Rutherford B. Hayes Collections

(Description ID: 594062)

Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums

Pemiscot Land & Cooperage Company

HAYES-29

Introduction
Agency History
Scope and Content
Inventory

Introduction
Pemiscot Land & Cooperage business records are part of the Hayes Family Papers. The original owners, Jacob Weirman and John Worst, eventually took in Samuel Brinkerhoff as a partner. After Brinkerhoff's death in 1906, his shared devolved to his widow, Mary Miller Brinkerhoff. Hayes. After her marriage to Webb C. Hayes in 1912, the company became a Hayes family concern for the next forty years. Upon Weirman's death, in 1900, John M. Sherman became a partner. His partnership continued with the company until his death in 1931. At that time, Webb C. Hayes II replaced Sherman as president.

Agency History
In the early 1890's, Jacob Weirman and John Worst set up a partnership in undeveloped Pemiscot County, Missouri to produce barrel staves from timber cut from land they either owned or leased for that purpose. After clearing the timber, the company rented the land to local farmers for crop land. Weirman and Worst offered Samuel Brinkerhoff, of Fremont, Ohio, shares in the company to acquire more capital and management ability. The partners also owned Omo Manufacturing Company, a barrel heading manufacturer, and the Maorak Land and Timber Company, a sawmill business, the Pemiscot Ginning & Mercantile Company, a cotton ginning business, and Pemiscot Abstract & Investment Company, a business that provided land title and abstract services. The partners chartered and constructed the St. Louis, Caruthersville & Memphis Railroad, decreasing the cost of shipping and providing the company with reliable rail service. The short line was sold in 1902 to the St. Louis, Memphis, & Southeastern Railroad. John Sherman of Fremont, Ohio gained an interest in the company in 1900 at the death of Jacob Weirman. The partnership became Worst, Sherman, & Brinkerhoff. The early 1900's was a time of rapid change within the company. In 1902, the partnership purchased Moark Land & Timber, and, in 1903, it entered into a marketing agreement with Ozark Cooperage Company. Ozark handled all sales on commission. The focus of the business expanded in 1904 to include renting land to tenant farmers or selling land if a profit could be realized. The partnership incorporated in 1905 as an Ohio company doing business in Missouri. From that time, the company became known as Pemiscot Land & Cooperage. Brinkerhoff, who died in 1906, was succeeded by John Worst as president. Brinkerhoff's share passed to his widow, Mary Miller Brinkerhoff. The company installed a drying kiln that failed to function adequately, beginning a lawsuit against Houk that remained unresolved for more than ten years. The uninsured Omo plant burned in 1908. After deciding not to rebuild, the owners placed the land and machinery up for sale. In 1911, Pemiscot ended its dealings with Ozark Cooperage. Mary Brinkerhoff married Webb C. Hayes the following year. By 1915, the timber operations had been curtailed and the emphasis was placed on crops: corn, cotton, and alfalfa. In 1920, Worst died, leaving his son, L. C. Worst, a stockholder. John Sherman took over the presidency. When Mary Miller Hayes turned over her shares in the company to the Union Trust of Cleveland as part of her numerous trusts, J. C. Armstrong of Union Trust, became a vice-president. In 1931, John Sherman died and was replaced by Webb C. Hayes II as president. By this time, the cotton gin had become the primary concern of the corporation. During the Depression, the cotton market became severely depressed. Government loans served as the main source of financing the tenants. Many land contract sales were canceled with the land reverting to Pemiscot. A new company, Pemiscot Ginning & Mercantile Company was established in 1935. This wholly-owned subsidiary of the Pemiscot Land & Cooperage Company began operations in the fall of 1935. An alfalfa mill was considered in 1937, rejected, considered again in 1941, and again rejected. In 1946, the directors voted to explore liquidation of the company. Carl Bloker, company secretary and general manager, began selling land in 1947. Most sold quickly. The cotton gin and the remaining land sold in 1948. The company was officially dissolved in 1951.

Scope and Content
The largest record group, comprising approximately one third of the collection, is the business correspondence of Brinkerhoff, Bloker, and other principals of the company from 1894 to 1951. The bulk of the collection dates primarily from 1894 to 1906, the years representing Brinkerhoff's involvement in Pemiscot, and from 1931 to 1948, those years when Webb C. Hayes II became president of the corporation. Stock records, minutes of stockholder and directors' meetings; deeds, leases, and other land records; financial records, including reports, monthly and annual statements, production records, cost estimates, payroll records, canceled checks, cash books; and sales material comprised of invoices, vouchers, including prices and estimations of barrel staves, and contracts for timber, staves, and land. Of particular interest are those documents, financial records, and correspondence concerning the organization and construction of the St. Louis, Caruthersville, and Memphis Railroad. The collection also contains legal documents and correspondence concerning the Houk lawsuit. There is also extensive material related to the agricultural operations of the company, including sales agreements, leases, and production and price records of the cotton gin.

Inventory
16 linear ft. 

Box 1

Correspondence: 1897 - April 1904

Box 2

Correspondence May 1904 - March 1906

Box 3

Correspondence: April 1906 - 1911

Box 4

Correspondence: 1912 - 1932

Box 5

Correspondence: 1933 - 1953

Box 6 - Stock Records

1. Organizational Records
2. Stockholders
3. Capital Stock Contracts
4. Stock Certificates: #1 - #50
5. Stock Certificates: #51 - #99
6. Stock Certificates: #100 - #200
7. Stock Certificates: #201 - #298
8. Stockholders' Meetings: Minutes and Correspondence
9. Directors' Meetings: Minutes and Correspondence
10. Directors' Meetings: Minutes and Correspondence
11. Directors' Meetings: Minutes and Correspondence: 1905 - Jan 1932
12. Directors" Meetings: Minutes and Correspondence: 1932 - 1951
13. S. W. Worst Estate - Sale of Stock
14. John M. Sherman Estate - Insolvency
15. Liquidation; 1947 - 1951

Box 7

Financial Records: 1898-1910

Box 8

Financial Records: 1911 - 1948

Box 9 - Taxes, Finances

1. Taxes 1904
2. Taxes 1909 - 1910
3. Taxes 1911 - 1912
4. Taxes 1913 - 1914
5. Taxes 1915 - 1916
6. Taxes 1917
7. Taxes 1918
8. Taxes 1919 - 1920
9. Taxes 1921 - 1922
10. Taxes 1923 - 1924
11. Taxes 1925 - 1926
12. Tax Audits 1917 - 1926
13. Taxes 1927
14. Taxes 1928
15. Taxes 1929
16. Taxes 1930
17. Taxes 1931 - 1932
18. Annual Report of Domestic Corporation: 1906 - 1930
19. Taxes 1934
20. Taxes 1936
21. Taxes 1939 - 1940
22. Taxes 1941
23. Taxes 1942
24. Taxes 1943
25. Taxes 1944
26. Taxes 1945
27. Taxes 1946
28. Taxes 1947
29. Taxes 1948
30. Taxes 1949
31. Taxes 1950
32. Taxes 1951
33. Worst, Sherman, & Brinkerhoff: Dividends & Interest, 1904
34. Receipts & Disbursements, 1902 - 1926
35. Mortgage Notes
36. Canceled Notes
37. Notes: Collections & Notes
38. Bank Accounts
39. Ledger #4: 1942 - 1951

Box 10 - Financial Records

1. Bills Paid, 1898
2. Bills Paid, 1899
3. Bills Paid, 1900
4. Bills Paid, 1901
5. Bills Paid, 1902
5a. Bills Paid, 1903
6. Bills Paid, 1904
7. Bills Paid, 1905
8. Bills Paid, 1906
9. Bills Paid, 1907, 1908
10. Bills Paid, 1909, 1910
11. Bills Paid, 1911, 1912
12. Bills Paid, 1913, 1914
13. Bills Paid, 1915, 1916
14. Bills Paid, 1917, 1918
15. Bills Paid, 1919, 1920
16. Bills Paid, 1921, 1922
17. Bills Paid, 1923, 1924
18. Bills Paid, 1925, 1926
19. Bills Paid, 1927, 1928
20. Bills Paid, 1929, 1930
21. Bills Paid, 1931, 1932, 1933
22. Vouchers, Jan - Aug 1904
23. Vouchers, Aug - Sept 1904
24. Vouchers, Sept - Oct 1904
25. Vouchers, Nov - Dec 1904
26. Vouchers, 1905
27. Voucher Ledger, 1903-05, Cash Journal, 1891-92, Bills Received, 1904
28. Cash Statements, 1907-1914, 1921
29. Cash Statements, 1931
30. Cash Statements, 1932
31. Cash Statements, 1933
32. Cash Statements, 1934
33. Cash Statements, 1935
34. Cash Statements, 1935
35. Cash Statements, 1938, 1939
36. Cash Statements, 1940, 1941
37. Cash Book, 1898-1905, Sales Book, 1901-1903
38. Cash Book, 1905
39. Canceled Checks, 1897-1904

Box 11 - Financial Records

1. Checking Account Records, Stubs, Check Book, 1898-1906
2. Bank Books, Fremont National Bank, Fremont, Ohio, 1898-1908
3. Deeds, 1897-98
4. Deeds, 1899
5. Deeds, 1900
6. Deeds, 1901
7. Deeds, 1902
8. Deeds, 1903
9. Deeds, 1904
10. Deeds, 1905
11. Deeds, 1906
12. Deeds, 1907
13. Deeds, 1908
14. Deeds, 1909
15. Deeds, 1910
16. Deeds, 1911
17. Deeds, 1912
18. Deeds, 1913
19. Deeds, 1914
20. Deeds, 1915
21. Deeds, 1916
22. Deeds, 1917
23. Deeds, 1918
24. Deeds, 1919
25. Deeds, 1922-29
26. Deeds, 1932
27. Deeds, 1933-35
28. Deeds, 1944-47
29. Deeds, Miscellaneous
30. Missouri Lands

Box 12 - Land Records, Law Suits, Contracts

1. Land Maps
2. Land Contracts
3. Canceled Land Contracts
4. Land Improvement Records
5. Escrow Agreements
6. John Sherman Trustee Accounts
7. Land Deeded to Trustee
8. Trustee Receipts
9. Worst and Brinkerhoff Land
10. Sherman and Hayes Land
11. Land Sales Liquidation
12. Lawsuits re: Land Titles
13. Houck Lawsuit, Records, Statements, Briefs, etc.
14. Houck Lawsuit, 1905-10
15. Houck Lawsuit, 1911-12
16. Houck Lawsuit, 1918-23
17. Houck Lawsuit, Missouri Supreme Court Record #1
18. Houck Lawsuit, Missouri Supreme Court Record #2
19. Houck Lawsuit, Missouri Supreme Court Record Decision
20. Houck Lawsuit, Settlement
21. Real Estate Taxes
22. Drainage Ditch
23. Levee Scrip
24. Misc. Contracts
25. Stave Contracts
26. Ozark Cooperage Co. Contracts
27. Timber Contracts
28. Timber Stumpage Statements and Estimates

Box 13

1. Sawmill Contracts
2. Lumber Contracts
3. Cost Comparisons
4. Report of Operations, 1903
5. Report of Operations, 1904
6. Report of Operations, 1905
7. Weekly Stock Reports, 1903-05
8. Weekly Stock Reports, 1906
9. Weekly Stock Reports, 1913-15
10. Daily Reports, 1922-23
11. Welsh Mfg. Co vs. Pemiscot Land & Cooperage Co. (Lawsuit re: Dry Kiln)
12. Reports to and from Dun & Bradstreet Cos.
13. Monthly Shipments, 1899-03
14. Order Book, June - Dec 1899
15. Shipping record, 1899-1900
16. Rate Book, 1904-05
17. Shipments Journal, 1904-05
18. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1900-01
19. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1902
20. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1903
21. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1904
22. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1904
23. Debit Memorandum, 1903-1904
24. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1905
25. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1906
26. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1907
27. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1908
28. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1909

Box 14

1. Shipping Orders/Invoices, 1910
2. Shipping Orders/invoices, 1911
3. Payroll
4. Office Expense Account Book, 1909-1917
5. Surety Bonds, (Carl Bloker, Wilson Reardon)
6. Insurance
7. Farm Leases
8. General Statements re: Crops, 1927-32
9. Government Crop Loans, 1932-34
10. Cotton Gin, 1931-35
11. Pemiscot Ginning & Mercantile Co., 1935-38
12. Pemiscot Ginning & Mercantile Co., 1941-48
13. Pemiscot Ginning & Mercantile Co., Financial Reports, 1936-48
14. Pemiscot Ginning & Mercantile Co., Taxes, 1936
15. Cotton Financial Notes, 1931
16. Cotton Financial Notes, 1932
17. Cotton Financial Notes, 1933-34
18. Alfalfa Mill and Drier, 1987-88
19. Missouri Oil and Gas
20. Brinkerhoff Expense Notebook
21. Stenographer's Books
22. John W. Worst, Miscellaneous
23. Miscellaneous
24. Miscellaneous
25. Newspaper Clippings
26. Pemiscot Co. Abstract & Investment Co., 1906-1919
27. Pemiscot Co. Abstract & Investment Co., Financial Reports, 1907-1909
28. Pemiscot Co. Abstract & Investment Co., Financial Reports, 1910-1911
29. Pemiscot Co. Abstract & Investment Co., Financial Reports, 1913-1914
30. Pemiscot Co. Abstract & Investment Co., Financial Reports, 1915-1916
31. Pemiscot Co. Abstract & Investment Co., Financial Reports, 1917-1918

Box 15 - St. Louis, Caruthersville, and Memphis Railroad

1. Organization and Stockholders
2. Correspondence, N.D.- 1898
3. Correspondence, Jan. - March 1899
4. Correspondence, April - June 1899
5. Correspondence, July - Sept. 1899
6. Correspondence, Oct. - Dec. 1899
7. Correspondence, Jan. - March 1900
8. Correspondence, April - June 1900
9. Correspondence, July - Sept. 1900
10. Correspondence, Oct. - Dec. 1900.
11. Correspondence, Jan. - March 1901
12. Correspondence, April - June 1901
13. Correspondence, July - Sept. 1901
14. Correspondence, Oct. - Dec. 1901
15. Correspondence, 1901
16. Traffic Agreement with Southeastern Railroad
17. Contracts
18. Sale of Bonds
19. Land Records
20. Financial Statements
21. Earnings
22. Miscellaneous
23. Moark Land & Timber Co., Financial and Legal Papers
24. Moark Land & Timber Co. 1899-1900
25. Moark Land & Timber Co. 1901-1902
26. Moark Land & Timber Co. 1903-1909
27. Omo Mftg. Co.
28. Misc. notes regarding the collection

Box 16

1. Panoramic View at Pemiscot Ginning & Mercantile Co.
2. Blueprint - Hill's Direct Acting Steam Drag - Saw Machine
3. Blueprint - 60" Jumbo Edger
4. Blank Index book
5. Blank Index book
6. Worst, Weirman, and Brinkerhoff Ledger #2

Box 17

1. Cash Book, June 1941- April 1948
2. Voucher Record, 1942 -1948