The collection is open for research.
The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.
Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction. Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Lobdell Car Wheel Company Account Books, Ms1940-019, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.
The Lobdell Car Wheel Company Account Books were donated to the university in 1939 or 1940 and transferred to Special Collections and University Archives in 1955.
The processing, arrangement, and description of the Lobdell Car Wheel Company Account Books commenced and was completed in January 2013. Initial description was completed in or prior to May 1970.
This collection has been digitized and is available online.
The Lobdell Car Wheel Company had its beginnings in 1830, when Jonathon Bonney and Charles Bush established a small foundry in Wilmington, Delaware. By 1867, the year it was incorporated as the Lobdell Car Wheel Company, the business had added partner George Lobdell and become the world's largest manufacturer of wheels for railroad cars.
White Rock Furnace, located five miles from Rural Retreat and near the head of Cripple Creek in Smyth County, was among the Lobdell Car Wheel Company's operations in Virginia. Built in 1875, and originally known as the Panic Furnace, the White Rock was purchased in 1880 by Lobdell, which also bought Brown Hill Furnace in neighboring Wythe County. The White Rock ceased operation in the early 20th century, when the company found it more cost effective to purchase, rather than mine and manufacture, its iron.
This collection contains account books relating to the southwestern Virginia business concerns of the Lobdell Car Wheel Company. Most of the records seem to have originated with the White Rock Furnace in Smyth County. Included are customer account records from the company's store, payroll ledgers, invoices, correspondence, and furnace operation records and reports. Much of the correspondence is addressed directly to Jacob W. Lantz, who managed Lobdell's farm and conducted other business for the company.
The collection is arranged by ledger type, then chronologically.
See the Jacob W. Lantz Papers, Ms1975-003, also in Special Collections and University Archives.
The guide to the Lobdell Car Wheel Company Account Books by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (https://creativecommons.org/share-your- work/public-domain/cc0/).
This volume also contains store customer accounts, 1888-1889.