]
]
This collection has access restrictions. For details, please see the restrictions.
This collection has use restrictions. For details, please see the restrictions.
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
Expand/collapse
Collection Overview
| Size | 123 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 35500 items) |
| Abstract | Pierce & Company, dry goods, lumber, fertilizer, and cotton enterprises owned by the Wyche family of Columbus County, N.C., 1897-1990. Family members served on local school boards, as postmasters, and on the Wake Forest College Board of Trustees. They administered timber deeds, tenant houses, real estate transfers, and estates. They were early stockholders in the Columbus County Farmers' Alliance and expressed interest in early fertilizers and new technologies for cotton ginning, lumber processing, and shipping. They contributed widely to the economic life in their area, often arranging crop liens with local farmers, collecting debts, and working with other local companies. This collection consists of almost 400 cash books, day books, ledgers, bank deposit books, lumber account books, inventory books, and miscellaneous account books that record the financial activities of various stores and business enterprises owned by Pierce & Company. Also included are letters, legal contracts and credit records, federal regulation documents, transfers, taxes, payroll records, and school board, college trustee, and post office papers that document the scope of Pierce & Company enterprises and the impact of company partners on Columbus County institutions. The Addition of 2016 contains account books for a society known as The Brotherhood, records for the Hebron Farmer's Alliance No. 438, and account books and papers for Pierce & Company. Papers include correspondence, clippings, invoices, and a few others records documenting the company's business transactions. |
| Creator | Pierce & Company. |
| Language | English |
Expand/collapse
Information For Users
Expand/collapse
Subject Headings
The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
Expand/collapse
Historical Information
In the late 1890s, Henry Wyche pooled resources with S. Worth Pierce, Vance Pierce, and James E. Thompson to start Pierce & Company, dry-goods merchants, in the Redbug community of Columbus County, N.C. Company headquarters moved in 1908 to Hallsboro, N.C., where a new store was built closer to the railroad. In 1913, Pierce & Company entered into the lumber business. On 1 April 1917, the company mill burned, but it was soon replaced by a larger facility. At different times, Pierce & Company operated stores at Redbug, Hallsboro, Freeman, Acme, and Delco.
In March 1921, J. E. Thompson withdrew as a partner in the company. The property was divided, and the Wyche family built a new planing mill and saw mills. Around this time, James Wyche and Worth Pierce built and moved into a new two-story, brick store in Hallsboro.
During the 1930s, Pierce & Company weathered hard times and worked hard to comply with new social security laws and workers' compensation policies. The company also played a role in supplying the local Works Project Administration with work. During and immediately following World War II, Pierce & Company complied with wartime rations and price regulations. It supplied lumber to different branches of the United States military and to the American Red Cross.
The Redbug store operated until the early 1960s. In the 1960s, when it became cheaper to buy dressed lumber than process it from standing timber, Pierce & Company closed its lumber business. The Freeman store, which dealt in general merchandise and farm supplies, and a similar Delco store, originally located in Acme and offering fewer farm supplies, closed in 1985.
In 1990, Pierce & Company changed hands. The successor to the original firm was renamed Wyche & Company.
Members of the Wyche family were active in their communities. They were early stockholders in the Columbus County Farmers' Alliance. They served on local school boards, as postmasters, and on the boards of trustees at Wake Forest College, Southeastern Community College, and Campbell University. They administered timber deeds, tenant houses, real estate transfers, and estates. Family members were early stockholders in the Columbus County Farmers' Alliance and expressed interest in early fertilizers and new technologies for cotton ginning, lumber processing, and shipping. They contributed widely to the economic life in their area, often arranging crop liens with local farmers, collecting debts, and working with other local companies.
Back to Top
Expand/collapse
Scope and Content
Volumes include cash books, day books, ledgers, bank deposit books, lumber account books, inventory books, and miscellaneous account books that document the financial activities of various stores and business enterprises owned by Pierce & Company.
Other materials include correspondence, legal contracts and credit records, federal regulation documents, fertilizer and lumber records, invoices, merchandise transfers, taxes, payroll records, and school board, college trustee, and post office papers that show the scope of Pierce & Company enterprises and the impact of company partners on Columbus county institutions.
The Addition of 2016 contains account books for a society known as The Brotherhood, records for the Hebron Farmer's Alliance No. 438, and account books and papers for Pierce & Company. Papers include correspondence, clippings, invoices, and a few others records documenting the company's business transactions.
Back to Top
Expand/collapse
Series Quick Links
Expand/collapse
Series 1. Volumes, 1897-1990.
Arrangement: chronological.
Cash books, day books, ledgers and ledger pages, bank deposit books, lumber account books, inventory books, and miscellaneous account books documenting the financial activities of the various stores and business enterprises owned by Pierce & Company. See interview with Cyril James Wyche for an explanation of record keeping in cash books, day books, and ledgers.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 1.1. Cashbooks, 1900-1979.
Arrangement: chronological.
Cashbooks, 1900-1979, providing daily records of cash received from merchandise sales. They also list cashed checks and bank deposits. Note that Volume 177 in Subseries 1.3 includes cashbook accounts for August 1904-December 1905.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 1.2. Daybooks, 1900-1974.
Arrangement: chronological.
Daybooks, 1900-1974, showing daily listings of cash and merchandise charged by customers on their store accounts. Later volumes list employee merchandise discounts and federal and state income tax withholdings. Note that Volume 176 is atypical in that it is organized by months.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 1.3. Ledgers, 1898-1962.
Arrangement: by type, then chronological.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 1.3.1. Bound Volumes, 1898-1899; 1904-1959.
Arrangement: chronological.
Ledgers, 1898-1959, providing itemized listings of account charges by individuals and business patrons. Much of this information was transferred from daybooks. The ledgers give an excellent sense of the scope of Pierce & Co. business and its significance for the local community.
Early ledgers include public school accounts, information about shingle stock, crop liens and mortgage deeds, freight accounts, cotton gin accounts, store accounts, Columbus County Convict Camp accounts, Farmers' Alliance accounts, soda fountain accounts, fertilizer accounts, farm accounts, merchandise accounts, and records of fur sales. Note that Volumes S-189b, S-190b, and S-192e include lumber records.
Ledgers are either indexed at the beginning of each volume or arranged alphabetically by patrons' last names. See the inside front cover of Volume 179 for 1907 and 1908 state licenses to deal in fireworks.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 1.3.2. Unbound Ledger Pages, 1920-1941; 1951-1962.
Arrangement: chronological, then alphabetical.
Ledger pages, 1920-1941 and 1951-1962, containing information equivalent in style and content to that found in the bound volumes. Records from the 1950s and 1960s refer to charged items by code rather than full names.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 1.4. Bank Deposit Books, 1952-1957; 1960-1963.
Arrangement: chronological.
Bank deposit books, 1952-1957 and 1960-1963, showing daily listings of checks deposited to Waccamaw Bank and Trust Company.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 1.5. Lumber Account Books, 1919-1964.
Arrangement: chronological.
Lumber records, 1919-1964, including account books (see Volumes S-194a, S-194c, S-195a, S-196, S-197, 199b, and 201b), a ledger of expenses (Volume S-195c), invoices for sales and shipments to companies (Volume S-194d), payroll records (Volumes S-194b and S-195b), and employee time books (Volumes 198, 199a, 200, 200a, and 202) that pertain to Pierce & Company's lumber enterprises.
Oversized account books are indexed inside the front cover of each volume and include listings of lumber orders received and shipped; destination of lumber sales by state; local cash sales of lumber; inventories of rough and finished timber in stock yard; amount of lumber hauled in and bought; costs and total expenses for hauling, sawing, planing, and kiln drying; and Southern Pine Association minimum prices. Volume S-196 also lists the starting dates of employees with uninterrupted work records. Volume S-197 opens with a brief history of Pierce & Company dealings in lumber, including yearly totals, 1922-1954, of lumber sawed, bought, and sold. Note that several pages in the lumber account books are devoted to fertilizers. See Subseries 1.3, 1.7, and 2.5 for additional lumber records.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 1.6. Inventory Books, 1929; 1947-1975.
Arrangement: chronological.
Itemized inventories of store merchandise, 1929 and 1947-1975, with quantities and cash values of each item. Merchandise includes dry goods, groceries, hardware, tobacco, furniture, cosmetics, drug sundries, wrist watches, kitchen items, foot wear, radios, cleaning materials, office supplies, gasoline, firearms, farm supplies, auto parts, and toys. Note that Volume 203 also contains customer account information.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 1.7. Miscellaneous Account Books, 1908-1990.
Arrangement: chronological.
Account books of various types, including sales ledgers 1908-1960 (Volumes 276, S-277b, S-280b, S-282, 292a, S-296a, 298b, 298d, and 298k), trial balances 1920-1964 (Volumes S-280a, 281, S-282, 283, S-284a, S284b, S-285a, S-285b, S-288b, S-288c, S-294, and 296b), miscellaneous cashbooks 1917-1960 (Volumes S-278, S-279a, and 291), inventories and analyses of accounts 1910-1990 (Volumes S-277b, S-282, S-284b, S-285a, S-298, 298c, 298e, 298i, and 298m), supplier ledgers 1920-1989 (Volumes S-280a, S-285b, S-294, 296b, 298h, and 298l), payroll records 1926-1974 (Volumes S-282, S-285c, S-288c, S-293, S-295, and S-297b), miscellaneous cotton and timber accounts 1910-1950 (Volumes S-277b, S-278, S-279a, S-279b, S-279c, S280b, S-282, S-284b, and S-288), volumes pertaining to state and federal taxes 1922-1961 (Volumes S-286a, S-287b, S-288c, 289a-289b, 290, and 292b), bankbooks 1917-1947 (Volumes S-277a and S-285d), farmer's accounts 1922-1953 (Volumes S-280b, 286b, 287a), insurance policy records 1922-1953 (Volume S-280b), a restricted bad debt book 1963-1968 (Volume S-297a), and general ledger containing miscellaneous records 1983-1987 (Volumes 298f-298g and 298j).
Note that many volumes contain more than one type of record. Volume S-288a includes a 1940 government map showing acreage of the Gore Farm.
Volume S-297a is closed until 1 January 2045.
Expand/collapse
Series 2. Other Materials, 1897-1984.
Correspondence, legal contracts and credit records, federal regulation documents, fertilizer and lumber records, invoices, merchandise transfers, taxes, payroll records, and school board, college trustee, and post office papers that document the scope of Pierce & Company enterprises and the role of company partners in Columbus County institutions.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.1. Correspondence and Related Materials, 1897-1949.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Pierce & Company correspondence, 1897-1949, with wholesale suppliers, shippers, credit agencies, cotton merchants, government agencies, banks, and insurance, farming, and lumber associations. Most letters relate to orders for large ticket items, including machinery and parts, but a significant amount of correspondence is with cotton brokers responsible for selling Pierce & Company cotton. Often architectural drawings, price lists, bank statements, credit ratings, invoices, advertisements, newsletters, reports, and insurance claims appear interfiled with correspondence. A small number of folders refer to government restrictions during World War I and II.
Materials in this series give a good sense of Pierce & Company's scope and role in the economic development of Hallsboro, from the recruitment of settlers and administration of real estate to recommendations for bus service and bridge building and participation in a program to protect local forests from fire. The Wyche family were early stockholders in the Columbus County Farmers' Alliance and bought out its Hebron property in the mid 1940s.
Correspondence also documents changing business conditions in the first half of the 20th century. These include technologies for cotton ginning, lumber processing and shipping, bank closures during the Depression, and increasing concern for employee protection from industrial accidents.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.2. Legal Contracts and Credit Records, 1911-1952.
Arrangement: by type, then alphabetical.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.2.1. Subject Files., 1911-1952.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Subject files, 1911-1952, including lists of records from local county courts; documents pertaining to bankruptcy proceedings against various companies and collection suits brought by Pierce & Company customers; credit slips recording individuals' debts to Pierce & Company; loan settlements with local farmers; and Pierce & Company financial statements filled with credit agencies. Financial statements show the fiscal health of Pierce & Company and include details about partners, assets and liabilities, property values, gross annual sales, salaries, number of employees, fire insurance, and trade references.
Note that original folder titles have been retained.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.2.2. Crop Liens and Timber Deeds, 1918-1951.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Legal notes, 1918-1951, for agricultural liens and timber contracts between Pierce & Company and local farmers and landholders. Documents are filed by the debtor's or landholder's last name. Folder 453 also contains lists from 1925 of crop liens and mortgages deposited as collateral on a Pierce & Company loan from the Bank of Whiteville.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.2.3. Properties and Estates, 1914-1950.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Estate papers; documents from the 1921 division of Pierce & Company; correspondence with the Federal Land Bank and Farm Credit Administration; correspondence, contracts, and logging lists for tracts of lumber; papers pertaining to tenant houses; rent agreements; and materials relating to the administration of D. M. Flynn's property. Almost half of the items in this series pertain to the Mary E. Wyche estate.
Note that original folder titles have been retained.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.2.4. Credit Reports, 1916-1952.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Credit reports, 1916-1952, chiefly showing the financial status of Pierce & Company business customers. Most ratings apply to wholesale lumber and building suppliers. Reports and scattered correspondence are filed alphabetically by companies' names.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.3. Federal Regulation Documents, 1941-1952.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Letters and documents relating to price regulations and government procedures during and after World War II. Note that lumber files sometimes overlap with items in subseries 2.5.1.
Note that original folder titles have been retained.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.4. Fertilizer Records, 1951-1982.
Arrangement: by type, then chronological.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.4.1. Price Lists and Credit Applications, 1933-1941; 1956-1966.
Arrangement: chronological.
Price lists, 1933-1941, documenting Pierce & Company charges for cash, time, and bulk sales of fertilizer; fertilizer credit applications, 1956-1964 and 1966, show farmers' name, location, quantity and type of fertilizer for each crop, total amount owed to Pierce & Company, and security offered on the loan.
Credit application folders are arranged alphabetically by farmers' last names.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.4.2. Sales Receipts, 1951-1982.
Arrangement: chronological.
Fertilizer receipt books, 1951-1982, documenting orders for fertilizer delivery and application. These volumes have been sampled for every fifth year--1952, 1957, 1962, 1967, 1972, 1976 (records for 1977 were missing), and 1982.
Note that custom work and liquid fertilizer sales were recorded in separate receipt books and are indicated by a "*" after the date in this listing.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.5. Lumber Records, 1922-1959.
Arrangement: by type, then alphabetical and/or chronological..
See Subseries 1.5; 1.7; 2.1; 2.2.2; 2.2.3; 2.2.4; 2.3; and 2.8.3 for additional lumber records.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.5.1. Subject Files, 1922-1951.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Subject files, 1922-1951, including correspondence, invoices, inventories, price and shipping lists, and industry reports pertaining to Pierce & Company lumber enterprises. Most letters, invoices, and related materials refer to business dealings with building supply companies, wholesale lumber companies, and government agencies. Papers from the early 1940s document the sale of lumber to Work Projects Administration projects, different branches of the United States military, and the American Red Cross.
Many of the price lists are bound with string and duplicate papers in similarly titled folders.
Note that original folder titles have been retained.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.5.2. Green Lumber Tallies, 1951-1952; 1957-1959.
Arrangement: chronological.
Invoices, 1951-1952 and 1957-1959, tallying Pierce & Company purchases of green lumber.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.5.3. Sales Receipts, 1956-1961.
Arrangement: chronological and alphabetical.
Sales receipts, 1956-1961, documenting purchases, sales, and shipping of green and cured lumber, building materials, and miscellaneous farm supplies. Customers include individuals, schools, and businesses.
Note that original folder titles have been retained.
Expand/collapse
Subseries 2.6. Invoices, 1940-1975.
Arrangement: chronological; alphabetical within year or decade.
Invoices, 1940-1975, tracing items purchased and prices paid for groceries, dry goods, candy, drugs, hardware, building and farm supplies, machinery, furniture, automotive and electric appliance supplies, and insurance. Also included are miscellaneous letters about orders and customer account statements.
Used in tandem with the inventory books and other volumes, a sample of invoices across the decades should give a good portrait of changing store stock, changing tastes and consumer demands, and trends in suppliers and prices.
After the 1940s, invoices have been sampled for every fifth year--1950, 1956 (records missing for 1955), 1960, 1965, 1970, 1976 (incomplete records for 1975).
Note that the original alphabetical and chronological arrangement has been retained.