Collection of Eleven Original Documents (Ten Billheads and One Statement of Account) - The Thomson-Diggs Co., Sacramento, California, 1900

Collection of eleven original documents, namely, ten billheads and one Statement of Account printed in black ink on light yellow paper. Billheads also have handwriting in black ink or typed lettering in blue ink. Statement has handwriting in black ink and a purple stamp that shows it was paid. All documents datelined 1900 in Sacramento, California. Billheads dated June 21 and 26, July 2, 12, 18, 21, and 27, and August 6, 13, and 23. Statement dated August 1. All documents: 8 1/4" x 5 1/4." All documents are very clean and intact overall except for light to moderate age toning, a few horizontal and vertical fold lines, slight wrinkling, and a paper stub tipped in at right edge or bottom edge on back. Each document and the entire collection are Very Good. A collection of ten original billheads and one Statement of Account from The Thomson-Diggs Company of Sacramento, California to Frank Kunsting of Franklin, California. The number of line items on each billhead varies between one and three. Among the items Kunsting purchased on the billheads are "Meyers Steel Track Carrier," "Helmet Oil," "Babbit Metal," "5/6 Doz. Box Tubular Copper Rivets," "Bale Wire," and "150 Ft. 1-1/4" Manila Rope." The statement shows seven transactions (mostly numerical figures) for the month of July. The printed header on each billhead and the statement reads, "The Thomson-Diggs Co.; Wholesale; Hardware; Farm Implements; Vehicles; 308-312 J Street." Billheads lead with "Sold to" [Kunsting's name] and statement leads with "To" [Kunsting's name]. The Thomson-Diggs Company was a wholesale hardware business that was incorporated on January 4, 1900, making it the first chartered California corporation in the twentieth century. The Thomson-Diggs Co. was the result of a merger between Frederick and Herbert Thomson's Stanton-Thomson Company and Marshall Diggs's Diggs Vehicle and Implement Company. The main clients of the Thomson-Diggs Co. were retail hardware stores. Thomson-Diggs enjoyed many decades of success until the early 1990s when it shifted its focus from hardware to commercial real estate as a last-ditch effort amid the economic recession. Thomson-Diggs officially closed in 1997.