Gonic Manufacturing Records, 1859-1954
Collection Number: 6669
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives
Cornell University Library
DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARY
Title:
Gonic Manufacturing Records, 1859-1954
Repository:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives
Collection Number:
6669
Abstract:
Includes records of incorporation & minutes of stockholders' meetings, 1859-1884;
minutes of Directors' meetings, 1877-1903; ledger, indexed, with cash and credit information,
1859-1867; records of dividends paid, 1882-1912; correspondence about dividends, 1905-1906,
& notes on company history, n.d., 1954.
Creator:
Gonic Manufacturing Company
Quanitities:
0.25 cubic feet
Language:
Collection material in English
Gonic Manufacturing was founded in 1859 by Nicholas Varney Whitehouse, after his previous
business venture in Gonic, N.H., had failed. During the Civil War the high demand
for wool uniforms and blankets by the Union Army meant that business was good for
the company, which used some of their profits to improve the mill's water power and
add steam engines. In 1861 a large addition was added to the west end of the mill.
The 1870s saw a drop in the demand for wool, and a warehouse fire destroy much of
Gonic's finished material. After Whitehouse's retirement in 1877 and a weavers' strike
the mill closed in 1878. After economic conditions improved the mill reopened in 1880.
By the 1890s a residence for the mill agent and 30 tenements for workers were included
in the company's holdings. Although the mill stayed in operation through the Depression,
it had to sell many of its tenements in 1935.
World War II saw Gonic Manufacturing fulfilling U.S. Navy orders for blankets and
other material, earning it the a "Navy E" award.
During the 1940s and 1950s demand was such that the mill was expanded and improved.
The 1960s, however, saw a decline in demand, due in part to the increased use of synthetic
fibers.
Gonic Manufacturing Compnay ceased operations and closed in 1971.
Contains copy of records of incorporation and minutes of stockholders' meetings, 1859-1884;
minutes of directors' meetings, 1877-1903; ledger listing cash and credit information,
1859- 1867, with ledger that indexes this volume; and record of dividends paid, 1882-1912.
Also contains correspondence concerning dividends, 1905-1906; and notes on company
history, n.d., 1954.
Custodial History
American Textile History Museum Collection.
American Textile History Museum Collection.
Access to the collections in the Kheel Center is restricted. Please contact a reference
archivist for access to these materials.
This collection must be used in keeping with the Kheel Center Information Sheet and
Procedures for Document Use.
INFORMATION FOR USERS
Gonic Manufacturing Records #6669. Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation
and Archives, Cornell University Library.
Related Collections: 6669 P: Gonic Manufacturing Photographs
Names:
Whitehouse, Nicholas V.
Gonic Manufacturing Company.
Parker, Wilder & Company.
Subjects:
Articles of incorporation
Business records
Commission merchants
Manufacturers' agents
Textile industry
Woolen and worsted manufacture
Financial records
Selling - Textile industry
Gonic (Rochester, N.H.)
Rochester (N.H.)
CONTAINER LIST
Container
|
Description
|
Date
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
History file
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|
Box 1 | Folder 2 |
Miscellaneous Correspondence
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