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Columbia Conserve Co. mss., 1903-1953

Summary Information

Repository:
Lilly Library (Indiana University, Bloomington)
Indiana University
1200 E. Seventh St.
Bloomington, IN 47405-5500
Phone: 812-855-2452
Fax: 812-855-3143
Email: liblilly@indiana.edu
http://www.indiana.edu/~liblilly

Creator
Columbia Conserve Company (Indianapolis, Ind.)

Title
Columbia Conserve Co. mss., 1903-1953

Collection No.
LMC 2244

Extent
56,321 items

Language
Materials are in English

Abstract
The Columbia Conserve Co. mss., 1903-1953, consists of the papers of the Columbia Conserve Company, a cannery in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research.

Biographical Note

In 1903 Charles Hutchins Hapgood, a successful plow manufacturer, bought the controlling interest in the Mullen, Blackledge Company. His three sons, William Powers, Hutchins, and Norman, became stockholders. William, who had had nine years experience with Franklin MacVeagh's Wholesale Grocery in Chicago, first as assistant shipping clerk and later as head of the manufacturing department, assumed the managerial responsibilities of the company.

After losing the original investment, the company was reorganized in 1910 and moved to Lebanon, Indiana. Two years later the company moved back to Indianapolis locating on Churchman Avenue. Following the death of Charles H. Hapgood in 1917, the company adopted a program of workers' management and ownership operating through a workers' council. In 1932 following the employment of Powers Hapgood, John Brophy, Daniel Donovan, and Leo F. Tearney, labor troubles developed and culminated in the dismissal of the last three named leaders. A committee of four composed of Jerome Davis, Paul Howard Douglas, Sherwood Eddy, and James Myers was then appointed by the Council and Board of Directors to investigate the difficulties and submit a plan of settlement. On September 1, 1942, the employees struck for higher wages and the following year Marion County superior judge Hezzie B. Pike, dissolved the trust and ordered the stock distributed individually to all who had worked at Columbia for at least six months since January 1, 1925. From 1943 to 1953 the company again was back in the hands of the Hapgoods. In 1953 the plant was sold to John Sexton and Company, Chicago, which took possession on May 1. At that time the formulas were purchased by Venice Maid Company, Vineland, New Jersey.

Among long-term employees of the company were C. Estella Franz, a member of the Mullen, Blackledge Company, who joined the Columbia Conserve Company staff in 1903 heading the order department and Howard Herner, a member of the shipping department, who was engaged as bookkeeper in 1918, a few years later assumed the duties of treasurer of the company.

For fifty years the company manufactured twenty-seven varieties of condensed soup, twenty-one varieties of Ready-to-Serve soup, and other fancy products such as catsup, boned chicken, salad sprouts, and brown gravy with beef, which were sold under buyers' labels.

In addition to the material found in the collection, information on the company appears in Devere Allen's Adventurous Americans... (New York, [c.1932]), pp. 217-32; William P. Hapgood's "The High Adventure of a Cannery," Survey, LXVIII:655-58, 682, Sept. 1, 1922; John Bartlow Martin's Indiana: An Interpretation (New York, 1947), pp. 159-73; and Elfrieda Lang, "The Columbia Conserve Company Papers," The Indiana University Bookman, November 1957, pp. 18-23. Another account of the company is by Russell Edward Vance, "An Unsuccessful Experiment in Industrial Democracy: The Columbia Conserve Company," Ph.D. dissertation, Department of History, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, 1956. (D40 .V222)

Arrangement

The collection is organized into the following series: I. Correspondence; II. Business.

Scope and Content Note

The Columbia Conserve Co. mss., 1903-1953, consists of the papers of the Columbia Conserve Company, a cannery in Indianapolis, Indiana. Included are correspondence and papers related to business.

Note on Indexing Term - "Labor unions and socialism": In 1917 Columbia was one of the earliest companies in the U.S. to put into action a plan of workers' co-operative ownership and management. One of the most revolutinoary aspects of the company during the years of worker management was the adoption of many social benefits, commonplace today but practically unheard of at that time, this included pensions, vacations with pay and free medical, dental, and eye care.

Note on Indexing Term - "World War, 1939-1945": Of interest are papers dated 1944-1945 and 1947 which discuss the use of German prisoners of war for employment at the company.

  • Indexing Terms

  • The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in IUCAT, the IU Libraries' online catalog. Materials about related topics, persons or places can be found by searching the catalog using these terms.

    • Names
    • Columbia Conserve Company (Indianapolis, Ind.)

Administrative Information

Acquisition Information
Acquired: 1953, 1955
Usage Restrictions
Photocopying permitted only with permission of the Curator of Manuscripts, Lilly Library.
Preferred Citation
[Item], Columbia Conserve Co. mss., Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana.

Series: Box 1 Correspondence

Arranged chronologically by year and alphabetically within the year.


1911 - 1946 Bi

Box 2 1946 Bu-S

Box 3 1946 T - 1947 M 

Box 4 1947 N - 1948 L 

Box 5 1948 M - 1951 B 

Box 6 1951 C - 1953 P 

Box 7 1953 Q-Z

Series: Business

Arranged alphabetically by subject, followed by large bound and disbound volumes and oversized materials. Large volumes are arranged alphabetically after the general ledgers.


Box 7 Accountant’s report, 1917 

Agreements to sell common stock, 1922,  1952 

(6 folders)


Articles of Incorporation

(see also: Box 75)


Auditor’s reports, 1919-1953 

Balance sheets, 1916-1918 

Brokers, list of names

Brokerage statements, 1940-1948 

(9 folders)

Alphabetically arranged within each year.


Box 8 Brokerage statements, 1949 

(2 folders)


Common stock certificates, 1944-1953 

(4 folders)


Common stock proxies, 1953 

(4 folders)


Common stockholders, list of names, 1953 

Company experience unemployment compensation plans, 1928 

Corporation reports

(see also: Box 75)


Customers, list of names, 1953 

Employees’ earnings sheets, 1947-1950 

(8 folders)


Box 9 Employees’ earnings sheets, 1951-1952 

(1 volume)


Employees’ earnings sheets, 1952-1954 

(1 folder)


An Experiment in Industrial Democracy, by William P. Hapgood.

Typescript, 68 pp.


Form letters to brokers, 1941-1946 

Form letters to customers, 1933-1953  

(9 folders)


Form letters to salesman, 1933-1945 

Form letters and reports to stockholders, 1943, July 19 – 1953, July 10 

Invoices, 1947-1948, Jan.- July, A-F

(14 folders)


Box 10 Invoices, 1948, Jan.-July, G-Z –1948, Aug.-Dec., A-Z

(17 folders)


Labels, 1946-1953 

(13 envelopes)


Box 11 Loading tallies, 1946 - 1953 

(11 folders)


Minutes:

Annual meetings: 1917 (3 copies), 1919  1923,  1924,  1927-1929 

(6 volumes, 3 folders)


Board of Directors: 1903-1940 

(1 volume, 2 folders)


Box 12 Board of Directors: 1941-1942,  1953 

(3 volumes)


Council: 1920-1930, Nov. 24  

(10 volumes)


Box 13 Council: 1930, Dec. 1 - 1933;  1936, June 

(5 volumes, 4 folders)


Box 14 Council: 1936, July - 1939, July 

(6 volumes)


Box 15 Council: 1940-1942 

Council meetings and Stockholders’ Reports, 1933-1944 

(3 folders)


Executive: 1933,  1934, May - 1943 

(12 folders)


Human Relations Council: 1928-1929 

(1 volume)


Stockholders: 1903, May - 1940, July;  1920, Jan. 6;  1927, July 9;  1939, July 21;  1941, July-1954, Mar. 

(1 volume, 4 folders)


Photographs

Box 16 Preferred Stockholders, loose pages, 1919-1953 

Preferred Stockholder certificates, 1929-1951 

Price lists, 1930-1951 

Printed

(see also: Box 75)


By CCC. Advertisements; "A Business Without a Boss"; "An Experiment in Workers Ownership and Participation in Management of The Columbia Conserve Co. of Indianapolis, Indiana"; "Ready To Serve Soups"; "Summary of important factors in the progress of The Columbia Conserve Company…" 1938,  1939,  1941 

About CCC. Mostly clippings

(2 folders)


Bushey, Morea & Wright, 1946-1953 

Canners Exchange Subscribers, Quarterly List of, 1946-1948  

Canners’ Market Report, 1946-1948,  1950 

(2 folders)


Canning, miscellaneous

Catsup and Tomato Juice packers Association

Clover Farm Stores, Corporation, 1942-1953 

(5 folders)


Commonwealth College Fortnightly, 1937-1938; Commoner, 1940 

Consumers’ Cooperation, 1937-1939 

Continental Can Co.

Co-op News, 1937-1941 

Co-operative Productive Review, 1935,  1937-1938,  1947 

Co-operatives, miscellaneous

Employment, miscellaneous

The Facts in Food Distribution, 1933  

Box 17 Indiana Canners Association, Inc., 1935-1953 

(10 folders)


Kimberly-Clark Corp.

Myers Spalti Mfg. Co.

National Canners Association

National Meat Canners Association

Plee-Zing, Inc.1942-1953 

(4 folders)


Red & White

United Cannery, Agricultural, Packing and Allied Workers of America reports

United States government publications on canning

The Voluntary Chains, 1931 

The Voluntary Chains, An Evolution in Distribution, 1931 

Voluntary Grocery Chains, Directory, 1932,  1934 

Weekly Digest, 1946-1948,  1950 

(4 folders)


Miscellaneous publications and clippings

(2 folders)


Box 18 Production

Carrots, 1934-1942 

(4 folders)


Comparative sales data, 1939-1943  

Daily, 1929,  1931-1941 

(1 volume, 11 envelopes. 1 folder)


Formulas

Material costs, 1941-1942 

Monthly analysis, 1936-1937,  1943 

Non-tomato, 1938-1939,  1943-1945 

Report of orders to Executive Committee, 1936-1942 

(3 envelopes)


Tomato, 1930-1931,  1933-1945 

(13 folders, 5 envelopes)


Box 19 Tomato Farms, 1944 

Weekly schedules, 1933,  1939-1941,  1943-1944 

(4 envelopes)


Yearly schedules, 1934-1936,  1946  1947 

Miscellaneous

Publicity articles obtained by Inter Ocean Syndicate, July 29, 1930 and August 13, 1930 

(2 volumes)


Revenue and expense statement, 1921 

Sales journal, 1946, Jan. 9 – 1953, Apr. 30 

Sales report, 1927-1939 

(7 folders)


Box 20 Sales report, 1940-1949 

(8 folders)


Sales report, Clover Farm Stores Corp., 1946-1953 

(8 folders)


Sales representatives, 1946-1952 

(6 folders)


Scrapbook, 1930-1932 

(5 folders)


Shipping sheets, 1945 A-S

(17 folders)


Box 21 Shipping sheets, 1945 T - 1946 S 

Box 22 Shipping sheets, 1946 T - 1949 Z 

Box 23 Shipping sheets, 1950 A - 1951 K 

Box 24 Shipping sheets, 1951 L - 1953 Z 

Box 25 Shipping sheets, John Sexton & Co., 1950-1952 

Stabilizing employment and income, by E.S. Cowdrick

Stockholders ledger, 1926-1953 

Box 26 Tax returns, federal, 1933-1953 

(2 folders)


Tax returns, state and local, 1933,  1946-1953 

(5 folders)


Tax returns

(see also:Box 75)


"Your Job Today Broadcast" script featuring CCC.

Miscellaneous – Council, trustees, and executive committee, 1938-1946 

(5 folders)


General ledgers

1910-1919,  1931-1934 

(1 folder, 2 volumes)


Box 27 1920-1931 

Box 28 1935-1943  

Box 29 1935-1953 

(4 volumes)


Box 30 Combined Journal, Cash and Daily Financial Statement

(see also:Box 75)


1917, Apr.-Dec. 

Box 31 1918 

Box 32 1919 

Box 33 1920 

Box 34 1921 

Box 35 1922 

Box 36 1923 

Box 37 1924 

Box 38 1925 

Box 39 1926 

Box 40 1927, Jan. - June 

Box 41 1927, July - 1928, June 

Box 42 1928, July - 1929, June 

Box 43 1929, July - 1930, June 

Box 44 1930, July - 1931, June 

Box 45 1931, July - 1932, June 

Box 46 1932, July - 1933, June 

Box 47 1933, July - 1934, June 

Box 48 1934, July - 1935, June 

Box 49 1935, July - 1936, June 

Box 50 1936, July - 1937, June 

Box 51 1937, July - 1938, June 

Box 52 1938, July - 1939, June 

Box 53 1939, July - 1940, June 

Box 54 1940, July - 1941, June 

Box 55 1941, July - 1942, June 

Box 56 1942, July - 1944, June 

(2 volumes)


Box 57 1944, July - 1946, June 

(2 volumes)


Box 58 1946, July - 1948, June 

(2 volumes)


Box 59 1948, July - 1950, June 

(2 volumes)


Box 60 1950, July - 1952, June 

(2 volumes)


Box 61 1952, July - 1954, June 

Box 62 Common Stock Certificate Books

1903, May 1-1920, Dec. 20;  1922, Apr. 21-1943, Aug. 5 

(2 volumes)


Box 63 25 April 1933-5 August 1943 

(2 volumes)


Box 64 1933, June 20-Aug. 3;  1944, August 22-1953, February 9 

(2 volumes)


Box 65 Payroll summaries

1947, Apr. 24-1951, Dec. 26 

Box 66 1952, Jan. 2-1953, June 24 

Box 67 Preferred Stock Certificate Books

1925, Mar. 4-1929, Feb. 19 

(2 volumes)


Box 68 1929, Feb. 22-1941, Dec. 18 

(2 volumes)


Box 69 1930, Aug. 20-1943, July 15 

(2 volumes)


Box 70 1944, June 13-1953, Jan. 10 

(2 volumes)


Box 71 Registers

Invoice. 1923, July-1942, June 

(2 volumes)


Box 72 Invoice. 1942, July - 1953, Apr.; Distribution. 1940-1949 

(3 volumes, 1 folder)


Box 73 Social Security Payroll Record

1937, Jan. 7-1946, June 27 

Box 74 1937, Jan. 7-1946, June 27 (cont.)

Box 75 1937, Jan. 7-1946, June 27 (cont.)

Box 76 1937, Jan. 7-1946, June 27 (cont.)

Box 77 1937, Jan. 7-1946, June 27 (cont.)

Box 78 1946, July 4-1947, Apr. 17 (cont.)

Box 79: Oversize Articles of Incorporation. 1910,  1912,  1917,  1925,  1928 

Combined Journal, Cash and Daily Financial Statement. 1917, Jan.-Mar. 

Corporation Reports. 1921,  1922,  1924-1953 

Printed

Midland Cooperator, Feb. 1939  

(2 issues)


The Co-operative Builder, 1936-1939 

Tax Returns, corporation income and excess-profits. 1930-1951 

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