This collection contains letters, documents, and a few account books related to the business activities of American financier H.D. Bacon (1817-1893). Items chiefly date between 1850 and 1900 and subject matter includes banking methods in the 1850s; the failure of Page & Bacon and Page, Bacon & Co.; the financing of the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad; land transactions in Missouri and Illinois; mines and mining properties in the western United States; the wine and citrus industries in Southern California; the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Valley Railroad; the purchase, boundaries, and subdivision of the Marengo Ranch (now the city of South Pasadena, California); and the construction of the Raymond Hotel in Pasadena.

California financier Henry Douglas Bacon (1817-1893), the son of Joseph and Abigail Cleveland Bacon, was born in East Granville, Massachusetts, in 1817. In 1835, he moved to St. Louis, Missouri, where he engaged first in the dry goods, then in the iron, trade. He was married in 1844 to Julia Ann Page, daughter of Daniel Dearborn Page, miller, merchant, and owner of considerable property in and around St. Louis.

Approximately 4,000 items in 42 boxes and 11 volumes

The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader Services.