 15, 1845: Mrs. Low disappointed that her note was protested for
non-payment; please attend to this
.43 from Asa Pierce, Providence, March 29,
1845: please bring orders and receipts when you meet with Mrs. Low; mentions
that an old mill was burned
.44 from Oliver Johnson, by Daniel Remington,
Providence, April 10, 1845: please send bales of goods by first team
.45 from Oliver Johnson, by Daniel Remington,
Providence, April 14, 1845: if haven’t already done so, send bales of goods
to Narragansett Print Works, East
Greenwich, by train
.46 from Oliver Johnson, by Daniel Remington,
Providence, May 14, 1845: send some more bales to Narragansett Print Works;
last shipment not as handsome as previously; advises use of 60 picks in making
the goods
.47 from Nathaniel G. Helm, Providence, May
22, 1845: needs to know weight of old iron so can determine what kind of team
to send to haul it
.48 from E. & J. Seay[illegible],
Providence, July 15, 1845: do not plan to increase their output “for it is our
opinion there is more of this kind of good making than will be wanted”
.49 from J. H. Gilbert & Co., Peekskill,
N.Y., August 22, 1845: will not be able to ship his order until next week;
With addition: from
H.[?] Torrey Gilbert: message delivered to Morris; mentions someone had a face
ache, but rest are “well as usual”
.50 from J. H. Gilbert & Co., Peekskill,
September 19, 1845: did the forge arrive safely? do they like it? do they think they can make it to sale?
.51 from Oliver Johnson, Providence, October
27, 1845: copies a letter from a customer, who had bought Richmond’s printing
cloths; the goods were not the quality the customer had expected; Johnson
recommends that Richmond improve the quality of his goods
.52 from Wm. S. Spencer, Lippitt, R.I.,
November 24, 1845: has only received a small part of the goods for which he had
contracted
Folder 4: Incoming correspondence, 1846-1847
[most letters are addressed to
W.L. Richmond & Co., with a few to William L. Richmond]
.53 from Oliver Johnson, by Daniel Remington,
Providence, February 9, 1846: asks that Richmond & Co. examine the bales of
cotton which they recently brought away from Johnson’s to see if some bales not
belonging to them were taken by mistake
.54 from Oliver Johnson, by Daniel Remington,
Providence, May 28, 1846: advises them to make their goods with 56 picks as
that is what buyers want; believes print goods will begin to sell soon
.55 from Caleb Mosher, Jr., Boston, June 25,
1846: inquires if Richmond still has speeder, mules, or other machinery for
sale; gives list of machinery he has and their prices
.56 from Henry Barton & Co., Providence,
December 3, 1846: sent Richmond’s goods to Oliver Johnson since he had neglected
to provide another address
.57 from Oliver Johnson, by Daniel Remington,
Providence, December 5, 1846: have sold pieces of goods and needs Richmond to
send them as soon as receives this letter
.58 from Laughlin & Avery, New York,
December 9, 1846: he sells cotton sheetings, twine, ticking, batts, yarn, and
carpet warps on consignment; brown sheetings are easiest to sell, then batts,
then twine
.59 from Isaac F. Kirby, per Leonard W.
[illegible], New York, January 8, 1847: requests prompt payment of bill
.60 from [?] Low[?], Providence, January 9,
1847: asks for settlement of a note
.61a-b from Lewis Leavens, New York, January 24,
1847: about getting payments from various people, and batts; in awaiting
payment, “my patience is about exhausted”;
.62 from Laughlin & Avery, New York,
February 20, 1847: do not wish to accept his draft as Richmond did not ask
permission to send it and they do not know his company well enough to know if
he is good for it
.63 from J.H. Mason & Son, per Geo.
Lewis, Providence, February 26, 1847: bales of cloth received, but one torn,
probably because it was not bagged; believe cloths will be lower; am getting in
cottons of the grade Richmond uses
.64 from John H. Mason & Son, Providence,
October 5, 1847: about the Godfrey note
.65 from William Lemons[?], Peekskill,
November 29, 1847: am tired of waiting for a draft from Richmond, and this is
causing difficulties in his business; Richmond’s father was always honest in
his dealings; please pay bill immediately
Folder 5: Incoming correspondence, 1848-1850 and no
date
[most letters are addressed to
W.L. Richmond & Co., with a few to William L. Richmond]
.66 from Lewis Leavens, postmarked New York,
January 13, endorsed Jan. 18, 1848: was determined to demand his money when he
visited Richmond, but his courage failed him, and he is suffering from lack of
money; Lewis’s father will be “hopping mad” because he hasn’t gotten the money;
please write immediately about this
.67 from John H. Mason & Son, Providence,
June 3, 1848: sending bales of cotton, one of which includes a sample of a bale
of fals-packed[?] cotton; price of cotton has gone up
.68 from John H. Mason & Son, Providence,
June 5, 1848: the goods are not the quality that was contracted for
.69 from John H. Mason & Son, Providence,
June 10, 1848: have sent cotton and enclose bill; more about a transaction
.70 from Lewis Leavens, New York, June 28,
1848: disappointed in Richmond’s recent letter; mentions a current panic and
his financial distress because of Richmond’s non-payment
.71 from Thos. C. Gladding, Providence, June
30, 1848: encloses account for flour and corn
.72 from Joseph [illegible]cet, Providence,
endorsed July 1, 1848: encloses his account, which is long overdue; requests
prompt payment
.73 from John H. Mason & Son, Providence,
September 21, 1848: advises Richmond to come see Mrs. Low now as need to set a
time; father has been ill
.74 from John H. Mason & Son, Providence,
September 28, 1848: father still ill and eager to see business settled; mentions
Wheeler; cannot give him any more money
.75 from Russel Wheeler, North Stonington,
October 6, 1848: saw Mr. Thayer about selling mules [machinery, not animals] to
Richmond; reviews accounts; let me know when you and Mason will be at Mr.
Dixon’s at Westerly
.76 from Russel Wheeler, North Stonington,
October 18, 1848: when ordering cotton from New York, must allow 6 days for
shipping; cotton is not shipped on steamboats but on sailing ships; mentions
state elections and anticipation of Whig administration after national election;
would like to see Richmond before he [Wheeler] goes to New York
.77 from Russel Wheeler, North Stonington,
December 1, 1848: received invoice, but knows nothing of the whereabouts of the
bales entrusted to Mr. Brown or what Brown was
to do with them; has agreement with Tefft to take cotton to Richmond;
hasn’t kept record of contract with Randall; please advise what kind of cotton
he should buy for Richmond; prefers flat bales, but sometimes round bales are
cheaper
.78 from Charles Dyer, Jr., Providence,
December 20, 1848: enclosed is his account
.79 from Watuppa Manufacturing Co., by Linden
Cook, Fall River, August 24, 1849: would like Richmond to send someone to
supervise shipping of his eight ring harness from Cook’s company to his factory
.80 from Russel Wheeler, North Stonington,
July 17, 1849: encloses invoice for cotton, and copies a letter from R. &
D.M. Stebbins & Co. of New York, which bought the cotton for Wheeler;
Stebbins letter: purchased
Apalachicola cotton; have noticed a difference in his sheetings, and they are
less desirable; little trade right now
.81 from Henry Cushing & Co., Providence,
July 27, 1849: please pay your note
.82 from P.D.B. & Calendering Co. [Providence
Dyeing, Bleaching and Calendering Co.] per W. C. Snow, Providence, August 22,
1849: please pay your bill
.83 from Charles Dyer, Jr., Providence,
December 22, 1849: please pay your bill
.84 from Alexander F. Adie, Providence,
December 24, 1849: bill for merchandise, etc., and request that Richmond pay
his bill
.85 from [?] B. Darling & Co.,
Providence, April 7, 1850: does Richmond intend to pay his bill for corn and
flour?
.86 from Oliver Johnson, , by Daniel
Remington, no place, no date (and no postmark): enclosed is a bill from Wom[illegible]
Co.; sends bales of cotton; has been displeased with quality of some of the
cotton