The Benjamin Franklin Wilson papers are arranged in two series: Personal Papers, 1857-1956, and the Wilson Mercantile Company Records, 1910-1950.
The PERSONAL PAPERS, 1857-1956, include scattered bits of family correspondence, business correspondence, mainly in the two bound letterpress volumes, and a financial ledger, 1876-1882. The letterpress books and financial ledger include personal letters and records along with those of Bradley Brothers Company. There are also articles written by Wilson and some biographical material mostly in the form of newspaper clippings. The Wilson Family segment contains considerable genealogical data collected and compiled by Wilson circa 1913. Information, primarily in tabular form, is included on many branches of the family, often traced back to England.
The WILSON MERCANTILE COMPANY RECORDS, 1910-1950, deal mainly with the dissolution of the company in 1948 after nearly 40 years of existence. This dissolution necessitated the closing out of all claims and outstanding accounts, the clearing up of several tax problems, the liquidation of old stock, and the issuing, as payment in kind, of new stock in the successor company, the Valley Queen Cooperative Association.
