R. Hoe & Company records

Collection

Identifier: Wing-Modern-MS-Hoe

Staff Only

Scope and Content of the Collection

This small collection consists almost entirely of incoming letters from customers for the company’s extensive line of printing presses and associated equipment. It derives from a series of three or more letter books for 1858, 1873 and 1877-78, separated from the remainder of the company archive at the time of its dispersal. The letter books were subsequently disassembled and the correspondence with customers in some states of the U.S., Canada, and several European and Latin American nations were sold to other collectors. This is the remnant, consisting of letters from East Coast, Southern, and Midwestern clients. Important Chicago customers include: Rand McNally and Co., R.R. Donnelley and Sons Co., the Chicago Tribune, the Weekly Chicago Press and Tribune, and the Chicago Evening Journal.

Dates

Creation: 1858-1878

Creator

R. Hoe & Company (Organization)

Language

Materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

The R. Hoe & Company Records are open for research in the Special Collections Reading Room; 1 box at a time (Priority III).

Ownership and Literary Rights

The R. Hoe & Company records are the physical property of the Newberry Library. Copyright may belong to the authors or their legal heirs or assigns. For permission to publish or reproduce any materials from this collection, contact the Roger and Julie Baskes Department of Special Collections at reference@newberry.org.

History of the R. Hoe & Company

The R. Hoe & Company was the largest manufacturer of printing presses in the United States in the nineteenth century.

Extent

2.1 Linear Feet (5 boxes)

Additional Description

Abstract

R. Hoe & Company was the largest manufacturer of printing presses and press equipment in the U.S. during the 19th century. Collection consists of incoming letters to the Hoe Company from customers in many states and several European and Latin American countries, deriving from 3 or more letter books of 1858, 1873 and 1877-1878. There are also some 1873-1878 internal memos, patent correspondence, and letters from regional agents of the Hoe Company.

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by customer name. At the end (later half of box 5) are arranged some internal documents and correspondence with regional agents: W.H. Kerkhoff in Chicago, Horace Dodd in Boston, and the South Carolina firm of Walker, Evans & Cogswell.