Ralph E. and Elise C. Forbes Personal Financial Records 1896-1952 Offsite Storage Inventory The Ralph E. and Elise C. Forbes Personal Financial Records are stored offsite and must be requested at least one business day in advance. Contact the Library at library@masshist.org or (617) 536-1608 to request materials. Please discuss your request with the reading room staff before requesting cartons by barcode. There are restrictions on the use of this collection. Users must sign an agreement stating that they understand these restrictions before they will be given access to the collection.

Table of Contents Collection Summary Collection Description Acquisition Information Restrictions on Access Restrictions on Use Summary Description of the Collection Preferred Citation Access Terms

Collection Summary

Collection Description

The personal financial records of Ralph E. and Elise C. Forbes contain their personal bank (checking) and trust accounts, a joint household bank account, and their children's bank accounts. The majority of materials are in the form of checkbooks, cancelled checks and bank statements.

The papers are arranged by individual accounts: Ralph; Ralph and Elise joint account; Elise; and miscellaneous financial records, including children's accounts. Where applicable, within each group of accounts, the checkbooks, arranged in chronological order, are followed by the cancelled checks.

Ralph Forbes had a personal account at the Merchants National Bank; Elise used the State Street Trust Company. Personal accounts were used to pay for such things as personal services, subscriptions to books and newspapers, dues, gifts, charitable donations, clothes, medical care, and other home expenses. Money was transferred from the personal accounts to a joint household account at the Shawmut Bank. The household account paid for all service (paid employees), food, house upkeep and repair, fuel, electricity, telephone, laundry, car maintenance, gasoline, and miscellaneous. Accounts with these three banks, the Merchants National Bank, State Street Trust, and the Shawmut Bank form the bulk of the collection.

The Fiduciary Trust Company and the (Richardson) Capital and Investment Account are Elise Forbes accounts and include statements of her income, capital, and investments.

The Blue Hill Bank and Trust Company of Milton was used for children's checking accounts. Ralph Forbes transferred money from his personal account at Merchants National Bank to cover expenses at the Blue Hill Bank.

Also included are miscellaneous bills from 1945 and one checkbook apparently kept by Ralph Forbes, 1905, 1907-1908. This checkbook contains information regarding his stocks and interest earned.

Acquisition Information

Deposited by the J.M. Forbes Archives Committee, 1995. Ownership will devolve upon the Massachusetts Historical Society on January 1, 2050.

Restrictions on Access

The Ralph E. and Elise C. Forbes Personal Financial Records are stored offsite and must be requested at least one business day in advance. Contact the Library at library@masshist.org or (617) 536-1608 to request materials. Please discuss your request with the reading room staff before requesting cartons by barcode.

There are restrictions on the use of this collection. Users must sign an agreement stating that they understand these restrictions before they will be given access to the collection.

Restrictions on Use

The Massachusetts Historical Society does not claim ownership to the Ralph E. and Elise C. Forbes Personal Financial Records which have been placed on deposit at the Historical Society by the J. M. Forbes Archives Committee. The J.M. Forbes Family collection contains the private papers of a large extended family that retains copyright of the documents. Some materials in the collection refer to people still alive, or survived by children and grandchildren. A researcher planning to base major research on these documents is advised to consult the J.M. Forbes Family Archives Committee in advance.

The Massachusetts Historical Society cannot give permission to publish or cite documents by individuals for whom it does not hold literary rights. Use of the collection (including photocopying or any form of reproduction) does not imply permission to publish, all or in part, documents in the collection. It is the sole responsibility of the researcher to contact the Historical Society in writing to request permission to publish or cite documents in this collection. The Historical Society will then forward the formal written request to the J. M. Forbes Archives Committee.

Photocopies are for personal use only. Personal use photocopies may not be donated or deposited in other libraries or archives, or made available to other researchers without the written permission of the J. M. Forbes Archives Committee.

Summary Description of the Collection

Preferred Citation

Ralph E. and Elise C. Forbes personal financial records, Massachusetts Historical Society.

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.