Summary Information
Columbus Food Corporation Records
1901-1946
- Columbus Food Corporation (Wis.)
Mss 824; Micro 2017; PH Mss 824
22.2 cubic feet (12 archives boxes, 5 flat boxes, and 29 oversize volumes), 15 reels of microfilm (35 mm), and 6 photographs
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Records of a canning company headquartered in Columbus, Wisconsin, that was founded in 1900 as the Columbus Canning Company and that packed peas and corn at various locations in the Midwest. In 1946 the company was purchased by Stokely-Van Camp Inc. Included are minutes, annual reports, and extensive financial records, as well as microfilmed correspondence of company officers William C. Leitsch and Fred A. Stare with the Canned Pea Marketing Cooperative, the Canned Pea Marketing Institute, the Canners Seed Corporation, the National Canners Association, the Wisconsin Canners Association, the Wisconsin Pea Packers Association, and other food processing companies and trade associations. Some correspondence concerns involvement with federal agencies that dealt with food production and distribution during World War I and World War II and the regulation of the industry during the 1930s. The related activities of Frank T. Stare and other Stare family members are also documented. Photographs are primarily of the Sun Prairie Canning Company.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00824 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
The Columbus Canning Company was incorporated in December 1900 with a capital of $30,000 and 86 stockholders, none of whom were permitted to subscribe to more than $500.00. William C. Leitsch, the mayor of Columbus, was elected president and manager of the company, and he continued in this position until his death on April 18, 1923.
Other company management included Frank A. Stare, who worked for the company as processor and superintendent until 1902, when he left to work for the Waukesha Canning Company. Stare returned in 1908. In 1924 he was named general manager; in 1929 he became president as well as continuing as general manager.
In its first years the company packed peas, corn, pumpkin, and tomatoes. Later it expanded its capacity and eventually specialized in packing peas, although it continued canning corn, especially at its Shelbyville plant. Branch plants were added at Juneau (1912), Horicon (1920), and Evansville, Wisconsin (1929); Shelbyville, Indiana (1929); and Lawrence, Kansas (1930). From 1934 to 1937, Columbus leased a canning plant at Elba, Wisconsin, and in 1934 it experimented with growing winter peas in McAllen, Texas.
Because the company's charter was not sufficiently broad to permit out-of-state branch operations the company was reorganized under the laws of Delaware as the Columbus Food Corporation with J. W. Kieckhofer as president and Frank A. Stare as vice-president and general manager. On April 30, 1946 the Columbus Foods Corporation merged with Stokely Van Camp Inc.
The company management actively participated in state, regional, and national canners associations, serving as officers and committee members. They were also frequent contributors to trade journals and Fred A. Stare was the author of The Story of Wisconsin's Great Canning Industry (1949), a detailed history of the company and the canning industry in Wisconsin. Leitsch and Stare also served on federal committees concerned with wartime production and interstate trade regulations.
Scope and Content Note
The records of the Columbus Canning Company are remarkably complete, providing excellent documentation on all aspects of the company's operations from its founding in 1900 to its purchase by Stokely Foods Corporation in 1946. Of particular value is the correspondence of Frank A. Stare, a longtime officer of the company, which includes details on company policy, economic conditions, marketing strategy, and plant operations, as well as the very complete minutes and financial records. Also useful is the material documenting his involvement with various trade associations, as well as the material relating to the earlier professional activity of W. C. Leitsch.
The records are grouped in five series: Administration Records, Correspondence, Financial Records, Association Records, and Photographs.
All of the CORRESPONDENCE and ASSOCIATION RECORDS have been microfilmed. Because of their deteriorated condition the originals were destroyed after filming.
The ADMINISTRATIVE RECORDS include a complete run from 1900 to 1946 of minutes of meetings of the board of directors and the stockholders and reports and other materials used during these meetings. Some stock records are also included.
The CORRESPONDENCE consists of the files of the company's upper management, especially Fred A. Stare, who, with brief interruption, served as general manager from 1908 until the company's sale in 1946. Documentation of Leitsch's activities primarily consist of reports and exchanges with him in Stare's files while Leitsch was absent from Columbus on National Canners Association and other professional business.
The correspondence is arranged into four groups by type: general correspondence, canning companies, governmental agencies, and the University of Wisconsin. All files within these groups are arranged alphabetically by title.
The general company correspondence consists of letters about company policies, general plant operations, and its financial condition, as well as involvement with stockholders, trade associations and packers' brokers, the development of markets and products, and client relations. There is some correspondence with the Stokely company at the time of the merger. Correspondence with other canning companies contains detailed information on their plant operations, relations with growers and buyers, labor relations, crop performance, farming techniques, and market conditions. The correspondents here include national and Wisconsin pea and corn packers (such as the Oconomowoc Canning Company) and a smaller number of canners of fruit, juices, meats and fish.
The correspondence with the federal government pertains to wartime production and involvement with the regulatory activities of the National Recovery Administration during the 1930s. The University of Wisconsin correspondence documents cooperation of the company with the university in agricultural research projects, education, and the development of food processing technology.
The FINANCIAL RECORDS document the entire history of the company, although there are gaps within some types of records. For example, the general ledgers cover the years 1901 to 1907, 1910 to 1928, 1930 to 1931 and 1940 to 1944. There are two overlapping runs of journals, from 1901 to 1934 and from 1926 to 1945. There are also sales journals from 1929 to 1945. Crop settlement worksheets detailing the expenditures and profits of individual growers are arranged by plant location from 1914 to 1932, by year from 1933 to 1945, and again by grower from 1942 to 1944. Supplementary (and fragmentary) financial records include credit cash books, 1909-1922; accounts receivable and payable, 1931-1936; cash receipts and disbursements, 1943-1946; payrolls, 1939-1945; and a 1941-1945 inventory. Further information about the company's financial status is contained in the CORRESPONDENCE series in the files concerning relations with company accountants and securities brokers.
The ASSOCIATION RECORDS consist of the files kept by Columbus managers (primarily Stare) during their tenure as officers or committee members of the associations and the mailings distributed by these associations. The National Canners Association, Western Canners Association, and the Wisconsin Canners Association are particularly well-documented. Information on the Wisconsin Canners Association (earlier known as the Wisconsin Pea Packers Association) is particularly useful, as the records of that organization held by the Historical Society are very incomplete. Topics treated in the records include regulation of the canning industry, marketing strategies and cooperative advertising campaigns, marketing cooperatives, exchange of crop information, product availability, pricing structures, and general association business. Also here is correspondence with the Canners Seed Corporation, which Stare helped to organize, and the Canned Pea Marketing Cooperative.
The PHOTOGRAPHS show workers and exteriors of buildings at the Sun Prairie Canning Company; and an image of a flock of sheep in a paddock, related to the Columbus Canning Company.
Administrative/Restriction Information
No information on copyright is available in SHSW files.
Presented by Fred A. Stare, Columbus, Wisconsin, 1950.
Processed by Ann Hokanson and Carolyn Mattern, 1993.
Contents List
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Mss 824
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Series: Administrative Records
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Box
1
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Minutes, 1901-1946
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Box
2
Folder
1
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Annual reports, 1902-1935
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Legal miscellany
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Box
2
Folder
2
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Pensions, 1942
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Box
2
Folder
3-4
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Contracts
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Box
3
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Stock issue ledgers, 1920-1946
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Box
13
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Sample letterheads from canning companies, can labels
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Micro 2017
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Series: Correspondence
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Subseries: General
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Reel
1
Frame
3
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Arkansas, 1929
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Reel
1
Frame
42
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Canner Publishing Company, 1909-1924; 1927-1931
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Reel
1
Frame
339
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Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, & Pacific Railroad, 1945
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Reel
1
Frame
352
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Congressional correspondence, 1942-1945
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Reel
1
Frame
495
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Crary Brokerage Company, Waukesha, 1913-1922 (packers' sales agent)
: See also Frank T. Stare below.
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Reel
2
Frame
1
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Davidson, C. O. (Juneau plant superintendent), 1912-1913
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Reel
2
Frame
63
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Dingee, Lee, 1928-1932
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Reel
2
Frame
503
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Directors, 1936-1945
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Reel
2
Frame
719
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Equity Cooperative Livestock Sales Association, 1944-1945
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Reel
4
Frame
295
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F.S. Mosely and Company, 1943-1945
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Reel
2
Frame
744
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Farm Department miscellany (lambs), 1927-1929
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Reel
7
Frame
584
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George V. Rountree and Company, 1943-1945
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Grocers Supply Company, Wausau (packer's sales broker)
: See also Frank T. Stare below.
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Reel
2
Frame
789
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1921
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Reel
3
Frame
1
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1922-1924
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Reel
3
Frame
201
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Jacques, George W., 1942-1943
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Reel
3
Frame
252
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Kieckhofer Container Co., 1937-1945
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Leitsch, W. C.
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Reel
3
Frame
557
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1909-1917
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Reel
4
Frame
1
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1918-1923
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Reel
4
Frame
177
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Lloyd Thomas Company, 1944-1945
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Reel
4
Frame
204
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Midwest Farmers Live Stock Selling Agency, 1943
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Reel
4
Frame
211
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Milwaukee Company, 1929-1931
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Reel
4
Frame
314
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National Canners Laboratory, 1907-1913
: See also “Scientific data” below.
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Reel
8
Frame
17
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Rosen Brokerage Company, 1946
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Reel
4
Frame
353
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Rotary International, 1941-1942
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Reel
4
Frame
391
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Scientific data, 1910-1948
: See also National Canners Laboratory above.
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Reel
4
Frame
412
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Sprague Canning Machinery Company, 1908-1910
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Stare, Frank T.
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Reel
4
Frame
444
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Frank T. Stare Co., Waukesha, 1910-1911 (packers' sales agent)
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Reel
4
Frame
562
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Stare and Crary Company, 1912
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Reel
4
Frame
617
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Frank T. Stare, Inc., 1924-1934
: See also Grocers' Supply Company above.
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Reel
5
Frame
1
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Stare, W. H., 1938-1945
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Reel
5
Frame
288
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Stockholders, 1931-1941
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Reel
5
Frame
529
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Stokely-Van Camp, 1946-1947
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Reel
5
Frame
732
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W.W. Overton and Co. (food brokers), 1925-1928
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Reel
5
Frame
308
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Wheeler, J. R., 1940-1947
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Reel
5
Frame
655
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Whitson, John, 1924
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Reel
5
Frame
668
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Whyte, Malcolm K., 1946
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Reel
5
Frame
719
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Wilson and Co., Inc., 1946
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Subseries: Canning companies
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Chronological correspondence
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Reel
6
Frame
229
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1909-1912
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Reel
6
Frame
1
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1913
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Reel
6
Frame
68
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1914
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Reel
6
Frame
125
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1915
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Reel
6
Frame
237
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1916
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Reel
6
Frame
313
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1917
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Reel
6
Frame
382
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1918
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Reel
6
Frame
479
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1919
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Reel
6
Frame
558
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1920
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Reel
6
Frame
661
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1921
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Reel
6
Frame
815
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1922
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Reel
7
Frame
1
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1923
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Reel
7
Frame
196
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1924
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Reel
7
Frame
375
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1925
|
|
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Reel
7
Frame
491
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1941-1942
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Reel
7
Frame
537
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Canners Warehouse and Finance Co-operative, 1928
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Reel
7
Frame
560
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Crary Canning Company, 1908-1911
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Reel
8
Frame
50
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J. T. Polk Company, 1909-1918
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Reel
8
Frame
434
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Larsen Canning Company, 1908-1919
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Reel
7
Frame
666
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Lowell Canning Company, 1908-1918
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Reel
7
Frame
752
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M. O'Connor and Co., 1946
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Reel
7
Frame
712
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Minnesota Valley Canning Company, 1942-1945
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Reel
7
Frame
739
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Northern Wisconsin Canning Company, 1912-1913
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Reel
7
Frame
757
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Oconomowoc Canning Company, 1938-1939, 1946
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Reel
8
Frame
1
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Onalaska Pickle and Canning Company, 1908-1924
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Reel
8
Frame
31
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P. Hohenadel, Jr. Canning Company, 1910-1918
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Reel
8
Frame
92
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Randolph Canning Company, 1909-1923
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Reel
8
Frame
121
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Sunrich Canneries, 1928-1930
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Reel
8
Frame
164
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Van Camp Packing Company, 1908-1919
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Reel
8
Frame
184
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Waterloo Canning Association, 1910-1918
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Reel
8
Frame
231
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Waukesha Canning Company, 1908-1912
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Reel
8
Frame
268
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Waupun Canning Company, 1909-1920
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Reel
8
Frame
282
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Wausau Canning Company, 1908-1923
: See also Frank T. Stare above.
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Subseries: Governmental agencies
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Reel
10
Frame
131
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Agriculture, Department of, 1941-1942
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Reel
9
Frame
1
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Chicago Quartermaster Depot, 1941-1945
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Code Authority for the Canning Industry (NRA)
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Reel
1
Frame
734
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1934
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Reel
8
Frame
459
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1934-1935
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Reel
8
Frame
755
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Food Administration, 1917-1919
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Reel
8
Frame
655
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Food and Drug Administration (labeling requirements), 1939-1941
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Food Distribution Administration
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Reel
9
Frame
237
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1943-1944
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Reel
10
Frame
200
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Processors Branch (E. A. Meyer), 1943-1945
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Reel
9
Frame
586
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National Council of Defense, 1917
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Reel
9
Frame
459
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Industry Advisory Committee (WPB), 1941-1945
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Reel
9
Frame
616
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Price Administration, Office of, 1941-1946
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Reel
10
Frame
1
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Production Management, Office of, 1941-1942
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Reel
10
Frame
156
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War Department, 1943
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Reel
10
Frame
188
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War Food Administration, 1944
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Reel
10
Frame
305
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War Production Board, 1941-1943
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War production subject files
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Reel
8
Frame
813
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“A” Award, 1944-1945
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Reel
8
Frame
854
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Ceiling prices, 1942
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Reel
8
Frame
365
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Government purchasing, 1941
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Reel
8
Frame
389
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Government specifications, 1941
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Reel
9
Frame
903
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Prisoners of war, 1944-1946
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Reel
10
Frame
104
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Renegotiation of government contract, 1944
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Reel
10
Frame
485
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Wisconsin miscellany, 1942-1945
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Subseries: University of Wisconsin
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Reel
10
Frame
538
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General, 1910-1931, 1946
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Reel
10
Frame
944
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Pea aphis project, 1923-1927
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Reel
10
Frame
991
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Wisconsin canners shortcourse, 1938
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Mss 824
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Series: Financial Records
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Crop settlements
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Box
4
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1914-1932
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Box
5
Folder
1
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1932
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Box
11
Folder
1
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1933
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Box
5
Folder
2-5
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1934-1937
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Box
6
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1938-1942
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Box
7
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1943-1945
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General ledgers
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Box
8
Volume
1, 2
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1901-1905
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Box/Folder
9/1
Volume
3
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1905-1907
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Box
9
Folder
2-5
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1910-1922
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Volume
6
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1910-1922
: Volume number is indicated for oversize volumes stored unboxed on the shelf.
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Box
10
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Sales ledger, 1910-1922
: Thought to be former volume 4.
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Volume
5
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1922-1928
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Box
14
Volume
7
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1930-1932
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Box
14
Volume
8
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1940-1944
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Journals
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Box
13a
Volume
9, 10, 11
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1901-1905
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Box
15
Volume
12
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1905-1908
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Box
15
Volume
13
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1908-1913
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Box
12
Volume
14, 15
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1913-1919
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Box
16
Volume
16
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1920-1922
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Box
16
Volume
17
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1922-1927
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Volume
19
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1926-1930
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Box/Folder
11/2
Volume
18
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1928-1934
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Volume
20
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1931-1939
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Volume
21
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1939-1945
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Sales journals
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Volume
22
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1929-1931
|
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Volume
23
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1931-1935
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Volume
24
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1935-1937
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Volume
25
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1937-1940
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Volume
26
|
1940-1943
|
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Volume
27
|
1943-1945
|
|
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Volume
28
|
1945
|
|
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Volume
29
|
1945-1946
|
|
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Credit cash books
|
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Volume
30
|
1909-1911
|
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Volume
31
|
1911-1913
|
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Volume
32
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1913-1915
|
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Volume
33
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1915-1918
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Volume
34
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1918-1920
|
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Volume
35
|
1920-1922
|
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Cash receipts and disbursements
|
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Volume
36
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1943-1945
|
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Volume
37
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1945-1946
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Volume
38
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Accounts receivable and payable, 1931-1936
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Volume
39
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Inventory of finished products, 1941-1945
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Volume
40
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Farmers' book, 1942-1944
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|
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Payrolls, 1944-1945
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Volume
41
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Book 1, Administration, Monthly farm workers
|
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Volume
42
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Book 2, Factory men, Jamaicans
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Volume
43
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Book 3, Weekly Farm workers, office workers, factory women, etc.
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Columbus
|
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Volume
44
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1939-1940
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Volume
45
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1941-1943
|
|
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Box
13
Folder
2
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Wisconsin Department of Taxation audits, 1939-1942
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|
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Micro 2017
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Series: Association Records
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Reel
11
Frame
1
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American Institute of Food Distribution, Inc., 1929-1931
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Reel
11
Frame
139
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Canned Pea Carnival, 1940
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Reel
11
Frame
170
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Canned Pea Marketing Cooperative, 1938-1939
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Reel
11
Frame
648
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Canned Pea Marketing Institute, 1939-1941
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Reel
12
Frame
1
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Canners Seed Corporation, 1923-1930; 1936-1938
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National Canners Association
|
|
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Reel
12
Frame
115
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Correspondence, 1943-1946
|
|
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Committee files
|
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Reel
13
Frame
1
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Definitions and Standards, 1927-1928
|
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Reel
13
Frame
91
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Division of Statistics, 1946
|
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Reel
13
Frame
112
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Home Economics Division, 1946-1947
|
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Reel
13
Frame
130
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Labeling Committee, 1946-1947
|
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Reel
13
Frame
235
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Manpower Committee, 1946
|
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Reel
13
Frame
238
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National Canned Foods Week Committee, 1913
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|
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Publications
|
|
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Reel
13
Frame
249
|
Bulletins, 1912-1916
|
|
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Reel
13
Frame
396
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Information letters, 1924-1925
|
|
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Reel
13
Frame
627
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Wisconsin Inspection Service, 1919-1921
|
|
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Reel
13
Frame
672
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Western Canners Association, 1917-1925
|
|
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Wisconsin Canners Association
|
|
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Correspondence
|
|
|
as Wisconsin Pea Packers Association
|
|
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Reel
14
Frame
666
|
1908-1922
|
|
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Reel
15
|
1923-1925
|
|
|
as Wisconsin Canners Association
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|
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Reel
14
Frame
1
|
1925
|
|
|
Reel
8
Frame
310
|
1926
|
|
|
Reel
14
Frame
115
|
1945-1946
|
|
|
Reel
14
Frame
181
|
Fair Trade Practices Committee, 1937
|
|
|
Reel
14
Frame
288
|
Bulletins, 1946-1947
|
|
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PH Mss 824
|
Series: Photographs
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