Saturday, December 31, 2011

Happy New Year 2012!



FREIGHT OFFICE
L. S. & M. S. Ry
JAN  1  1900
SO. CHICAGO
ILLS.


*****


Happy New Year!    2012 will continue with our ongoing series on New York and other stock brokers, but will begin with a series on New York and other bankers, banks, and trusts.  Somewhere down the line I will revisit documentary printed cancels.  I can't say much more about what 2012 holds for the site; planning isn't really my strength as a blog publisher.  However, I've got lots of proprietary printeds to rollout, and a discussion to start on the Joyce/Buford lists of proprietary printed cancels.

A new addition for 2012 is this feature page on stock broker cancels. At this page, you can find a list of links to posts on stock brokers and their cancels, compiled in alphabetical order.  I will endeavour to keep this list up-to-date on a bi-weekly basis.  Nearly 70 brokers are listed on this links page as of today.

Thanks to all the regulars and occasional visitors to this site.  I wish you all the best for the New Year.


Thursday, December 29, 2011

New York Stock Brokers: Dominick & Dominick






January 1904 Dominick & Dominick column advertisement




Dominick & Dominick
FEB    4    1902
New York.

Langlois scan





These photos of the partners in the Dominick & Dominick firm were taken in 1897 for the book King's Views of the New York Stock Exchange when the firm was still named Dominick & Dickerman.  Before the end of the 1898 tax period, Watson Dickerman departed the firm, with the consequent rename of the firm to Dominick & Dominick. 




Dominick & Dominick still exists today as an independent financial services firm specializing in wealth management, institutional trading, investment banking, and risk management.




Bayard Dominick Jr. succeeded his father to become the senior partner and the firm entered the investment banking business.  In 1919 D&D headed a syndicate which underwrote $50 million General Motors 6% Preferred Stock -- the largest industrial company underwriting of its kind up to that point. 


Wednesday, December 28, 2011

New York Stock Brokers: Dominick & Dickerman


January 7, 1898 Column advertisement for Dominick & Dickerman

Dominick & Dickerman's Watson Dickerman was a President of the New York Stock Exchange in the early 1890s, and was a named partner of this firm at the beginning of 1898.  Over the course of the 1898 tax period, however, Mr. Dickerman would leave the partnership with the sprawling Dominick family, and the firm's name would change to Dominick & Dominick.  Dominick & Dominick still exists today.  Tomorrow this site will highlight a cancel from the Dominick only franchise.


When Dominick & Dickerman was founded in 1870, Ulysees S. Grant was in The White House.  The country was engaged in post Civil War construction.  The vast areas west of the Mississippi River were largely wilderness.   William Gayer Dominick & Watson Bradley Dickerman met on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange and in 1870 formed the partnership of Dominick & Dickerman.



DOMINICK & DICKERMAN,
JAN
6
1899
NEW YORK.





Bayard Dominick, brother of Marinus Dominick and father of Bayard Dominick, Jr.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

New York Stock Exchange Presidents

Yesterday's post on Edward Sweet & Company got me thinking about whether I could put together a group of cancels and photos of the Presidents of the NYSE in the years before, during, and after the 1898 tax period.  The Presidents included here were part of firms that operated during the 1898 tax period, and consequently cancelled stamps during that time. 

The collection is a work in progress, but with the stamps from mine and Dave T's collections I was able to assemble a decent survey, with only one company cancel, that of Pomroy Brothers, missing between 1886-1912. There is also representation going back to 1878, by Mr. Ives of R. H. Bissell & Company.



Brayton Ives
President, NYSE, 1878-1879


Mr. Ives was partner in the firm R. H. Bissell & Company.


cancel for R. H. Bissell & Company

Thompson scans




There is a gap here from 1880 to 1885....1898 Revenues is seeking cancels for the firm of Vermilye Company.  Please write to 1898revenues@gmail.com if you have any 1898 series stamps with Vermilye cancels.


1882 Hudson Hawley painting of the New York York Stock Exchange on Broad Street

In 1903, the NYSE would move to a new and grander location on Broad Street.




James D. Smith
President, NYSE, 1886-1887



Cancel for James D. Smith & Company

J. D. S. & CO.
SEP  8  1899

Thompson scan




William L. Bull
President, NYSE, 1888-1889
Senior Partner, Edward Sweet & Company



perfin cancel for Edward Sweet & Company

E S & Co

Langlois scan




Watson B. Dickerman
President, NYSE, 1890-1891


Watson Dickerman was a founding partner of Dominick & Dickerman, a firm that would be renamed Dominick & Dominick upon Mr. Dickerman's departure from the firm.  Dominick & Dominick is still in business today and remains privately owned. 



Cancel for Dominick & Dickerman

DOMINICK & DICKERMAN
JAN
6
1899
NEW YORK.

Langlois scan




Frank K. Sturgis
President, NYSE, 1892-1894


Sturgis was President of the Exchange during the Panic of 1893.  The panic produced the second greatest economic depression the US has experienced after the Great Depression of the 1930s.


Cancel for Strong Sturgis & Company

S. S. & CO.
APR
10
1899

Langlois scan




Francis L. Eames
President, NYSE, 1894-1898



Cancels for Eames & Moore

EAMES & MOORE
JAN
2X
1901
NEW YORK.

die cut:

E & M

Thompson scan




Rudolph Keppler
President, NYSE, 1898-1903

Rudolph Keppler presided over the Exchange when it moved into its new and present facilities.  The Harper's issue above, on which Mr. Keppler was the cover feature, contained an article on the Exchange entitled "The American Gambling Spirit" by Edwin Lefevre.  Lefevre was a noted stock broker and journalist who chronicled the stock market in the early 20th century.


cancel for Rudolph Keppler & Company

RUDOLPH KEPPLER & CO.
SEP
22
1898

Langlois scan



Current NYSE, opened in 1903.





Ransom H. Thomas
President, NYSE, 1903-1904




Cancel for R. H. Thomas & Company:

R. H. THOMAS & CO.
SEP
5
1899
NEW YORK.

Langlois scan





Henry K. Pomroy
President, NYSE, 1904-1907


Pomroy Brothers cancel needed.  David T - Any P. B. cancels in your collection?




Ransom H. Thomas
President, NYSE, 1907-1912

Mr. Thomas returned as President during the market panic year of 1907.  The panic of 1907 was stabilized through the actions of J. Pierpont Morgan; the ensuing investigation of its cause and proposed remedies led to the creation of the US Federal Reserve.  Imagine a Ron Paul America with no Federal Reserve -- life would go back to financial panics, delivered at least once a generation, controlled only by kingpin financial barons like J. P. Morgan.  Paul can have his vision of America.  It is not mine.



Cancel for R. H. Thomas & Company:

R. H. THOMAS & CO.
SEP
5
1899
NEW YORK.

Langlois scan

Monday, December 26, 2011

New York Stock Brokers: Edward Sweet & Company

Classified advertisement, January 21, 1909 New York Evening Post




E S & Co

perfin cancel on R168p block of four

Langlois scan



William Bull was the senior partner for many years at the venerable firm of Edward Sweet & Company, including the years of the 1898 war taxes.  He was also the President of New York Stock Exchange from 1888-1889.


From The New York Times, December 5, 1914:

BROKERS' FIRM TO DISSOLVE

Edward Sweet & Co., Founded in 1854, Will Transfer Accounts.

The Stock Exchange firm of Edward Sweet & Co., one of the oldest houses in the Street, will transfer its affairs to Chandler Bros. & Co. of New York and Philadelphia on Thursday and formally dissolve.  The firm's offices at 34 Pine Street will be occupied after that date by Chandler Bros. & Co., whose New York office is now at 111 Broadway....

The house of Edward Sweet & Co. was founded in 1854 and retained its name without change. although numerous alterations in the personnel of the partners occurred.  many well-known figures in Wall Street affairs did business in securities through the firm, including a number of the Vanderbilt family.  H. H. Rogers and other men interested in Standard Oil had accounts with Sweet & Co., and E. H. Harriman was a customer for some time.  The late William L. Bull, the senior partner at the time of his death last January, served as President of the Stock Exchange in 1888 and 1889.

Sunday, December 25, 2011

1000th Post Milestone for 1898 Revenues

Frank Sente called to my attention the fact that this month, and with this post, 1898 Revenues has now reached the milestone of 1000 published posts. 



1000 Dollar James Madison documentary stamp from the Scarsdale sale.  This stamp is the single 1000 Dollar value of the 1898 series.


This site began in March 2009.  With nearly daily updates or entries to the site, we've managed to get to 1000 posts before the end of 2011.  Few blogs on the web can claim this kind of intensity of new content production. 

I state that "we've managed to get 1000 posts", as I've had help from many contributors.  Special thanks go David Thompson, Frank Sente, and Bob Hohertz, though there have been a host of others that have shared their material, from individual stamps to exhibits.

As part of the experience of publishing this site I've found it relatively easy to identify new ideas and subjects for daily updates and posts.  The blog format fits very well with subject of revenue stamps and their cancels.  Despite 1000 posts to date, I've still got hundreds of post ideas in the cue -- many sent to me by collectors like David Thompson -- and many more written up by veteran collectors like Frank Sente. 

So as this year comes to end and we start a new one, I expect another year of productive blog publishing.  Thanks for reading and Happy New Year!

Friday, December 23, 2011

Merry Christmas from 1898 Revenues



Baboon Cliff, overlooking Lake Nakuru, The Great Rift Valley, Kenya

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

New York Stock Brokers: Watson & Brown


WATSON & BROWN
XX
80 BROADWAY

Dave Thompson scan

Split cancels are partial, but sufficient to show the address 80 Broadway, the location of the NYSE firm Watson & Brown.




Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Boston Stock Brokers: Estabrook & Company


Cornell Alumni News, July 1928


ESTABROOK & CO.
MAR
14
1899
BOSTON.

Rick Lokos scan




The stamps and cancels above come from the Mexican Telephone Company stock cert shown below.  This document featured on this site nearly a year and a half ago on July 8, 2010.



Monday, December 19, 2011

New York Stock Brokers: Warren R. Houghtaling & Company


W. R. HOUGHTALING & CO.
FEB
15
1902
NEW YORK.

Dave Thompson scan

W. R. Houghtaling & Company was a brokerage firm located at 7 Nassau Street in New York.  Warren Houghtaling, a member of the New York Stock Exchange, was the head of the firm.

Nassau Street is in New York's financial district and intersects with Wall Street.  Nassau Street was also one of philately's most famous addresses, as numerous stamp dealers, many catering to wealthy of New York, were located on Nassau Street. 

I am interested in acquiring copies or scans of Mekeel's from the early 1900s to identify the addresses of stamp dealers located on Nassau Street.  With an old city map, the locations of brokers and many of the leading stamp dealers of the day can be plotted.  Stay tuned!

Sunday, December 18, 2011