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Country
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US
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Language of name of institution
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eng
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Contact information: postal address
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94 George Street, Providence, Rhode Island 02906
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Contact information: phone number
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001 (401) 863 2725
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Contact information: email
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karin_wulf@brown.edu (Beatrice and Julio Mario Santo Domingo Director and Librarian)
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Title (official language of the state)
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The Brown Family Business Records
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Language of title
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eng
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Creator / accumulator
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The Brown Family
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Date note
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18th century/1914
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Language(s)
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eng
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Extent
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up to 1,300 boxes
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Type of material
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Textual Material
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Scope and content
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The Brown Family Business Records held at the John Carter Brown Library constitute one of the largest and most complete collections of business papers produced by an American mercantile family. The papers trace the development of the Brown family’s companies through seven generations, starting with Captain James Brown’s forays into shopkeeping and maritime trade in the early 18th century and ending in 1914 with the diverse banking, transportation, and manufacturing interests of the firm of Brown & Ives.
The collection comprises account books, correspondence, bills, receipts, ships’ papers and logbooks divided into several chronological sections. Documentation regarding Sephardic merchants living and trading in Rhode Island and, in particular, on Aaron Lopez (1730-1782), can be found in the following sections:
The Records of Nicholas and John Brown, 1746-1763 (bulk 1754-1763): the sub-series A - Company of Spermaceti Manufacturers (series V: Spermaceti Candle Works) contains letters received and sent from members of the United Company of Spermaceti Manufacturers, including Aaron Lopez. Other two similar series are part of the sections The Records of Obadiah Brown and Company (series III, sub-series A) and Nicholas Brown and Company Records (series XIII, sub-series A), including documentation related to Aaron Lopez.
Nicholas Brown and Company Records, 1762-1783 (bulk 1762-1774): This section includes a sub-series containing letters that Nicholas Brown received from and sent to Aaron Lopez (series I: Domestic Trade Correspondence, sub-series R) from 1766 to 1781. Other letters received from Lopez can be found in series X (Letters Received), sub-series C. In series XVI Maritime Records, there are records of two vessels related to Aaron Lopez: the brigantine George (sub-series S), whose voyages to Suriname in 1776-1777 and 1778 involved investments by Aaron Lopez, and the schooner Sally (sub-series HH), owned by Aaron Lopez and Francis Rotch and chartered by John and Nicholas Brown in 1776 to sail to Nantes.
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Archival history
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This collection was placed on deposit with the John Carter Brown Library by the heirs of John Nicholas Brown (1861-1900) in the early 20th century. Arriving largely intact from the family’s counting-house at 50 South Main Street, economic historian James B. Hedges initially surveyed and calendared the records. In 1991, a project funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities to further process the documents produced detailed finding aids to assist researchers in accessing the material.
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(source: The John Carter Library website)
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Administrative / Biographical history
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Descending from one of the founders of Providence, the Brown family rose to prominence in the mid-18th century, primarily through the business success of the four surviving sons of Captain James Brown: Nicholas, John, Joseph, and Moses. Initially, in partnership with their uncle Obadiah Brown, the brothers expanded upon their father’s mercantile and maritime endeavours, building a network of family companies that came to dominate local trade, manufacturing, and investment. As eminent community members, the Browns also wielded considerable political and social influence, and the collection documents the family’s participation in Revolutionary politics, state agencies, and the establishment and development of Brown University.
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(source: The John Carter Library website)
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System of arrangement
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The collection is divided into eight sections, each divided into series and sub-series, whose items are tendentially arranged chronologically.
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Finding aids
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"Business papers at the John Carter Brown Library". A brief description of the Brown family business records with other business collections at the JCB.
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Author of the description
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Carla Vieira, 2022
