Creator:	Davenport, Peters Company (Boston, Mass.)
Title:	Davenport, Peters Company records
Dates:	1811-1991
Physical Description:	5 cartons (stored offsite) and 1 extra tall vol. (stored onsite).
Call Number:	OFFSITE STORAGE
Call Number:	Ms. N-232 (XT) (onsite only)
Repository:	Massachusetts Historical Society 1154 Boylston Street Boston, MA 02215 library@masshist.org

Abstract:

This collection consists of records of the Davenport, Peters Co., a Boston-based lumber company founded in 1811. It includes historical materials, business records, product and price lists, financial records, legal documents, and scrapbooks.

Table of Contents

Historical Sketch

The Davenport, Peters Co. was founded in 1811 by Edward D. Peters. Peters was sent by Maine lumber manufacturers, unhappy with the prices they were getting by using ship captains to sell their lumber, to serve as their agent in Boston. For fifty years, Edward D. Peters and E.D. Ellicott operated the firm as a wholesale lumber business. In 1877 the company fell into tough economic times "and the original company went out of business, the entity later to survive as the George H. Peters Company. This later became Davenport & Peters, a partnership," finally incorporating in 1903. In control of the corporation in March of 1990, Mr. H. Pratt and Mr. D. Mittell, changed the name to Alan, Watson Co., Inc. allowing Mr. Richard Clasby to cause Lawrence R. McCoy and Co. of Worcester, Massachusetts to use the name as a division of their company. The Lawrence R. McCoy & Co. is a large wholesaler in the United States.

The Davenport, Peters Co. is an example of how the lumber industry developed in the United States. When the company was organized in 1811, business was conducted largely by water on small coastal schooners. Although the company saw financial hardship at times, the business grew and the mode of transportation of lumber changed to large vessels and rail cars. Railroads bypassed water transportation by 1950. The growth of the business was also due to the owners expertise in marketing and financing, thus: enabling the company to become the key supplier of the major industrial companies in New England.

As of 1992 the Davenport, Peters Co. remains a Boston-based marketer of domestic and imported forest products, such as wood gutters, white cedar shingles, oak flooring, stair parts, and specialty plywood. The company distributes products primarily to specialized lumber buyers: i.e., industrial, dealer or wholesaler in the Northeast, though its scope has become wider in recent years. The Bailey & Delano Lumber Company of Boston became an affiliate of the Davenport, Peters Co. in 1965.

Table of Contents

Sources

August 21, 1986 letter to David Mittell. The Davenport, Peters Co. records.

December 18, 1990 letter by David Mittell. The Davenport, Peters Co. records.

Table of Contents

Collection Description

The records of the Davenport, Peters Co., are divided into four series: Historical Materials, 1935-1991; Business Records, 1811-1986; Scrapbooks, 1876-1928; and Bound Volumes, 1875-1959. Photographs, which were interspersed within the collection, have been removed to be housed with the MHS photograph collection. Photocopies have been left in place of the original photographs. Copies of logging photographs, housed at the Forest History Society at Duke University, are included with the Historical Materials.

Table of Contents

Related Materials

The Massachusetts Historical Society (MHS) holds the following collections related to the Davenport. Peter Company records:

Davenport, Peters Company photographs, ca. 1915-1983. Photo. Coll. 130.

Table of Contents

Arrangement

Files that consisted solely of Dun & Bradstreet financial reports were removed from the collection. A list of these companies, along with the city, state and years of the reports that were contained in the file, has been placed at the beginning of the credit correspondence files. The files were removed because the information contained in Dun & Bradstreet financial reports is readily accessible in published format.

Table of Contents

Acquisition Information

The records were deposited at the society by David Mittell in June 1991. Additional materials were transferred from the Forest History Society in December 1991. The records were donated to the society in December 1992.

Table of Contents

Organization of the Collection

The collection is organized into the following series:


	I. Historical materials, 1935-1991
	II. Business records, 1811-1986
		A. General business records, 1811-1986
		B. Financial documents, 1924-1964
		C. Legal documents, 1906-1972
	III. Scrapbooks, 1876-1928
	IV. Bound volumes, 1875-1959

Table of Contents

Detailed Description of the Collection


Carton	Barcode	Contents
Carton 1	SH 13F3 O	I. Historical materials, 1935-1991 Includes historical publications produced by the Davenport, Peters Co. in 1971 and 1981. Correspondence, 1935-1991, provides historical information about the company and its respective families. Additional historical materials may be found in the scrapbooks.
			Table of Contents


Carton	Barcode	Contents
		II. Business Records, 1811-1986 The general business records, 1811-1986 consists of personal correspondence by Edward D. Peters and George H. Peters; product and price lists, 1811-1964; and credit correspondence. There is one file folder that contains general credit information from the years 1926-1934, however the bulk of the files, 1965-1986, are arranged alphabetically by company name. Correspondence with Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts discussing the general business climate of the mid 1970's is located in the Standard Sash and Door Company file. Financial documents consist of audit reports, 1924-1930. Legal documents, 1906-1964, include personnel files such as employee contracts, resignations, and commission agreements. Also included in the legal document section are the papers of the Bailey & Delano Lumber Corporation. The Davenport, Peters Co. purchased the stock of the company in 1965. Items pertaining to the Bailey & Delano Lumber Corp. are also included within the scrapbooks.
			A. General Business Records, 1811-1986
Carton 1	SH 13F3 O			Edward D. Peters correspondence, 1824
Carton 1	SH 13F3 O			George H. Peters correspondence, 1883
Carton 1	SH 13F3 O			Lists, prices & products, 1811-1964
Carton 1	SH 13F3 O			Credit correspondence, A-E
Carton 2	SH 13F4 P			Credit correspondence, F-M
Carton 3	SH 13F5 Q			Credit correspondence, N-Y
			B. Financial documents, 1924-1964
Carton 4	SH 13F6 R			Audit reports, 1924-1930, 1959-1960, 1963-1964
			C. Legal documents, 1906-1972
Carton 4	SH 13F6 R			Indemnity agreement 1906
Carton 4	SH 13F6 R			Personnel files, 1929-1961
Carton 4	SH 13F6 R			Will of G. Gorham Peters, 1936
Carton 4	SH 13F6 R			Stock Purchase plan, 1963
Carton 4	SH 13F6 R			Bailey & Delano Lumber Corp. papers, 1949-1972
					Table of Contents


Carton	Barcode	Contents
Carton 4	SH 13F6 R	III. Scrapbooks, 1876-1989 Consists of three scrapbooks, 1876-1989. The contents of these scrapbooks are quite diversified and some overlapping of information occurs. Scrapbook one dates from 1876-1928. Of interest are signed but mass produced letters from members of the House of Representatives in 1910, including Henry C. Lodge and the Gov. of Louisiana, J.Y. Sanders. These all are connected with the site of the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition. The second and third scrapbooks were compiled in the 1970's and 1980's respectively, but do contain earlier information as well.
			Table of Contents


Carton	Barcode	Contents
		IV. Bound volumes, 1875-1959 Includes the letterbook of Edward D. Peters, 1876-1881, Board of Director and stockholder records, ledgers, and other financial records.
Carton 4	SH 13F6 R		Edward D. Peters letterbook, 1876-1881
Carton 5	SH 13F7 S		Order/Shipment ledger, 1905-1920
Carton 5	SH 13F7 S		Cash ledger, 1875-1894
Carton 5	SH 13F7 S		Records: Board of Directors, 1906-1943
Carton 5	SH 13F7 S		Records: Stockholder, 1906-1959
Carton 5	SH 13F7 S		Financial ledger, 1920-1941
Carton 5	SH 13F7 S		Salesmen figures, 1923-1934
Carton 5	SH 13F7 S		Employee commissions, 1926-1929
			Accounts receivable, 1932-1943 1 extra tall volume Stored ONSITE at Ms. N-232 (XT)

Table of Contents

Preferred Citation

Davenport, Peters Company records, Massachusetts Historical Society.

Table of Contents

Access Terms

This collection is indexed under the following headings in ABIGAIL, the online catalog of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related persons, organizations, or subjects should search the catalog using these headings.


	Persons:
		Peters, Edward Dyer.


	Organizations:
		Edward D. Peters and Company (Boston, Mass.).


	Subjects:
		Account books.
		Business enterprises--Massachusetts--Boston.
		Lumber trade--Massachusetts--Boston.
		Scrapbooks--1876-1989.

Table of Contents

Photographs Removed from the Collection

Photographs have been removed from this collection to the Davenport, Peters Company photographs, ca. 1915-1983. Photo. Coll. 130.

Table of Contents

http://www.masshist.org/findingaids/doc.cfm?fa=fa0106
Send reference questions to library@masshist.org.

Collection processed by Elizabeth J. Krimmel, December 1992.
Revised Jan. 2005
Encoded by Aimée Primeaux, September 2004

Massachusetts Historical Society
1154 Boylston Street (directions)
Boston, MA 02215-3695
Tel: 617.536.1608
Fax: 617.859.0074

Terms and Conditions
Online Privacy Policy
E-Mail Newsletter
Feedback