Last (Jay T.) Collection of Transportation: Railroad Stock and Bond Certificates, 1835-1976

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Summary

Title:
Jay T. Last Collection of Transportation: Railroad Stock and Bond Certificates
Dates:
1835-1976
Creators:
Last, Jay T.
Abstract:
The railroad stock and bond certificates in the Jay T. Last Collection of Transportation consist of more than 1,100 railroad stock and bond certificates primarily issued by American railroad companies to individuals in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Extent:
approximately 1,180 items in 6 binders, 4 flat boxes, and 7 oversize folders
Language:
English.
Preferred citation:

[Item title, Call number]. Jay T. Last Transportation Collection: Railroad Stock and Bond Certificates, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The railroad stock and bond certificates in the Jay T. Last Collection of Transportation consist of more than 1,100 railroad stock and bond certificates primarily issued by American railroad companies to individuals in the 19th and 20th centuries. Among the earliest certificates in the collection was issued by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad on July 4, 1835, and one of the most recent items is a 1976 bond issued by the Canadian National Railway Company.

The decorative details of specific documents vary across the collection, though many items contain engraved and lithographed designs and images. Visual decorations include ornate patterned borders, embossed corporate and gold seals, logos, and vignettes primarily depicting railroad locomotives and trains, as well as landscapes and views of the American frontier, eagles, Columbia, Native Americans, farmers, miners, political surveyors, wheat bundles, and portraits of political figures and railroad company executives. The certificates range in size from approximately 6 x 7 inches to 28 x 17 inches and some of the bonds still have coupons attached. Most of the printed certificates have been filled in by hand with the shareholder or bondholder's name, shares or bond information, and authorizing signatures of company executives, though some are unissued and blank.

Biographical / historical:

The Jay T. Last Collection is an unparalleled archive of printed paper artifacts that documents American lithographic, social, and business history. The collection began in the early 1970s when physicist and Silicon Valley pioneer Jay Last moved to Southern California and started collecting citrus box labels he found at local flea markets and rummage sales. As his collection grew, Last realized that these labels conveyed important information about commercial printing, graphic design, and social history, and he expanded his collection to include other forms of American visual culture. Today this collection contains more than 200,000 lithographic prints, posters, and ephemera of mostly nineteenth and early twentieth century American origin and represents works by more than five hundred lithographic companies.

Acquisition information:
This collection forms part of the Jay T. Last Collection of Graphic Arts and Social History, which was donated to the Huntington Library by Jay T. Last in 2005 as a gift in progress. The bulk of the transportation ephemera was transferred to the Library in 2010 .
Arrangement:

The collection is physically arranged according to the general size of the item with small certificates in six binders (approximately 685 items), medium-sized certificates in four flat boxes (approximately 400 items), and large and oversized certificates seven flat-file folders (approximately 90 items); within these groups, items are arranged alphabetically by company name.

Rules or conventions:
Finding Aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Note:

Finding aid last updated on September 22, 2015.

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Finding aid prepared by Diann Benti.
Date Prepared:
© 2013
Date Encoded:
Machine readable finding aid encoded by Diann Benti in April 2013 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

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

Terms of access:

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.

Preferred citation:

[Item title, Call number]. Jay T. Last Transportation Collection: Railroad Stock and Bond Certificates, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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