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Fantastic Gold Rush Letter & Cover, Page Bacon & Co., Re: 1855 Bank Collapse [155334]

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Paper Start Price:500.00 USD Estimated At:1,000.00 - 2,000.00 USD
Fantastic Gold Rush Letter & Cover, Page Bacon & Co., Re: 1855 Bank Collapse [155334]
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Lot of 2. Cover with corner ad for Page & Bacon Bankers St. Louis plus letter. Page, Bacon & Co. was composed of Daniel Page and Henry D. Bacon (Page's son-in-law). In 1850, they expanded their St. Louis business to California during the Gold Rush. Page's son, Francis W. Page, was sent to oversee operations. They had offices in Sacramento, Stockton, and San Francisco. Page, Bacon & Co. was the largest bank in San Francisco by the end of 1851, and in the first half of 1852 shipped about a quarter of all gold carried from California by steamer. Their St. Louis office become overextended, especially related to railroad investments, which caused it to fail in 1855. This failure caused a run on the San Francisco office, an event that had repercussions on other banks and businesses in the city and was known as the "Panic of 1855" and "Black Friday."

1) Cover was mailed April 20th, 1856 to Francis W. Page in San Francisco. Black Saint Louis cancel on ten cent green Washington stamp. 2) Letter is written by H.D. Bacon on a blue double sheet. Dateline St. Louis, March 11, 1856. Addressed to his brother, Bacon suggests to Page ways they may reach settlements with creditors in California. He is still optimistic about the O&MRR and selling bonds for its financing: "I have just returned from a trip on our road on a hand car. I found the road in much better condition than I expected & I hope what I learnt will assist me in giving people directions for the more economical management of the road, & that it may be made a source of revenue to us. I am pushing the work as rapidly as possible in getting on to Blood Island." 9.75 x 7.75" Fascinating and important Gold Rush banking letter.

Date: 1856
Country (if not USA):
State: California
City: San Francisco
Provenance: