Consumer Goods Inventories, 1942-1947

The chief divisions of the Samuel Kirk & Son Business Records include material on the Kirk family and history of the company, Board of Directors' meeting minutes, financial data, production and employee records, property data and legal papers. There is a separate series that contains the records of the Kirk Realty Company, a subsidiary responsible for managing Kirk property.

The FAMILY series (1844-1970) consists primarily of the state papers of several descendants of Samuel Kirk. The bulk revolves around the estate of Henry Child Kirk, Jr. There is a scattering of correspondence regarding family news and financial affairs. Some personal items are present, such as the Bible and passports (1856-1884) belonging to Henry Child Kirk, Sr. One folder contains material on “Wadefield”, an estate in Virginia owned by the Kirk family and eventually used as a rental property.

The HISTORICAL DATA series contains much useful information on the background of the company. There are short essays on the Kirk family and the development of the business. Of special note is a chronological list of “Company Important Events” (1925-1979) which includes personnel changes, facility expansions and improvements, production and marketing innovations, technical advances, and the impact of national and world events upon the company. There is material tracing the development of Kirk silverware patterns and manufacturing techniques. Some information is included on Kirk's 150th anniversary and their claim to be America's oldest silversmiths. The miscellaneous folder contains essays on the history of knives, forks and spoons and includes instructions (1937) for table settings.

The next series contains CERTIFICATES OF INCORPORATION and various amendments from 1923-1957.

The CORRESPONDENCE series consists of an incomplete and uneven gathering of letters spanning 1843-1978. Primary topics relate to historical Kirk pieces, silver analyses and the internal management of the company.

Much of the company's official business is recorded in the MEETING MINUTES series (1896-1966). The Board of Directors' Monthly Meetings (1896-1929) consist of the by-laws (1896) of the Samuel Kirk & Son Company, Incorporated, Treasurer's reports and the Superintendent of the Workshop's reports on production, wages, sales, and policy decisions. Of particular interest are Henry Child Kirk, Sr.'s inventory of property to be sold in return for shares of capital stock and an Aug. 1, 1903 inventory of the wall and counter display cases in connection with the 1903 fire.

The Stockholders' Annual Meeting Minutes (1897-1931) contain their by-laws (1913, 1914), the President's and Treasurer's reports on the financial condition of the company and the value of their stocks. Also included are reports on production from the workshop. After 1931 the Board of Directors meetings and the stockholders meetings are combined. The minutes for 1937 contain

some amendments to the company's charter. Minutes of the Management Committee (1960-1963) and the Retirement Committee (1944-1956) are also found in this series.

The ANNUAL MEETING DATA series (1936-1976) consists of directors' correspondence, notes and financial reports relating to organizing the annual meetings. The STOCKHOLDERS MEETING DATA series contains information pertaining to the company's reorganization in 1976 and its final months in 1979. Also includes some annual reports see contain list.

The ANNUAL FINANCIAL STATEMENTS series (1924-1973) is arranged by year and subdivided for each month. Occasionally the financial statements include meeting minutes. Special reports for each year from 1931 to 1972 provide data regarding inventory and the wholesale and retail divisions. There is a separate section in this series which contains the financial statements (1970-1979) of the various subsidiaries of the Kirk Corporation: S. Kirk & Son, Inc.; Coastal Mobile and Modular Group; Studebaker Southern, Inc.; Eisenberg-Lozano, Inc. (Kirk International); Kirk Pewter, Inc.; The Kirk Collection; and Kirk Imports, Inc.

The AUDITOR'S REPORTS series includes reports for S. Kirk & Son, Inc. in 1906 and 1908, then continues annually from 1936 to 1966. There are separate auditor's reports (1962-1979) for the Kirk Corporation subsidiaries.

The FINANCIAL STATISTICS series includes summaries of earnings as well as factors contributing to the decrease or increase in net current assets for 12 to 15 year time periods between 1950 and 1974. The CAPITAL ASSETS--INVOICES series (1937-1966) consists of receipted bills for office furniture and supplies, shop equipment and structure improvements.

The STOCKS series (1913-1969) includes the accounts (1914-1922) of the trusteeship established by the will of Henry Child Kirk, Sr. This section also contains notes redeemed and preferred stock issued (1913; 1917), new capital stock and a plan of recapitalization (1937), and stock certificates for Studebaker Southern, Inc. (1968-1969). There is information about splitting shares of common stock (1944-1950) and various reports including one to the Securities and Exchange Commission (1969).

The FIVE-YEAR PLAN series (1957-1961) consists of proposed changes in production and marketing to keep pace with changes in the economy and urban growth. The BANK ACCOUNTS series (1918-1972) is arranged by bank and contains data on investments, loans, estate management and company signature authorizations. The RETIREMENT PLAN series includes correspondence (1944-1968), a journal (1944-1967) and actuary's reports (1943-1972).

The GENERAL FINANCIAL ACCOUNTS series (1902-1976) contains many oversize volumes such as ledgers (1902-1975; most include a separate index), journals (1905-1974), retail ledgers and journals (1950-1975), retail sales distribution records (1963-1975), voucher registers (1958-1973), cash receipts and disbursements (1949-1976), and cash books (1925-1949). The series also includes a private general ledger (1926-1960) and a ledger (1914-1923) of the estate of Henry Child Kirk, Sr. Payroll accounts are located in the Employee Records series.

Because of the financial data they contain, the insurance records pertaining to the fires of 1903-1904 are filed in this

series (in oversize folders). The papers provide detailed inventories of equipment and materials lost, labor costs for clean-up and security, and lists of individual workers.

The LEGAL RECORDS series (1896-1971) holds patents (1896-1917) for a paper knife, a perpetual calendar, and methods of manufacturing metal articles by deposit. There is a copy of the deed of trust (1913) established by Henry Child Kirk, Sr. to manage the company after his death and information regarding the company's name change in 1948-1950. The legal documents (1969-1971) pertaining to the acquisition of the Kirk Corporation's several subsidiaries are represented. Also included are documents relating to several lawsuits. Lohmuller vs. Kirk (1917-1918) was a complaint against the noise of the factory. Other action (1932-1959) was initiated by Kirk against several discount houses and retailers over fair trade practices.

The PROPERTY RECORDS series (1892-1963) is composed of correspondence, memoranda and leases pertaining to the various Kirk retail and factory facilities, including the lease for the Guilford Avenue property which served as the temporary quarters after the fire of 1904. The papers describe plans and cost estimates for building maintenance, alterations, expansions and equipment. Many blueprints (some filed in oversize folders) accompany this data. The section of the Charles Street property details a troublesome relationship with Albert Katz (proprietor of S & N Katz Jewelers) who subleased part of the building from Kirk.

Details of the Kirk factory's operations are contained in the PRODUCTION RECORDS series (1868-1978). The earliest item is a memoranda book (1868-1874) with entries relating to the purity of silver for William Astor's dishes, the refining work of George Holbrook, Dr. Clarence Morfit's information on silver standards, formulas and calculations (including ones from Tiffany's and the Gorham Co.), and addresses of spoonmakers and chasers. There is a shipping receipt (1888) for silver bullion and a certificate of silver analysis (1895) prepared for Mrs. J. I. Lovell. Other items include notes (1896-1907) on spoon punches, statistics (1926-1966) on silverware production in ounces, specifications for flatware patterns (1968), a size and weight chart (1908) located in an oversize folder, and an index to drawings (1921-1967) showing the drawing number, the name of the piece, the customer and date.

From 1896-1913 inventories were kept which listed finished products, works in progress, shop fixtures, tools and patterns along with their respective values. Many statistics were recorded showing the cost of materials and labor necessary to produce the company's merchandise. These statistics contain information on workers wages. Comparative Operations Reports were produced for the Manufacturing Division, Kirk Pewter, Inc. and Kirk Imports, Inc. These provide sales, orders and production statistics on a daily, monthly and yearly basis. Fluctuations in the silver market are documented in a section of correspondence and memoranda (1931-1935; 1942-1943). Specific subjects include protests against the increase in the price of silver bullion, cooperation among silversmiths and jewelers in

their efforts to influence legislators, and the shortage of silver during the war years.

World War II had a great impact on Samuel Kirk & Son, Inc. There are a variety of reports prepared by and submitted to the War Production Board regarding the control of production and inventory. Information about the Kirk Company's war contract work is included in this section. After the war, the Office of Price Stabilization generated many reports, memoranda and correspondence (1951-1953) pertaining to ceiling price regulations and decontrol.

The RETAIL RECORDS series (1834-1974) contains data on the marketing of Kirk products. Several early bound volumes record sales of watches and jewelry. The watch books (1846-1893) describe each watch and provide the name and location of the supplier of the internal movements. The date and the customer's name are also given. The brooch book (1907-1918) and the ring book (1903-1918) list the type of stones used and their weight as well as the customer's name and date. A pocket notebook (1904-1910) records monthly and yearly total sales figures. A printed price booklet (1893-1897) contains handwritten notations. Two folders hold customer receipted bills (1834-1917) that were returned to the company as historical documents.

Form letters (1925-1930) to agents provide information on new products, prices, retail sales procedures, catalog direct sales, and marketing tips such as reaching the middle income market (1929) and steps for compiling and maintaining a mailing list. Memoranda taken from officers' meetings (1930-1943) outline marketing strategies and policies, advertising, community involvement and employee insurance and benefits. Financial data, legal agreements, memoranda, correspondence and floor plans (1950-1974) detail the establishment of Kirk outlets in B. Altman Co., Schleisner Co., and Hochschild Kohn Co.

A large portion of the Retail Records series pertains to advertising. The Agents' Advertising Record (1932-1940) is a log of advertising material sent to Kirk agents. Miscellaneous material includes advertising rates, samples, text copy and mock-ups. Oversize boxes contain scrapbooks (1927-1966) of newspaper and magazine ads, including publicity on Luci Johnson's Kirk silverware pattern (1966).

The EMPLOYEE RECORDS series (1890-1957) contains material on personnel organization and wages. The earliest item is an agreement to give employees time off dated 1890-1891. There are several lists of employees showing names, addresses, positions, wages and reasons for terminations (everything from death to “went on a spree and has never been heard from”). Payroll accounts (1901-1919; 1949-1957) are included here, some of which are located with the oversize volumes. Additional employee data can be found in the section relating to insurance coverage after the 1903-1904 fires (in oversize folders). Notes taken from “Key Men” meetings (1932-1955) cover such subjects as employment benefits, business conditions, the federal excise tax, the impact of the Korean War on business, and observations on the competition.

The KIRK SILVER TRAVELING EXHIBITION series (1940-1979)

contains correspondence and promotional material for an exhibition of Kirk silverware organized by the company and loaned to museums throughout the U.S. Of particular interest is the file on the theft of several pieces in the show which occurred at the Vizcaya Museum in Miami, Florida in 1971.

The PUBLICATIONS series (1914-1959) comprises correspondence, notes, mock-ups, and revisions regarding the printing of the booklet “The Story of the House of Kirk”. An oversize box contains a run (1955-1958) of the publication Silver Notes, a company newsletter for its retail agents.

The KIRK REALTY CORPORATION series (1921-1964) includes a copy of the 1923 Act of Incorporation, Board of Directors meeting minutes (1922-1961), annual reports and meetings (1935-1961), financial statements (1924-1961), receipted bills and taxes (1921-1961) and correspondence (1924-1962). Also present are property appraisals (1927-1960), improvements, including blueprints (1935-1960), and lease agreements with Western Union Co. (1924-1960). Information on the dissolution of the Kirk Realty Corp. and sale of property spans 1960-1964.