Alex. Brown & Sons Records
Catalog Record: http://lccn.loc.gov/mm81014019
General International Standard for Archival Description
Manuscript Division Library of Congress Washington, D.C.
Text converted and initial EAD tagging provided by Apex Data Services, 1999 January; encoding completed by Manuscript Division, 2000
Encoded Archival Description
Encoded Archival Description (EAD) Version 2002
collection
Alex. Brown & Sons Records1796-1908 (bulk 1796-1884)
Alex. Brown & Sons
Biographical History for: Alex. Brown & Sons Records1796-1908 (bulk 1796-1884)
Organizational History Date Event 1800 Firm established in Baltimore, Md., by Alexander Brown (1764-1834) 1804 Alexander Brown (1764-1834) organized Baltimore Water Co. 1810 William Brown (1784-1864) sent to London, England, to establish firm of Brown Shipley & Co. 1818 John A. Brown (1788-1872) sent to Philadelphia, Pa., to found Brown Brothers Harriman and Company 1825 James Brown (1791-1877) sent to New York to found firm of Brown Brothers & Co. 1827 Alexander Brown (1764-1834) helped organize Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Brown v. Maryland decided in favor of Alex. Brown & Sons 1834 Alexander Brown (born 1764) died George Brown (1787-1859) named senior partner 1839 Alex. Brown & Sons became separate banking concern 1859 George Stewart Brown (1834-1890) named head of Baltimore, Md., house 1890 Alexander Brown (1858-1949) named senior partner 1924 Benjamin Howell Griswold (1858-1949) named head of firm 1946 Alexander B. Griswold (1907- ) succeeded his father as senior partner
Scope and Content Note The records of Alex. Brown & Sons span the years 1796-1908, with the bulk of the material dating from 1796 to 1884. Included are business records of successor companies, subsidiaries, and allied business. The records document the commercial and financial activities of Alexander Brown, his sons, and their successors, showing the development of their banking house in conjunction with extensive import-export operations, the building of ships and worldwide trade activities, and the building of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. They also reflect the company's change from a mercantile to an international banking house having connections with Brown, Shipley & Company of Liverpool, and with Brown Brothers & Company, of New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. The records are organized into the following series: Lettercopy Books, Letterpress Books, Daybooks, Cashbooks, Ledgers, Sterling Ledgers, Ledger Sight Bills, Journals, Sales Books, Waste Books, Accounts Current, Blotters, and Miscellany. The firm of Alex. Brown & Sons was founded by Alexander Brown, an Irish immigrant who came to Baltimore in 1797 and engaged in the mercantile business as an importer of Irish linen. The records are largely confined to the operations of the firm's outlets in Baltimore, which served as the American headquarters for the firm's chain of offices from 1800 to 1840. Lettercopy and letterpress books generally provide a continuous, daily record of the branch's outgoing correspondence with other offices in the organization and with the branch's out-of-town customers from 1800 to 1879. Letterbooks, in the collection contain detailed information concerning political, civil, and military affairs affecting the firm. The Lettercopy Books series, consisting of letters sent, includes records of the Falls and Brown Company, 1803-1804, and of Campbell McIlvaine & Company, 1830-1837. The Letterpress Books series is organized into three subseries. Set A includes records similar to those in the Lettercopy Books series and is distinguished from them chiefly by the copying method. Set B is comprised of letterpress copies of letters sent to Brown Shipley & Company, London, England. The letterpress copies in Set C are of letters sent to Brown Brothers & Company, Boston, New York, and Philadelphia offices. The collection also includes financial records in a variety of formats. Daybooks are daily journals of business transactions in the order of their occurrence. Cashbooks record money received and paid out, showing date of transaction, name of customer or client, description of the transaction, and amounts received and expended. Ledgers contain postings to accounts receivable and accounts payable; they include ledgers of Falls & Brown, Baltimore, 1796-1810. Sterling Ledgers contain postings to accounts receivable and accounts payable of Alex. Brown & Sons sterling operations. Ledger Sight Bills contain a record of journal postings by bill number. Journals contain daily entries from daybooks and blotters. Sales Books appear to be logs of customer sales. Waste Books are daily journals of business transactions in the order of their occurrence; one book is from Stewart Brown, Philadelphia, and Falls & Brown, Baltimore. Accounts Current appear to be summaries of accounts receivable and accounts payable. Account entries include account name, transaction date, and description. Blotters are daily journals of business transactions. The Miscellany series includes journals and ledgers of the Union Railroad Company sinking fund, credit rating and statements books, minute books of the Aransas Pass Harbor Company of which Brown and Sons Company was a bondholder and trustee, and of the Female Orphan Asylum, Baltimore. Also in the series is a book containing signatures of persons authorized to conduct business with Brown & Sons Company. The collection also includes records of other Brown family firms, such as the firms of Stewart Brown, of Philadelphia, an older brother of Alexander Brown, 22 April 1796- 30 May 1797; and of Moore Falls and Stewart Brown of the firm of Falls & Brown, of Baltimore, 1797-1810. These records are not necessarily noted specifically in the descriptions below
series
Lettercopy Books, 1802-1863
Copies of letters sent. Some volumes contain an alphabetical index of correspondents.
file
Dec. 1802-May 1804
Jan. 1803-Aug. 1804 (Falls & Brown)
Dec. 1810-May 1814
Apr. 1818-Apr. 1819
Apr. 1819-May 1820
June 1819-May 1821
Jan. 1822-Dec. 1823
Dec. 1823-Dec. 1825
Nov. 1823-Mar. 1831
Dec. 1825-May 1828
July 1826-July 1830
Mar. 1828-May 1831
July 1830-June 1832 (Campbell McIlvain & Co.)
Mar. 1831-Jan. 1836
May 1831-May 1833
June 1832-Jan. 1834 (Campbell McIlvain & Co.)
Dec. 1833-Sept. 1835
Jan. 1835-Nov. 1837 (Campbell McIlvain & Co.)
Sept. 1835-Jan. 1838
Jan. 1836-Aug. 1839
Jan. 1838-Apr. 1840
Aug. 1839-Apr. 1844
Apr. 1840-Sept. 1842
Oct. 1842-Oct. 1845
Apr. 1844-Dec. 1847
Oct. 1845-May 1851
Dec. 1847-May 1850
June 1850-Sept. 1853
May 1851-Apr. 1852
Jan. 1853-Mar. 1853
Mar. 1853-Sept. 1854
Sept. 1853-Apr. 1856
Apr. 1854-Jan. 1856
June 1856-Oct. 1857
May 1856-Oct. 1859
Oct. 1856-July 1859
July 1859-Feb. 1861
Oct. 1859-Apr. 1863
Mar. 1861-Jan. 1863
Jan. 1863-May 1863
Letterpress Books, 1841-1880
subseries
Letterpress copies of letters sent. Some volumes contain an alphabetical index of correspondents.
July 5, 1841-Mar. 8, 1845
Dec. 19, 1867-July 15, 1868
July 16, 1868-Mar. 31, 1869
Mar. 4, 1870-July 5, 1870
July 6, 1870-Nov. 21, 1870
Feb. 17, 1871-June 16, 1871
June 16, 1871-Nov. 11, 1871
Feb. 24, 1872-June 27, 1872
June 27, 1872-Oct. 18, 1872
May 20, 1874-Sept. 10, 1874
Apr. 20, 1875-July 28, 1875
July 29, 1875-Oct. 26, 1875
June 17, 1876-Oct. 9, 1876
May 15, 1877-Sept. 3, 1877
Sept. 3, 1877-Dec. 22, 1877
Apr. 5, 1878-July 12, 1878
July 12, 1878-Nov. 4, 1878
Feb. 21, 1879-June 18, 1879
June 18, 1879-Oct. 27, 1879
Letterpress copies of letters sent to Brown Shipley & Co., London, England. Some volumes contain an alphabetical index of correspondents.
Nov. 24, 1868-July 2, 1869
July 6, 1869-Jan. 28, 1870
Feb. 1, 1870-Sept. 2, 1870
Sept. 6, 1870-Mar. 7, 1871
Jan. 23, 1872-June 14, 1872
June 14, 1872-Nov. 8, 1872
Letterpress copies of letters sent to Brown Brothers & Co., Boston, Mass., New York, N.Y., and Philadelphia, Pa., offices. Some volumes contain an alphabetical index of correspondents.
June 21, 1865-May 21, 1866
May 23, 1866-June 15, 1867
Jan. 3, 1872-Sept. 26, 1872
Sept. 27, 1872-May 12, 1873
Dec. 11, 1873-July 29, 1874
July 30, 1874-Mar. 19, 1875
Oct. 24, 1878-July 14, 1879
July 15, 1879-Mar. 31, 1880
Daybooks, 1800-1867
Daily journals of business transactions in the order of their occurrence showing store location, date of transaction, folio number, name of customer or client, nature of transaction, description of merchandise, quantities, and amounts received and expended.
Cashbooks, 1829-1876
Record of money received and paid out showing date of transaction, name of customer or client, transaction description, and amounts received and expended.
Ledgers, 1796-1878
Volumes contain postings to accounts receivable and accounts payable. Account entries include account name, transaction date, description of transaction, folio number, and amounts credited and debited. Some volumes contain alphabetical indexes of account, customer, and client names.
1796-1810 (Falls & Brown, Baltimore, Md.)
Sterling Ledgers, 1867-1876
Volumes are labeled "supplementary sterling ledgers" and appear to contain postings to accounts receivable and accounts payable of Alex. Brown & Sons sterling operations. Entries include account name, transaction date, description of transaction, folio number, and amounts credited and debited. Some volumes contain alphabetical indexes of account, customer, and client names.
Ledger Sight Bills, 1852-1884
Contains a record of journal postings by bill number. Entries include transaction date, bill number, date paid, amount paid, and folio number.
Journals, 1824-1848
Volumes contain daily entries from daybooks and blotters. Entries include folio number, date of transaction, transaction description, and amounts credited or debited.
1837, Apr.-Sept.
Sales Books, 1824-1838
Volumes appear to be logs of customer sales. Entries include folio number, date of transaction, name of customer, description of merchandise, quantities purchased, and amount of money received.
Waste Books, 1796-1806
Daily journals of business transactions in the order of their occurrence. Entries for each transaction include folio number, date, nature of transaction, name of customer or client, and amounts received and expended.
Apr. 1796-Dec.1806 (Stewart Brown, Philadelphia, Pa., and Falls & Brown, Baltimore, Md.)
Oct. 1796-Dec. 1802
Accounts Current, 1826-1881
Volumes appear to be summaries of accounts receivable and accounts payable. Account entries include account name, transaction date, description of transaction, and amounts credited and debited. Some volumes contain alphabetical indexes of account, customer, and client names.
Blotters, 1805-1839
Miscellany, 1802-1908
Union Railroad Company Sinking Fund Journals and Ledgers, 1870-1886
Journals and ledgers for ground rent accounts held by trustees of the sinking fund of the Union Railroad Co., Baltimore, Md. Volume entries include date of transaction, account number, description of transaction, and amounts debited and credited.
Journal, 1871-1886
Ledger, 1871-1872
Ground rents, 1870-1875
Credit Rating Book, undated
Single volume denoting credit worthiness of customers and clients. Entries show date, customer or client name, and opinion concerning ability to pay, business practices, and reliability.
Statements Book No. 9, 1899-1900
Letterpress copies of customers' statements of account containing date, customer name and address, description of merchandise purchased, quantities, and amounts credited and debited to account. Volume also contains weekly financial statements of Alex. Brown & Sons sterling operations and an alphabetical index of customers.
Aransas Pass Harbor Company Minute Book, 1897-1908
Contains minutes of meetings and copies of resolutions adopted by the board of trustees of the Aransas Pass Harbor Co., Aransas Pass, Tex., of which Brown & Sons Co. was a bondholder and trustee. Laid in are correspondence, resolutions, notes, lists, and agreements concerning acquisition of Aransas Harbor City & Improvement Co., Aransas Pass, Tex.
Female Orphan Asylum Minute Book, 1802-1857
Single volume containing minutes of meetings of the board of directors of the Female Orphan Asylum, Baltimore, Md. Also included are financial reports and a newspaper clipping concerning the founding of the organization.
Signature Book, circa 1871-1888
Contains signatures of persons authorized to conduct business with Brown & Sons Co. and includes letters of introduction, business cards, receipts, and signatures cut and pasted from other documents. Items entered alphabetically by name of customer or client, although some entries are not in proper order.