Finding aid for
Records of DuPont Allied Business Firms
1798-1856
(2 linear feet)

Longwood Manuscripts Group VI

© Hagley Museum and Library  
P.O. Box 3630   Wilmington, DE 19807-0630  
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Table of contents
Abstract
This collection includes the papers of Du Pont, Bauduy & Company (1803-1815); papers of Du Planty, McCall & Company (1813-1837); papers of Brandywine Mill Seat Company (1798-1854); papers of A. Cardon & Company (1824-1833); and papers of Rockland Manufacturing Company (1825-1856).

Background note:
Several early companies, established by members of the du Pont family, operated on the Brandywine Creek in proximity to the mills of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. These businesses included factories that produced tanned leather, woolen and cotton cloth, and yarns. The firms also owned properties that were used by, or sold to, other developers of mills in the region.

The firm of Du Pont, Bauduy & Co. was organized by Victor du Pont, E. I. du Pont, Peter Bauduy, and Raphael Du Planty as partners in 1810 in order to manufacture woolen cloth. The mill was at Louviers, Delaware, across the Brandywine River from the Du Pont Company's powder mills. In 1801 E.I. du Pont began importing Merino sheep. He also acquired the ram, Don Pedro, from Europe. By 1810 the du Pont family had raised a small herd of sheep and had made considerable progress in improving the quality of wool. The factory did, in fact, produce high-quality wool and counted both Presidents James Madison and James Monroe among its customers. However, when Bauduy and E. I. du Pont were involved in a series of financial disputes, Du Pont, Bauduy & Co. was dissolved and was succeeded by the partnership of Victor & Charles I. du Pont & Co.

As early as 1804 Archibald McCall and E. I. du Pont were in business with each other. McCall was a prominent Philadelphia merchant involved in the East India trade, a director of the First Bank of the United States, and an agent for the sale of Du Pont powder. On April 30, 1813 the firm of Du Planty, McCall & Co. was organized with Robert McCall (a younger brother), E. I. du Pont, Victor du Pont, and Raphael Du Planty as partners in a cotton spinning and weaving business. Archibald McCall and E. I. du Pont provided the capital and site for the factory. Robert McCall and Du Planty were designated as managers. The Army was the company's most important customer. However, the company was unable to compete with cheaper British textiles, which flooded the U.S. after the War of 1812 and went bankrupt in the panic of 1819. It took more than 25-years for its accounts to be settled as E. I. du Pont and Raphael Du Planty could not reconcile their claims and obligations.

The Brandywine Mill Seat Company was formed in 1813 by E. I. du Pont, Caleb Kirk, James Jeffries, John Torbert and John Warner, all prominent businessmen in the Wilmington, Del., area, in an effort to attract manufacturers to the Brandywine area. Land along the creek was acquired from Job Harvey and Caleb Kirk, laid out in appropriate mill seats, and the waterpower computed for each. The venture was designed to profit from the increase in domestic manufacturing that accompanied the War of 1812, but like most others of the time it proved unsuccessful, and the property was divided and distributed among those who were members in 1829.

A. Cardon & Company was organized in 1815 by Alexandre Cardon de Sandrans, James Antoine Bidermann and Joseph Charles Dalmas (of whom the last two were du Pont relatives). Cardon de Sandrans had just arrived in America, having accompanied Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours from France as his companion and secretary. He was a younger brother of Paul François, Baron Cardon de Sandrans (1781-1848), who married a niece of Madame du Pont de Nemours. The firm was to produce leather by an accelerated process of manufacture and established a tannery on Brandywine Creek near Wilmington. Over half the capital was advanced by E. I. du Pont for his brother-in-law, Dalmas, and for Bidermann. L. F. Chenou was contracted to give instruction in the tanning process, but he left in 1816 to open a tannery in New Orleans. The first leather was produced late in 1816, but Cardon and Bidermann agreed to dissolve the business in 1825. Formal dissolution came on June 1, 1826, and debts were assumed, temporarily, by E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, but eventually charged to the account of Bidermann. Cardon went to Harrisburg, Pa., to manage the tannery of Eldridge & Brick, creditors of A. Cardon & Co. Cardon later owned iron works in Pennsylvania.

The Rockland Manufacturing Company was formed in 1825, as successor to W. Young, Son & Company, with William Young, William Wallace Young, Isaac Bannister, John McAllister and John McAllister, Jr., as directors. The firm manufactured cotton and woolen cloth at Rockland, on the Brandywine above Wilmington, Del. Alfred V. du Pont became a director in 1846. The company became bankrupt and its property was seized in 1848-49. Its property was eventually sold to Jessup & Moore, a paper manufacturer, and E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company.

Scope and content
Series A, Du Pont, Bauduy & Company records, 1809-1815, consist of letters written by the partners and employees. They pertain to the price of sheep and wool, sales of Merinos, sources of funds, labor, supplies, sales of cloth to powder workers, the role of the factory in the development of the woolen mill, and the impact of Thomas Jefferson's Nonintercourse Act on the business. There is also information on sales, production of raw wool, credit, and the employment of dyers and apprentices.

Series B, Du Planty, McCall & Company records, 1813-1844, include letters written by the partners and are largely concerned with orders for spinning machinery, cotton yarn, and raw cotton. There is some correspondence relating to the 1819 shut down. Also included are letters documenting construction of the mill and the employment of bleachers and dyers. There is some correspondence that indicates one Pouchet Belmare from Rouen was offering to pay for the passage of French workers to America. Financial records include accounts, bills, and receipts, including those for boarding workers (1815). There is also an employee list giving occupations and wages. Other records document the leasing of the mill to A. W. Adams & Co. in 1843, when it became known as Henry Clay Mill.

Series C, Brandywine Mill Seat Company records, 1798, 1813-1839, consist of correspondence, accounts, agreements and memoranda describing the acquisition of property, the attempt to sell mill seats to manufacturers, and the final disposition of the company's real estate and water rights.

Series D, A. Cardon & Company records, 1825-1833, include copies of the 1815 articles of association and the company's contract with L. F. Chenou. There is also correspondence between Cardon and Bidermann concerning the dissolution of the firm and final financial settlements. Letters of Cardon to Bidermann and du Pont, written after the dissolution, relate to unpaid promissory notes and Cardon's iron works. There are several bills and receipts concerning the supply of hides and skins, wages, freights, and house rent.

Series E, Rockland Manufacturing Company records, 1825-1856, primarily date from 1843-1856 and are chiefly concerned with the interests of the stockholders and creditors, and with the disposition of the property. Wage lists for 1848 give data on both male and female employees. Records also include the 1825 act of incorporation.

Administrative information
Restrictions
Copyright restrictions may apply.

Provenance
Gift of Pierre S. du Pont

Processing information
1961

Processed by John Beverley Riggs

Added entries
Subjects
  • A. Cardon & Company.
  • Bauduy, Peter, 1769-1833.
  • Bidermann, James Antoine, 1790-1865.
  • Brandywine Creek (Pa. and Del.)--Water-power.
  • Brandywine Mill Seat Company.
  • Cardon de Sandrans, Alexandre, b. 1787.
  • Chenou, Louis François.
  • Cotton manufacture--Delaware.
  • Cotton spinning.
  • Cotton textile industry--Delaware.
  • Cotton weaving.
  • Cotton yarn industry--Delaware
  • Dalmas, Joseph Charles, 1777-1859.
  • Delaware--Cotton textile industry.
  • Delaware--Leather industry and trade.
  • Delaware--Textile factories.
  • Delaware--Water rights.
  • Delaware--Wool trade and industry.
  • Du Planty, McCall & Company.
  • Du Planty, Raphael Defrédot, 1776-1854.
  • Du Pont, Alfred Victor, 1798-1856.
  • Du Pont, Bauduy & Company.
  • Du Pont, Eleuthère Irénée 1771-1834.
  • Du Pont, Victor, 1767-1827.
  • Dyes and dyeing--Wool.
  • E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company.
  • Embargo, 1807-1809.
  • Evans, Oliver, 1755-1819.
  • Hides and skins.
  • Kirk, Caleb, 1792-1872
  • Leather industry and trade--Delaware.
  • Livingston, Robert R., 1746-1813.
  • McCall, Archibald, 1767-1843.
  • McCall, Robert, 1785-1854.
  • Merino sheep.
  • Mills and mill-work--Delaware.
  • New Castle County (Del.)--Leather industry and trade.
  • Sheep breeds.
  • Tanners.
  • Tanning.
  • Textile factories--Delaware.
  • Textile workers.
  • Thornton, William, 1759-1828.
  • Victor & Charles I. du Pont & Company.
  • Wages--Textile workers.
  • Warner, John, 1773-1825.
  • Water rights--Delaware.
  • Water-power--Brandywine Creek (Pa. and Del.).
  • Women textile workers.
  • Wool and worsted manufacture--Delaware.
  • Wool trade and industry--Delaware.
  • Young, William, 1755-1829.
Contact information

Hagley Museum and Library
[http://www.hagley.org/library]
P.O. Box 3630
Wilmington, DE 19807-0630

©1961

 

Inventory

SERIES A. Du Pont, Bauduy & Co.,
1809-1815, n.d.
Box 1


Business letters written by partners and employees of the Company concern the price of sheep and wool, sales of Merinos to or from Du Pont flocks, sources of funds, labor, and supplies, sales of cloth to powder workers, the need for teasels in cloth manufacture, the role of the powder factory in the development of the woolen mill, and protection of the American market by the Nonintercourse Act. Approximately half of this correspondence is intra-Company exchange of single items, except where noted, from Peter Bauduy (1809, 1812, 1814, 1815); William H. Clifford (1813), Charles Dalmas (n.d.), Raphale Du Planty (1809, n.d.), E. I. du Pont (1810, n.d.), Victor du Pont (1814), and Vital-Marie Garesché (1814), to the following: Peter Bauduy, Abraham Bell (Jersey City), Henry L. Biscoe (near Richmond, Va.), Richard Caton (near Baltimore, Md.), Raphael Du Planty, E. I. du Pont or the powder factory, Robert R. Livingston (Clermont, NY), General John Mason (Georgetown, D.C.), Alexander McKim (Washington, D.C.), William Stuart, William Thornton (Washington, D.C.), John Warden & Sons (Philadelphia).
1809-1815, n.d.

Business letters addressed to Peter Bauduy, Raphael Du Planty, E. I. du Pont, and Du Pont, Bauduy & Co., are for the most part inquiries or orders (single items except where noted below) from wool producers or agents and concern sales, prices, quality, and production of raw wool and cloth, blood lines and remedies for diseases of sheep, sources of supply for teasels, machinery, and credit, methods of bleaching and dyeing, the employment of dyers and apprentices. Other incidental subjects are a passport for P.S. du Pont de Nemours, projected publications on manufacturing and agriculture by James Mease and Thomas Cooper, the library of E. I. du Pont, Thomas Jefferson's flock of sheep and his home, Monticello, and a cattle show in Philadelphia. Correspondents include: W[illiam] Anderson, Representative from Pennsylvania (1809); Abraham Bell (Jersey City, 1810); Lawrence and Stephen Brown (Philadelphia, 1814); James Caldwell (Philadelphia, 1810); J. C. Campbell (Wilmington, 1810); James Canby (Wilmington, 1814); Richard Caton (Baltimore, 1810); John R. Coates (Philadelphia, 1814); Edward Coles (Philadelphia, 1813); Thomas Cooper (Northumberland, Pa., 1809); George Coxen (Philadelphia, 1813); F. Duruflé (New York, 1811); Thomas Emory (Poplar Grove, Md., 1809); Oliver Evans (by J. P. Muhlenberg, Mars Works, Pa., 1812); Athans Fenwick (Great Mill, St. Mary's County, Md., 1809); William H. Foote (Rose Hill, Md., 1809); T. M. Forman (Rose Hill, Md., 1809); Edward Gilpin (Wilmington, 1815); Anthony Girard (New York, 1811, 1813); Francis Haughey (New Castle, Del., 1809); M.E. Heineken (Germantown, Pa., 1812); Benjamin Howard (Washington, D.C., 1809); Caleb Kirk (Christiana Hundred, Del., 1809); Thomas Law, his projected cloth factory (Washington, D.C., 1812); Robert R. Livingston (Clermont, N.Y., 1809, 1810); Edward Lloyd (Easton, Md., 1812); Alexander McKim (Washington, D.C., 1812, 1813); Robert McKim (Baltimore, 1813); James Mease, also, his “Du Pont” field of grafts (Philadelphia, 1809); (Eagle Works, Philadelphia, (1810); Peter Regnier (Baltimore, 1809); John Reynolds (Wilmington, 1810); Richardson & Duff (Union Factory, Baltimore, 1813); Richard Robinett (Philadelphia, 1812); William Thornton (Washington, D.C., 1809, 1810); John Vaughan (Philadelphia, 1809); John C. Voxell (Alexandria, Va., 1809); John Warder & Sons (Philadelphia, 1811); John Warner (Philadelphia, 1810, 1814); William Young (Rockland, Del., 1810).
1809-1815

Enclosures with the above correspondence include letters from Robert R. Livingston to Anthony Girard (1809), Raphael Du Planty to Peter Bauduy (1809) [appended to an inquiry to the Company], Richard Robinett to Robert Pearson (1812), proposals on sheep by William Young (1810), reply to proposals for apprenticeship in dyeing (1813), an account with the powder company (1814), and a bill for machinery (1810).
1809-1814

The collection of accounts includes statements of accounts, bills, receipts, memoranda, checks, and promissory notes. Statements of accounts are in the hands of the creditor, Raphael Du Planty, Victor du Pont, or Vital-Marie Garesché and concern Clark & Simmons, lumber for Du Pont, Bauduy & Co., E. I. du Pont, Victor du Pont, and the powder factory (1810); E. I. du Pont, cloth, payments for raw wool, investments with Peter Bauduy for mill seats (1813, 1814); E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., cloth for powder workers, military uniforms for the Brandywine Rangers, payments for boarding and wages of woodcutters for the powder mill (1813, 1814); William Young, cloth (1813).
1810-1814

Bills and receipts are directed to E. I. du Pont, Victor du Pont, Du Pont, Bauduy & Co., or unspecified, and include: Henry Abbott, stoves (1809); Clark & Leonard, lumber (1810, 1811); John Dauphin, tar, rope (1810); Rumford and Abijah Dawes (1810); Alexander Draper, lumber (1810); James Dunn, cloth (1812); E. I. du Pont, raw wool, cloth (1813, 1814); E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., cloth for workers and U.S. officials, carpentry, cordage, wages for powder workers (1813, 1814); Ferris & Gilpin, iron (1810); Joseph Grubb, hardware (1810, 1815); Howell, Robeson & Shaw, wine for Victor du Pont, billed to Company (1813); Barzillai Jefferis, cabinetwork, (1810); Jacob Kirk, machinery (1809); James McAlpin, military uniforms (Philadelphia tailor, 1813); Daniel McEvers, cloth (1814); John Mitchel (millwright, 1810); Aaron Paulson, blankets for Hagley (1813); Henry J. Pepper, pointing gold-tipped lightning rods (1811); Washington Rice, candles (1814); Mathew Scott, cloth (1812); Joseph Shipley, freight, military cockades, flour (1810, 1814); George and William Simmons, lumber (1811); William Walker, nails (1810, 1811); John White & Co., glass (1810, 1811); James Wilson, business paper, Military Guide, binding newspapers, printing political and advertising notices (1814); undated or unidentified, freight, machinery, carpentry, and manufacturing costs.
1809-1814

Checks, drawn on the Bank of Wilmington and Brandywine for Du Pont, Bauduy & Co., signed by Victor du Pont or Raphael Du Planty for the Company, printed by Peter Brynberg, numbered by the Company, and cancelled by the bank with a press (1810, 1811). Company check No. 1 was drawn 3 July 1810 by Victor du Pont. Note that No. 44 (1810) was sent to Mr. Eugene du Pont, 14 Dec 1908.
1810-1811

Two promissory notes transferred between E. I. du Pont and the woolen factory reflect his primary position in the firm; Victor du Pont signed for the Company.
1814

Documents, extracts, and memoranda on factory organization include: extract of letter, John Wilson to Joshua Stroud, procedure for woolen cloth manufacture, 6 Dec 1805; deed of sale from Peter Bauduy to woolen factory, ADF 26 Feb 1810; memoir by Raphael Du Planty, “Merinos-Woolen Cloth Manufactory”, describing buildings, machinery, costs, and projected manufacture c 1810-1811; agreement between the Company and William H. Clifford, 26 Apl 1811, regulating his contributions to the Company; translation by Victor du Pont, articles of association of the woolen factory, Bauduy & Garesché, 15 Sep 1812; extract by Raphael Du Planty concerning requirements by Indian Office for blankets, 14 Jan 1814; cost estimates for projected woolen production; memoranda on machinery arrangement and possible purchase, earmarks of sheep, and foreign cloth production.
1805-1814

SERIES B. Du Planty, McCall & Co.,
1813-1844
Box 2


Letters addressed by Raphael Du Planty, Du Planty, McCall & Co., E. I. du Pont, Archibald McCall, or Robert McCall to: William P. Bryan (1825); Daniel Byrnes (1818); John D. Carter (1822); Raphael Du Planty (1815, 1817-1820, n.d.); Du Planty McCall & Co.(1815); E. I. du Pont (1819-1820); Jean Pierre Garesché, dispute over dam repairs (1822); Daniel Lammot (1825); Josiah Lippincott (1825); Archibald McCall (1814-1815); Alexander McKim, sympathies on McKim's $70,000 fire (1815); James Riddle and George Read, Jr., of the Bank of New Castle (1815); three unknown addressees (n.d.). Most of these are intra-Company items concerning orders for spinning machinery and cotton yarn, supply of raw cotton, shut-down in 1819, reluctance of Du Planty to sell the mill (1820), arrangements to lease or sell (1821-1825).
1815-1825

Letters addressed to Raphael Du Planty, Du Planty, McCall & Co., E. I. du Pont, or Robert McCall from: John Aldred, weaver (1815); Alrichs & Dixon, cotton machinery (1813); Samuel Baldwin (1815); Baldwin & Thomas, castings (1814); Bauduy, Garesché & Co. (1815); John Bird (1814); Briscoe & Partridge (1815); William P. Bryan of Lippincott & Bryan, bids to lease cotton factory for 7 years with option to buy (1825); Samuel Bush (1815); John Butterworth, iron (1814); Bennet & Tennant (1815); John D. Carter (1822); Peter Caverly, cashier of the Farmers' Bank of Delaware (1815); Mr. Criblier, plans for trip to France to hire workmen (1814-1815); Bernard Dahlgren (1814); James Danforth (1813); Dulas fils in Nantes, re the final fall of Napoleon (1815); Pliny Earle & Bros., carding machines (1813); Jean Pierre Garesché, dispute over dam repairs between Bauduy property and Du Planty, McCall & Co. (1822); Vital-Marie Gareseché (1814); Edward Gilpin, steel (1813); Anthony Girard re recommendation of Criblier for mill manager, cotton thread samples, orders, arrival of the Fingal with du Pont de Nemours (1814-1815); William F. Griffitts, inquires price of the cotton factory advertised for sale (1825); Thomas Grimshaw (1815); Joseph Grubb, glass (1814-1815); François Guegand[?} (1815); George & Francis Harley, copper boiler (1815); William Hartley, metal reeds and gears (1815); John Hedges (1815-1816); Callender Irvine (1825); Daniel King (1815); William Kirk, bricks (1815); Daniel Lammot re possible purchasers for the cotton factory (1825); Joshua Lippincott (1825); Archibald McCall (1815); Robert McCleland (1819); Henry J. Pepper (1820); Daniel Pettibone, stove (1815); William Poole & Co. (1814); P. A. Pouchet Belmare, arrangements to pay French workmen's passage to the U.S. in exchange for cotton from Du Planty, McCall & Co. (1815); Samuel Richards, castings (1815); James Riddle and George Read of the Bank of New Castle (1815); L. Salvé (1815); Stephen Sicard, Jr. (1815); John B. Shull (1815); Thomas Siddall (1814-1815); Stroud & Hull (1816); Thorp, Siddall & Co. (1820); Charles Tilden (1815); George Treytorrens of Rome, dyer (1814-1815); Noah Underwood (1819); Woodcock, Smith & Co. (1814); Edward Worrell, cashier of the Bank of Delaware (1814-1815); Duncan Wright, bleaching and dyeing (1813-1814); William Young (1815).
1813-1825

Accounts include: those of Du Planty, McCall & Co. with Raphael Du Planty, E. I. du Pont, Victor Du Pont, Archibald McCall (all 1814), Bauduy, Garesché & Co. (1814), E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. (1820); “Arch. McCall's Statement of Cotton Mill at the time he wished to sell his shares” (n.d.); “Calculation for making one piece of Sassinett” (n.d.); “Proforma acc't Sales of bleached Cotton Twist” and “Of Raw Cotton” (n.d.).
1814, 1820, n.d.

Bills and receipts directed to Raphael Du Planty, Du Planty, McCall & Co., or E. I. du Pont include: Augustine Bousquet & Co., Louisiana cotton (1814); William Boyd, carpenter (1813, 1815); Buntings & Watson, lumber (1813-1814); James Carnahan, wheelwright (1813, 1815); Clark & Leonard, lumber (1813); Mr. Criblier, expenses to Philadelphia and Baltimore (1814); Raphael Du Planty (1815); Victor du Pont, taxes (1814); Edward Gilpin, iron (1813-1815); John Hedges, rope (1814-1815); Peter Hendrickson, hauling (1813, 1815); Others for: meat and provisions, board for workmen, coal, lime, road tolls, taxes, etc.; Invoices (1815).
1813-1815

Promissory notes and sight drafts.
1813-1814, 1816, 1819

Agreements and contracts include: contract with George Hodgson & Bros. for carding engines (1813); articles of agreement between J. Hirons, Jr., and Raphael Du Planty for renting Hiron's house (1813); agreement with Criblier for him to bring workmen and machinery from France (1814), and later enlargement of this contract (1815); arrangements for workmen at boarding houses (1815); indenture of Enoch Thomas to Du Planty, McCall & Co. for three years' instruction from Criblier (1815); contract with Thompson & Jones to weave 50,000 yds. of drilling (n.d.).
1813-1815
Box 3

Miscellany includes: list of employees of Du Planty, McCall & Co. and of Bauduy, Garesché & Co. (1813); prices of cotton yarns in New York (1814); memorandum and account book of Raphael Du Planty (1815); list of Du Planty, McCall & Co. workmen and their jobs (1815); mule [spinners] room and office time sheet (1815); “...the subscriptions...”, apparently notes on partnership listing shareholders and values of their stock: E. I. du Pont, Archibald McCall, Raphael Du Planty, Robert McCall, Victor du Pont (n.d.); memo on water twist and mule twist (n.d., c 1814); “Cash paid the Farmers Bank on account of mortgage of Du Planty, McCall & Co.” (1837-1843).
1813-1815, 1837-1843, n.d.

Henry Clay mill: successor to Du Planty, McCall & Co. The property was leased for three years to A. W. Adams & Co., in 1843, when the cotton mill became known as “Henry Clay”. In 1845, the mill was sold by the heirs of E. I. du Pont to E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. Letters from: Alfred V. du Pont to A. W. Adams & Co. (1844). Letters to Alfred V. du Pont from: A. W. Adams & Co. (1844); Robert M. Canby (1844), re A. Stephens & Co., a subsequent lessee. Land survey of the mill (n.d., c 1843).
1844

SERIES C. Brandywine Mill Seat Co.,
1798, 1813-1839


Correspondence concerning sale of mill seats, accounts with the heirs of Caleb Kirk, mortgage held by Paul Beck, and transfer of water rights, with label by Alfred V. du Pont, “Millseat propertys opposite Bancroft's”. letters to Alfred V. du Pont, administrator, from William P. Brobson (1835), Caleb Kirk [Jr.], Ewingsville, Md. (1837, 1838), and John G. Elliott, Waynesville, Oh. 1839).
1837-1839

Documents and memoranda include: certified copy of agreement between William Young and Caleb Kirk, 26 June 1798, mutual water rights; bond from Caleb Kirk to E. I. du Pont, James Jefferis, John Warner, William Warner, and John Torbert, 30 Apl 1813; bonds from E. I. du Pont to Job Harvey, 30 Apl 1813, and to Caleb Kirk (Nos. 1, 2), 26 Je 1813; agreement between John Torbert, agent of the Company, and Thomas Maguire, 3 July 1813, to regulate the mill race on the former Harvey property (and appended receipts); agreement between Caleb Kirk and others with George Hudson, Thomas Hudson, Isaac Hudson, machinists, of Christiana Hundred, 23 Aug 1813, sale of part of former Harvey property; bond from Caleb Kirk and others to Charles Tatem, blacksmith, 25 Mch 1814, sale of part of former Harvey property; public notice by E. I. du Pont concerning mill property advertised for sale by Peter Bauduy (26 Oct 1822) [see claims by du Pont against Bauduy in his suit with Victor du Pont against Bauduy and Alexander Deschapelles, Court of Chancery, State of Delaware, 16 May 1822]; memoirs and notes by Alfred V. du Pont, disposal of real estate of the Mill Seat Co. and of Caleb Kirk (1854, n.d.).
1813-1814, 1822, 1854, n.d.

Accounts, bills, and receipts pertain to purchase of property from Louis McLane, 12 Mch 1813; property deeds, drawn by Jonas P. Fairlamb and Joseph Read, 1813; purchase of the Bauduy, Garesché & Co. mill seat, 1813-1814; bonds to Caleb Kirk (c 1814); bill, William H. Naff, advertising sales of mill seats Nos. 2, 3 (1837); receipt, Caleb Kirk [Jr.] to Alfred V. du Pont (1839).
1813-1814, 1837, 1839

SERIES D. A. Cardon & Co.,
1825-1833, n.d.


Business letters from Cardon and Bidermann, primarily to each other, concerning the dissolution of the firm and attempts to settle its finances: Cardon de Sandrans to Bidermann (1825-1833), to E. I. du Pont (1825), to John Walters (1826); Bidermann to Cardon de Sandrans (1825-1833), to James J. Barclay (1830), and to an unidentified correspondent (1827); also, E. I. du Pont to Bidermann (n.d.).
1825-1833, n.d.

Business letters addressed to Bidermann and E. I. du Pont, after the dissolution of the partnership, concern unpaid promissory notes and protests due to Company creditors and the ironworks of Cardon de Sandrans from Henry M. Crawford (Philadelphia, 1828), John White (Philadelphia, 1833), William Graydon (Harrisburg, 1833), Francis Gurney Smith (Philadelphia, 1833), and enclosure (William Graydon to John White, 1833).
1828, 1833

Accounts, bills, and receipts concern supply of raw hides and skins, charges for wages, freight, house rent for an employee, candles, and notes due. Accounts are with Mrs. E. I. du Pont (1817, 1818) and E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. (1820); order to pay Henry Pepper (1820); bills and receipts for James Morrison (1820-1825), for Mrs. E. I. du Pont (1821-1825), and for P. Abbott & Co. (1827).
1817-1825

Documents include agreement between Alexandre Cardon de Sandrans, Jacques [James] Antoine Bidermann, and Louis François Chenou, concerning services by Chenou, 29 Dec 1815; articles of association for the tannery, A. Cardon & Co., 29 Dec 1815; memoir by James Antoine Bidermann, history of the tannery (n.d.).
1815, n.d.

SERIES E. Rockland Manufacturing Company,
1825, 1843-1856, n.d.
Box 4


Items of note listed chronologically, through which the history of the Company may be traced, include: 1825: Copy of the act of incorporation of the “Rockland Manufacturing Co. on the Brandywine”, successor to W. Young, Son & Co., naming as Directors William Young, William Wallace Young, Isaac Bannister [all three partners in the Young firm], John McAllister, John McAllister, Jr., and capital not in excess of $300,000.; 1843: John McAllister, Jr., Edward T. Warner, John Steward, W. W. Young, J. Evans Young, as the five heirs of William Young [died 1829], to Alfred V. du Pont requesting an appraisal of the Company's buildings and assets. Alfred V. du Pont's answer to the five, estimating the sale value of the property. G. F. Huber to Alfred V. du Pont re errors in deeds of land bought by Huber from the Company.; 1844: “Estimated Value of the Rockland property”. Alfred V. du Pont's evaluation of Brandywine power for cotton.; 1845: Alfred V. du Pont, “Memorandum relative to settlement with W. W. Young”; 1846: John McCallister, Jr.'s notice of the election of Alfred V. du Pont, Cyrus Hillborn, George W. Richards as Directors to fill vacancies created by the deaths of William Young [1829], John McAllister, Isaac Bannister, and the resignations of Joseph T. Warner, Edward T. Warner, J. Evans Young; 1847: “Proposed resolution by the Directors”, outlining payment of Company debts to its employees; 1848: John M. Young to Alfred V. du Pont, with weekly wages of the Company workmen. Cyrus Hillborn's views on needed improvements, and plan to purchase shares from McAllister, Richards, and Alfred V. du Pont. Alexander Porter, Delaware District Marshal, inventory and appraisal of goods and chattels belonging to the company. Company account book with wages, etc.; 1849: Marshal's sale of Company machinery to Alfred V. du Pont and John McAllister, Jr. Lease by the Company to Cyrus Hillborn of the Rockland mills for three years. John Gorrie, agent for Hillborn, “list of appraisement of the effects destroyed by fire Oct 2cd & 3rd 1849” Articles of agreement with specifications, between James Goodman and Cyrus Hillborn, as agent for the Company, for Goodman to build a new weaving mill for $2850. Alfred V. du Pont, “Calculation relative to the cost of the weaving mill to be build at Rockland”; 1850: Cyrus Hillborn to and from Alfred V. du Pont, question of putting the Company property up for sale, which would ruin Hillborn. Alfred V. du Pont to the Levy Court of New Castle County, describing lots sold at auction, May 1849. Alfred V. du Pont, “Memorandum of the present State of the Rockland Man'g Co.'s real estate, made March 7th 1850”. Death of McAllister's brother-in-law J. Evans Young. Alfred V. du Pont to John McAllister, Jr., re getting security from Hillborn for his recent possession of the new mill, by having Hillborn's machinery insured as “ours” [McAllister and du Pont] for an amount sufficient to cover funds lent by them to Hillborn. Alfred V. du Pont, “Specifications made with J. Goodman in 1850 / The plan of the building was altered before Goodman broke ground”; 1851: Cyrus Hillborn to and from Alfred V. du Pont, re du Pont's order for the property to be sold for nonpayment of Hillborn's debt, arrangements for Restore Carter to purchase lien held by du Pont on Hillborn's Rockland property, so that the sale may be stopped, and Hillborn's attempts to buy the mill now only leased to him. John McAllilster, Jr., to and Alfred V. du Pont, on the same topics as the Hillborn letters, statement of insurance on the Rockland buildings and machinery, marshal's sale in May by which machinery purchase is “confirmed” to McAllister and du Pont, Hillborn's “suspension or failure” in September, closing of the mills by the sheriff. Bills form the Evening Bulletin (Philadelphia), American (Baltimore), North American and United States Gazette (Philadelphia) for advertising: 23 April, marshal's sale of the Company real estate and water power; 19 May, notice that this sale has been stopped. Elections in July of Directors John McAllister, Jr. [President], Joseph T. Warner [Treasurer], Jacob Backhouse, Charles Warner, Alfred V. du Pont. James A. Bayard to Alfred du Pont, concerning McLanahan & Pleasants' lawsuit against the Company; 1853: Cyrus Hillborn to and from Alfred V. du Pont, on the securing of Hillborn's debt to du Pont by the Rockland machinery, du Pont's desire to sell the rapidly deteriorating machinery, Hillborn's hopes to buy the Rockland property through his friends at private sale. Joseph T. Warner to Alfred V. du Pont, re Bayard's plan to sell the Rockland property when the bonds mature. Alfred V. du Pont to Edward W. Gilpin, stating that the bonds given by the Company to its hands come due Jan 1854, and that the bondholders want the real estate sold and the business closed; 1854: Cyrus Hillborn to and from Alfred V. du Pont, re Hillborn's proposal to buy Rockland property by paying all bondholders in full, du Pont's refusals to sell to Hillborn, sale of machinery in May, sale of mills to A. E. Jessup of Jessup & Moore and to Henry du Pont of E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., Hillborn's hopes to rent from them. John McAllister, Jr., to and from Alfred V. du Pont, sheriff's sales in October of the real estate to Jessup and of Hillborn's personal property at Rockland, insurance transferred to Jessup and Henry du Pont. Alfred V. du Pont to Charles I. du Pont, stating in September that Hillborn no longer has anything to do with Rockland real estate other than being a tenant and a share holder in the Company, of which the stock is worthless; 1855: Alfred V. du Pont to Edward W. Gilpin, attempts to discourage the Daniel Lammots from moving to Rockland from Chester Creek. Cyrus Hillborn to and from Alfred V. du Pont, inventory readied by du Pont for the sale of the rusted machinery, purchase for a paper mill by Jessup & Moore of du Pont's interest in the Rockland real estate, cotton machinery to be removed by October, sale of machinery scheduled for September 22 [which did not take place at that time]. Joseph T. Warner to Alfred V. du Pont, with a statement of Hillborn's indebtedness to the Company; 1856: Copy of Cyrus Hillborn to John McAllister, Jr., asking for cancellation of Hillborn's contract with the Company. Alfred V. du Pont to and from John McAllister, Jr., sale in June of machinery for $2700 gross, a price lower than the appraisal. Cyrus Hillborn to and from Alfred V. du Pont, “Account with Cyrus Hillborn” from December 1851 - January 1856. Edward W. Gilpin to and from Alfred V. du Pont, re agreement by Hillborn that the machinery, held by McAllister and Alfred V. du Pont as security against Hillborn, be sold and the proceeds applied to their claims. Alfred V. du Pont, “Statement of Shafting...etc. at the Rockland Mills, being the property of John McAllister [Jr.] and Alfred V. du Pont”. Purchase of machinery by Elias Dickens, Jessup & Moore, et al.; Undated: Estimates for a 2500-spindle cotton mill, to cost about $50,000.
1825, 1843-1856, n.d.