Business, H-O

Business, P-Z

A. Gettelman Brewing Company. Scrapbooks, 1860-1987. UWM Manuscript Collection 107 Collection consists mainly of newspaper clippings and photographs documenting the history of the Milwaukee's A. Gettelman Brewing Company. The clippings, which also include articles from various brewing-related publications, document not only the history of the Gettelman brewery, but also the history of the brewing industry in Milwaukee and in general.

The clippings, which mainly date from the 1950s through the 1960s, include material on the Schlitz, Miller, Pabst, Blatz, and Heileman brewing companies, as well as information about unions and strikes by brewery workers; the beer lobby and the legal drinking age; beer sales; marketing; and company buyouts. Articles about prohibition and members of Milwaukee's brewing families are also found in the collection. The clipping files also contain memoirs and histories, advertising, beer bottle labels and packaging materials, information about the Froedtert Malt Corp, as well as some Gettelman family history and miscellaneous items of a more personal nature. Also included in the collection are photographs of the Gettelman brewery and the Gettelman family; individuals and employee celebrations; brewers conventions, conferences, and various meetings; as well as photographs from a number of outings, including several fishing trips. Some photographs of the Froedtert Malt Corporation are also included in the collection. Photographs identified as "personal" include photographs of Thomas Gettelman at brewery association and other business functions, hunting and fishing, with his airplane, as well as several photographs of his family and residence. Finding aid available in the Archives.

A. J. Lindemann & Hoverson Company (Milwaukee, Wis.).
Records, 1888-1981.
UWM Manuscript Collection 93
This collection contains records of the A. J. Lindemann & Hoverson Company, a manufacturer of stoves, as well as some personal papers of A. J. Lindemann and his family. The majority of the records date from the mid-1930s through the late 1950s. Earlier items include catalogs from 1888 and 1904. Some of the more interesting items in the collection are the newspaper clippings documenting the company's labor strike which lasted from 1935 to 1937. A number of newspaper clippings and other items also pertain to the company's 1940s wartime production. The collection also includes financial information and materials about the company's organization. The personal papers contain materials pertaining to A. J. Lindemann's estate and also document the 1958 sale of the company. Other personal materials include army and family photographs and a 1942 Army War Show yearbook. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Alexander, Ray A., 1927- .
Papers, 1972-1988.
UWM Manuscript Collection 192
This collection contains Ray A. Alexander's papers pertaining to his work as executive director of the Afro Urban Institute beginning in 1970. The Afro Urban Institute is a tax exempt, non-profit community development corporation for the Milwaukee black community. The Ray A. Alexander Papers consist of documents pertaining to various businesses and programs that the Afro Urban Institute helped establish. This collection includes donor solicitations; publications, including Business Insight and the Tal-N-Art Consortium, Inc. Times newsletters; correspondence; meeting minutes; and program evaluations referring to projects such as the Cheops Construction Company, Apex Cab Company, the Economic Development Center, the Northside Community Design Center, and the Career Opportunities Preparation program, aimed towards junior high school students to encourage education and future business operation and participation. This collection highlights some of the Afro Urban Institute's earlier work and illustrates the tenacity and dedication which Alexander and the Afro Urban Institute needed to conduct business during the 1970s. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Allis, Louis, 1866-1950.
Papers, 1843-1950.
Milwaukee Micro Collection 71
Personal papers, mainly 1883-1938, of a member of a prominent Milwaukee family and president of the Louis Allis Company. The collection consists almost entirely of outgoing personal letters, although occasional items relate to financial investments, real estate management, and oversight of the Mechanical Appliance Co. (the forerunner of the Louis Allis Company). Only scattered letters relate to the E. P. Allis Co. or to Allis family interests in its successor company, the Allis-Chalmers Company. A large portion of the personal correspondence concerns Allis’ first wife Carol Yates (from whom he was divorced in 1907); the rearing and education of their son, Edward P. Allis III; the management of the Louis Allis home; golf and other recreational activities; the beginning of the Milwaukee Country Club; the purchase and maintenance of automobiles; and the lives of other members of the Allis and Yates families. Six scrapbooks document the family’s interest in golf, with scattered items relating to the E. P. Allis and Louis Allis companies, and the extended family. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Avenues West Association (Milwaukee, Wis.).
Records, 1983-1996.
UWM Manuscript Collection 98
Collection contains records of an organization, established in 1982, to improve the quality of life and stability of the neighborhood, insure the quality and security of neighborhood housing, foster business growth and development, and build an educational environment that serves the needs of adults and children in the area. Included are files on committee meetings, projects and meeting minutes. The files "Avenues West" contain all committee reports, meeting minutes and material for the particular year. The collection also contains a video, The Avenues West Story, originally created in 1987 by WISN-TV. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Bank of Milwaukee. Board of Directors.
Minute book, 1837-1842.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection AB
Minute book, beginning with the first meeting of the Board from 5 January 1837 to 2 August 1842.

Barnett family. Family and business papers, 1906-1971. Milwaukee Manuscript Collection 21 Family and business records from three generations of a Milwaukee Jewish family, including correspondence with a European cousin who survived a Nazi concentration camp and was trying to emigrate to America; a scrapbook on family religious occasions; and family genealogical information. Also contains records of the family-owned Barnett Woolen Mills, especially on its bankruptcy and reorganization in 1938; and the Muskego Company. Some family correspondence is in Yiddish. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Bragarnick, Harry, 1879-1960.
Papers, 1930-1960.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection 140
Papers of a dry goods retailer and freelance arbitrator who immigrated from the Ukraine in 1878 and resided in Milwaukee from 1913 to 1960. The collection consists of clippings, correspondence, and miscellaneous legal records which document Bragarnick's role in settling labor disputes, especially during the milk strikes of 1933, and in the hosiery and garment industries during the 1930s and 1940s. Also documented are his philanthropic activities in Milwaukee and efforts to mediate civil cases such as divorce and property disputes. The photocopies of photographs include images of Harry Bragarnick and Elizabeth Bragarnick; Harry Bragarnick with labor leaders; Harry Bragarnick's seventieth birthday celebration, May 9, 1948; and an exterior view of his dry goods store in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, ca. 1930. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Bruce, William George, 1856-1949.
Papers, 1843-1960.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection CU and Milwaukee Micro Collection 60
Papers of a Milwaukee businessman primarily documenting the many civic involvements of his retirement years (1918-1949), especially his general interests in education, the Catholic, Milwaukee history, and Milwaukee business conditions. Included are correspondence; subject files concerning specific involvements such as the Milwaukee Board of Harbor Commissioners, the St. Lawrence Seaway, and the 1948 Corporation; minutes; reports; numerous biographical clipping scrapbooks (available only on microfilm), testimonials, and other biographical information; writings and speeches; and photographs. The large file of writings and books by Bruce includes works on education and commercial organizations and draft chapters of an unpublished book on the Jewish question in the United States. Pertaining to the early history of the Bruce Publishing Company are financial ledgers and journals and examples of advertising materials. Later operations of the firm are documented by religious manuscripts published by the company (some by Fulton J. Sheen) and runs of the Bruce Buzzer and the Bruce Cooperator, employee newsletters, in the State Historical Society of Wisconsin (SHSW) Libraries. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Burton, John E.
Diaries, 1885-1886, 1890, 1904, 1990.
Milwaukee Small Collection 190
Typed transcripts of diaries (1885-1886, 1904) kept by Burton, a Milwaukee businessman and salesman for the American Life Insurance Co. The diaries provide information about insurance policies and premiums written by Burton, his social activities and travels, and his heavy involvement as an investor and director in iron mines and banks in the Ashland and Hurley, Wis. areas and around Bessemer, Mich., particularly work as secretary of the Aurora Iron Mining Company and in consolidating several mining operations into the Gogebic Consolidated Iron Company. The 1890 diary describes travel in Mexico, where he collected Aztec artifacts and visited mines and ranches for potential purchase, and also describes his travels by rail from El Paso to San Francisco and back to Chicago. The 1904 diary records a three-month trip Burton made to Alaska and Siberia, inluding his voyage by steamer from Seattle through the Bering Strait to Nome. Also included is a copy of a letter (1990) written by Alice Burton Hackett, John Burton's granddaughter, which identifies many of the people mentioned in the diaries.

Business and Professional Women's Club of Milwaukee. Records, 1920-1998. UWM Manuscript Collection 127 The Business and Professional Women's Club of Milwaukee records document the organization's role in improving the conditions for working women through education, participation in community affairs and legislative action.

Covering the years 1920-1998, the collection contains an almost complete run of the organization's newsletters, the Bulletin (1922-1948) and the Broadcaster (1948-1998), as well as executive committee minutes, committee reports and correspondence files; these files comprise the bulk of the collection. Also included, but to a lesser extent, are membership lists, handbooks, by-laws, annual report files and histories compiled for anniversary celebrations. The collection's photographs document the club's activities and members. Subject files also contain specific information regarding the organization's efforts to secure passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, influence state legislation, and its role in founding the Milwaukee Art Museum War Memorial Center. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Business Improvement District No. 2 (Milwaukee, Wis.).
Records, 1984-1997.
UWM Manuscript Collection 102
Records of the Business Improvement District (BID) which worked to promote and manage development by means of special tax assessments within the Historic Third Ward area of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The collection documents the BID's close relationship with the Historic Third Ward Association, which developed the overall planning and development of the area. The collection includes operating plans, which provide details on the goals and activities of the District, and minutes and background materials of the Board of Directors. The records of the Parking Structure contain extensive documentation of the design, planning, and construction of the parking and retail structure sponsored by the BID. The BID's Streetscape Project (sometimes called "Streetscaping") was an effort to improve the physical appearance of the District. The Project began in April 1989 and was completed in 1992. The collection contains extensive documentation concerning the Project, including correspondence with city of Milwaukee officials, especially the Department of Public Works, Renner Architects, and others about the streetscape plan and implementation. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Cardijn Bookstore (Milwaukee, Wis.).
Records, 1944-1984.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection 114
Fragmentary records of a bookstore originally founded in 1949 as a semi-autonomous cooperative associated with the Cardijn Center. After the dissolution of the Center in 1961, the bookstore continued to operate independently. Contains some administrative and financial records of both the bookstore and center, including by-laws and articles of association; advertisements and photographs; corresponence of Father John Beix, the founder of the center; and newsletters of the center and the Young Christian Workers Federation, which was located at the center. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Carpenter, O. W.
Papers, 1955-1966.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection 184
Papers of O. W. Carpenter, chief executive and chairman of the board of Rex Chainbelt, Inc., Milwaukee, Wisconsin, including speeches, 1963-1965, by Carpenter and other executives, clippings, a brief company history by Neita Oviatt Friend, a catalog of construction equipment manufactred by the company, and many product bulletins. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Cream City Business Association.
Records, 1979-1989.
UWM Manuscript Collection 204
Collection consists of the records of the Cream City Business Association, an affiliation of metropolitan Milwaukee gay and lesbian business owners and service providers that was in existence from 1981 to 1989. Collection includes meeting agendas and minutes of the executive committee and board of directors, newsletters, administrative correspondence, business directories, and committee files. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Crocker, Hans, 1815-1889.
Papers, 1836-1887.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection 85
Miscellaneous papers of a Milwaukeean active in Wisconsin economic development. The bulk of the collection (1846-1871) documents real estate transactions, consisting almost entirely of quitclaims and property tax receipts from Crocker's activities as a railroad receiver and investor in land and other ventures. Also contains some correspondence of Crocker, of relatives by marriage, and of business associates. The materials provide information on the price and ownership of land, but not on its subsequent use. Collection also contains some records pertaining to the La Crosse and Milwaukee Railroad, and includes a few items concerning the transportation of soldiers during the early years of the Civil War. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Crosby, Henry.
Papers, 1969-1976.
UWM Manuscript Collection 188
This collection contains Henry Crosby's papers pertaining to the 1970 acquisition and the 1972 closure of the Peoples Brewing Company. Crosby was on the board of directors of this company. This brewery was owned by a group of Milwaukee-based African American Investors. As a result of this purchase and the subsequent African American directed stock sale, the Peoples Brewing Company became the first major African American owned brewery in Wisconsin. The Henry Crosby Papers consist of documents relating to the Peoples Brewing Company in Oshkosh, Wisconsin; the president of the Peoples Brewing Company, Theodore Mack; minority business initiatives; the Wisconsin brewing industry; and the Small Business Administration (SBA), which is the federal government agency whose function is to council and assist the interests of small businesses. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Day, Frederick T., 1842-1920.
Business papers, 1855-1910.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection M
Papers, including cash and letter books, of a Milwaukee real estate and loan operator and president of the Plankinton Bank. Most of the collection relates to the operation of the loan business, especially the making of loans on farm lands in the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. There is a vast quantity of correspondence, much of it routine, with mortgagers and with local agents concerning the examination of applications for loans, collection of interest commissions, security, abstracts of title, extensions of mortgages, foreclosures, and taxes. The agents included Melvin Grisby, C. M. Harrison, Edward J. Hodgson, and George W. Wishard. The collection contains letterbooks dealing with the administration of the firm's assignee, William H. Momsen. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Dexter-Roundy family papers, 1772-1951.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection 108 and Milwaukee Micro Collection 57

Papers of a family originally from Shelbyville, Illinois that founded (1872) the independent Milwaukee grocery wholesale firm Roundy, Peckham, and Dexter. Included is detailed correspondence between Judson A. Roundy and his brother-in-law, Joshua L. Dexter, concerning family matters and the establishment of their Shelbyville grocery business in 1851; letters and diaries of Joshua's son Charles J. concerning his education and early life, move to Milwaukee in 1879, and various anniversaries of his business career and miscellaneous legal and financial papers; correspondence and numerous brief diaries of Charles' son Edward, who was also active in the business; and a detailed European travel diary (1908) and correspondence of Charles' wife Effie McBeth Dexter.

Also pertaining to her family are numerous legal papers primarily concerning investments in Ohio during the first half of the nineteenth Century. Pertaining to Roundy, Peckham, & Dexter are articles of incorporation, examples of advertising materials, labels used on their products, and circular letters. Also included are genealogical material, and miscellaneous correspondence of various other members of the extended family. All of the diaries are available on microfilm. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Donaldson, Nathaniel S.
Papers, 1839-1850.
Milwaukee Small Collection 25
Portion of a ledger (1839-1845); an indenture (1842); and two business letters (1844, 1850), kept by a Milwaukee merchant.

Downer, Jason, 1813-1883.
Papers, 1853-1883.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection O
The Jason Downer Papers cover the period from 1853 to 1883. The papers are in three groups; correspondence, 1853-1883; legal papers; and bills and receipts. The correspondence has been arranged chronologically. The three categories are approximately the same in size, the correspondence being slightly the largest of the three. Both business and personal letters are included in the correspondence, the personal letters being in the large part from members of his family and frequently referring to business matters. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Economy Savings & Loan Associates (Milwaukee, Wis.).
Annual reports, 1927-1968.
Milwaukee Small Collection 204
Annual financial statements and a prospectus (ca. 1930) of a Milwaukee, Wis. neighborhood building and loan association formed in 1927. Economy provided savings and investment opportunities to persons of low or median income and financed first home mortgages for its members. Members were primarily families of German descent who lived near Economy's office on North Teutonia Avenue. The association was dissolved in 1968 and its assets sold to Hopkins Savings and Loan.

Edwards, T. David.
Business papers, 1891-1904.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection CB
Daybook from the T. David Edwards general merchandise store at Genesee Depot, Wisconsin (1891); and a package of bills showing prices of household commodities (1898-1904). Finding aid available in the Archives.

Emmons, Norman.
Robert Eliot and Norman Emmons papers, 1840-1882.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection EV
Papers of a Milwaukee attorney and railroad executive. Most of the collection is correspondence relating to Indian claims at Mackinac, Michigan; letters from New York investor Russell Sage about his Wisconsin business affairs; and several Civil War letters. Also contains correspondence of Emmons' brother-in-law Robert Eliot concerning family matters, and includes an 1852 letter from Ralph Waldo Emerson to Theodore Parker concering the inscription on the Concord Bridge, and an 1854 letter of appointment to the rank of lieutenant from Matthew C. Perry to Garret V. Denniston. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Erichsen, Janice M.
Papers, 1930-1984.
Milwaukee Small Collection 198
Articles written by Janice M. Erichsen about her father, Albert F. Grutzmacher, a Mukwonago, Wisconsin builder responsible for many of the area's structures including Ten Chimneys, the home of Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne. There are also clippings about the Lunts, and a thank you letter (ALS) from Alfred Lunt to Albert Gutzmacher.

Fairview Cheese Factory (Cedar Grove, Wis.).
Records, 1908-1949.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection ET
Records of a Cedar Grove cheese factory operated by Ernest H. Fisher, including production and sales records for cream, butter, and cheese; payroll ledgers which also contain accounts with area dairy farmers; and personal and corporate tax returns. Also includes certificates, farm animal pedigrees, and licenses. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Federated Trades Council of Milwaukee.
Records, 1900-1950.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection DR
Records consist largely of correspondence of General Secretary Frank J. Weber to affiliated member unions (1922-1933) concerning trade unionism, old age pensions, collective bargaining, conscription and wages during World War II, socialism and capitalism, inter-union disputes, and labor legislation. Also contains minutes of the executive board (1923-1939); minutes of meetings (1900-1903); and some material on the Milwaukee Laundry Strike of 1934-1935. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Fish Creek Park Company.
Records, 1892-1970.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection 88
Partial records of a land development company in Ozaukee County, documenting the development of Fairy Chasm, an area known for its environmental beauty; its controversial partial annexation into the village of Bayside; and the sale of some acreage to the organization Nature Conservancy. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Fleming, Thomas J., 1869-1930.
Thomas J. Fleming and Harold J. Fleming papers, 1922-1940.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection EC
The bulk of the collection consists of business correspondence of the C. Nelson Smith Company (Thomas Fleming was president) which manufactured Fleming's D-O-D, a patent medicine advertised as capable of curing numerous human ailments, as well as most animal diseases. Also included are letters reflecting Thomas Fleming's political activities in the 1920s, when he was a delegate to national Democratic conventions. Harold Fleming's papers document his West Allis A & W Root Beer franchise, and social and civic interests, which included the American Legion, the Red Cross, and the West Allis News (1938), a small mimeographed sheet. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Foley, John.
Account book, 1864-1877.
Milwaukee Small Collection 26
Account book shows cash expenditures and receipts for Foley's family and store in Wauwatosa.

Founding Industries of Wisconsin (Survey project).
Records, 1987-[ongoing].
UWM Manuscript Collection 41

The collection contains files on over 5,000 Wisconsin businesses, each of which employed more than 100 employees. The information was solicited, collated and organized between 1987 and the present, but information dates from 1880 to the present. The contents in each file varies, but most include survey forms, newspaper clippings, and information reproduced from other published sources. The collection also includes a database that can be searched on 32 different fields and includes references to the repositories throughout the state where company records can be found. The database includes the company name, location (city and county), incorporation date, names of founders, Standard Industrial Classification codes (as determined by the initial study coordinators), and any other names or the names of parent/subsidiary companies associated with the company. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Friend, Henry C.
Papers, 1934-1936.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection DD
Correspondence from Friend's work as an attorney for the Chicago district office of the Federal Home Owners Loan Corporation, an agency which made loans to forestall home foreclosures; consisting of letters to the agency's Wisconsin and Illinois legal counsels and routine interoffice memoranda. Finding aid available in the Archives.

G. W. Ogden and Company (Milwaukee, Wis.).
Records, 1867-1898.
Milwaukee Manuscript Collection AP
Sales records and annual inventories taken in a Milwaukee carriage shop. Finding aid available in the Archives.

Gallagher, Joseph T.
Speeches, 1924-1937.
Milwaukee Small Collection 159
Speeches of an executive in the claims department of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, mainly delivered to company employees concerning internal matters and general insurance issues. A few speeches concern Gallagher's involvement with the Wisconsin Children's Code Committee.

Golden Guernsey Dairy Cooperative (Waukesha County, Wis.). Records, 1935-1973. Milwaukee Small Collection 160 Miscellaneous records of a dairy cooperative organized in 1929 by breeders in Waukesha County in order to market their product in Milwaukee, including histories; annual reports; sales manuals; a 1963 speech by Gavin McKerrow, president of the cooperative; and other printed materials.

Gurda, Casimir A., ca. 1898-1978.
Papers, 1931-1981.
Milwaukee Small Collection 113
Miscellaneous papers of the owner of a real estate, insurance, and mortgage brokerage business in Milwaukee, including some papers from his service as a city of Milwaukee debt commissioner, newsclippings on his professional life, an obituary, and family photographs.

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Last edited on Tuesday, February 7, 2006.
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