Guide to Business History

Our guest author today is Ellen Terrell, Business Reference Specialist with another in our “Favorites From the Fifth Floor” series.

A view of the new market from the corner of Shippen & Second-streets Philada. 1787

A view of the new market from the corner of Shippen & Second-streets Philada. 1787

Quite early in my tenure here at the Library I realized that “history” in terms of business research was not 5 years or less but 50, 100, or 200+ years ago.  Coming from the private sector I realized that I needed a little help in trying to find those sources that would help me locate data and information from the past.  It has become a bit of an obsession for me.

In the process of trying to find sources that discussed the price of goods going back in time I discovered Guide to Business History: Materials for the Study of American Business History and Suggestions for their Use by Henrietta Larson a professor of Business History at Harvard. This title has about 5,000 sources, includes a very detailed table of contents and a lengthy index that makes finding the sources that much easier. I often find it useful in locating titles that might answer my questions.

One amazing title Larson led me to was A History of Agriculture and Prices in England: From the Year After the Oxford Parliament (1259) to the Commencement of the Continental War 1793 by James E. Thorold Rogers published from 1866-1902. This title runs to 7 volumes, covers quite a bit of time and was, obviously, quite a prodigious undertaking.  The majority of the data comes from accounts of abbeys and large estates. One table in chapter two had information on produce like rye, oats, peas, and other agricultural products for the years 1333-1336 for places like Cambridge, Basingstoke, and Farley.

Not able to visit us here?  The Internet Archive has digitized a portion of  A History of Agriculture and Prices in England and made it available online.

Earth Day- 40 years and counting

Big blue marble, blue planet, Gaia, terra firma, terrestrial sphere, world- these are some of the words we use to describe Earth. On April 22 we will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, which was first initiated on April 22, 1970 by Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Back in 1990, in celebration of 20 …

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1865

Our guest author today is Ellen Terrell, Business Reference Specialist. A perennial question for Business Reference staff is about old companies and businesses. And by old I mean from the 1890’s (or earlier!) not necessarily the 1990’s. One of our go-to sets is the old Mercantile Agency Reference books that developed into Dun & Bradstreet …

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Happy Birthday Thomas Jefferson!

Like the Library of Congress and the Jefferson building, the Science & Business Reading Room has a special connection to Thomas Jefferson. On this day in 1976, in honor of Thomas Jefferson’s birthday, President Ford signed the act that changed the Library of Congress Annex Building to the Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building. His …

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Women in Horticulture

 Today’s post is written by science reference librarian and gardener, Alison Kelly. With the forsythia in bloom once again it seems like a good time to reconsider Beatrix Farrand and some of the other women who have played an important role in horticulture. Farrand, who was the only woman founding member of the American Society …

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Favorites From the Fifth Floor

Occasionally when visiting the stacks we run across something that we find particularly interesting either from a content or historical perspective.  Shortly after my arrival here at the Library, I found such an item! Published in 1883 the book The Secrets of Success In Business claims to “show completely and practically how business is done, …

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Cherry Blossom Time

The National Park Service reported that the Washington Tidal Basin cherry blossoms reached their peak this year on March 31.  This is when at least 70 per cent of the blossoms are open.  But for those of you who haven’t visited yet, do not be discouraged–the flowers will continue to show off their radiant beauty …

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