Guide to the Magoun & Clapp Papers, 1846-1867
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Magoun & Clapp Papers, George J. Mitchell Department of Special Collections & Archives, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine.
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Magoun & Clapp was a Bath, Maine shipping firm established in the early 1840s by David C. Magoun, a prominent merchant in Bath, and Charles Clapp, Jr., a businessman in Augusta, Maine. According to William A. Baker, author of "A Maritime History of Bath, Maine and the Kennebec River Region" (1973), Magoun was elected as Bath's first mayor in March of 1848. In 1826 he advertised in the "Maine Inquirer" as an auctioneer, and he owned shares in shipping vessels by 1827. At the time of his election, he had business connections with Clapp in wholesale groceries and shipping. Clapp had begun his own business career as a young man, with Clapp & Boynton. Magoun and Clapp's partnership was dissolved about 1870.
The Magoun and Clapp papers contain shipping records, invoices, insurance policies, account books, and miscellaneous papers, broken down as follows: shipping records for the ship "Cordage" (1846-1855); a record book for lumber orders (1849-1856); ship logs kept by Captain Leonard P. Merrill of the bark "Annie Kimball" (1856-1860), and of the following ships: "New England " (1861-1862), "Screamer" (1866), "Ironsides" (1866-1868), and "Amity" (1869-1870). There are also cashbooks (1844-1847); bank passbooks for Magoun & Clapp (1847-1861); account books (1842-1848, 1851-1856, 1854-1855, 1855-1859, 1857-1858, 1858-1864); account books of the invoice book (1842-1852); insurance policies for the ships "Asia", "Lombard", "Naples", "Wabash", the barks "Burlington", "Tonquin", the brig "Forrester", and "open policies" (1854-1862). The miscellaneous papers concern the ships "Wabash" (1849-1861), "Rhine" (1849-1862), "Tonquin" (1852-1864), and "Naples" (1857-1867).
Organized into 3 Series.
Correspondence (circa 1860) between Magoun and Clapp and corrrespondence concerning the vessels Asia, Burlington, Columbia, Emma Jane, Genoa, Lincoln Webb, Lombard, Naples, Rhine, Tonquin, and Wabash.
No restrictions.
1854 - 1855 Apr
1855 May - Aug
1855 Sep - Dec
1856 Jan - Aug
1856 Sep - Dec
1858 - 1860
1861 - 1864
1853 - 1856
1857 - 1859
1860 - 1864
1855
1856
1857
1858
1859
1860
1861
1862
1863
1864
1855 - 1857
1854 - 1856
1857 - 1863
1853 - 1854
1855 - 1856
1855 - 1857
1858 - 1862
1854 - 1855
1856
1857
1858
1859
1860
1861
1862
1864 - 1868
1852 - 1855
1856 - 1857
1858
1859
1860
1861
1862
1855
1856 - 1858
1859
1860
1861 - 1864
1855
1856
General
Miscellaneous
This series contains shipping papers and invoices circa 1860 for the vessels "Asia", "Burlington", "Columbia", "Coral", "Emma Jane", "Genoa", "Isabella", "Lombard", "Naples", "Rhines", "Tonquin", and "Wabash". Also included are a travel log for the ship "Burlington" (c. 1857) and a checkbook for ship "Wabash" (c. 1850).
No restrictions.
1855
1856
1857
1858
1859
1860 Jan - Jun
1860 Jul - Dec
1861 Jan - Jun
1861 Jul - Dec
1862
1863 Jan - Aug
1863 Sep - Dec
1864
1851
1852 Jan - Jun
1852 Jul - Dec
1853 Jan - Jun
1853 Jul - Dec
1854
Travel Log for Ship "Burlington" 1857
1855
1856 May - Dec
1857 Jan - Aug
1857 May - Dec
1858 Jan - May
1858 Jun - Dec
1859 Jan - Jun
1859 Jul - Dec
1860 Jan - Jun
1860 Jul - Dec
1861 Jan - Jun
1861 Jul - Dec
1862 Jan - Oct
1862 Nov - Dec
1863
1864
1852 - 1854 Aug
1854 Sep - Dec
1855 Jan - Jul
1855 Aug - Dec
1856 Jan - Jun
1856 Jul - Dec
1857
1846
1847
1848
1849
1850
1851 - 1852
1854; 1856
1857
1858
1859
1860
1861
1862
1863 - 1865
1846 - 1847
1848 Jan - Jun
1848 Jul - Dec
1849
1850
1851 Jan - Jun
1851 Jul - Dec
1852
1853 Jan - Aug
1853 Sep - Dec
1854
1855
1846 - 1847
1848 Jan - Jun
1848 Jul - Dec
1849
1850 - 1852
1854
1855 Jan - Jul
1855 Aug - Dec
1856
1857
1858 Jan - Apr
1858 May - Aug
1858 Oct - Dec
1859 Jan - Mar
1859 Apr - Dec
1860 Jan - Mar
1860 Apr - Jun
1860 Jul - Dec
1861 Jan - Sep
1861 Oct - Dec
1862
1850 - 1851
1852
1853
1854
1855
1856 Jan - Jun
1856 Jul - Dec
1857 Jan - Jun
1857 Jul - Dec
1858 Jan - Jun
1858 Jul - Dec
1859
1860
1861
1862
1863
1864 - 1867
Cash book
1849
1850 - 1851
1852 Jan - Jun
1852 Jul - Dec
1853 Jan - Jul
1853 Jul - Dec
1854 Jan - Jun
1854 Jul - Dec
1855
1856
1857 Jan - Jun
1857 Jul - Dec
1858
1859 Jan - May
1859 Jun - Dec
1860 Jan - Jun
1860 Jul - Dec
1861
1862
"Rio" memo bordage, 1846
1852
1853 Jan - Aug
1853 Sep - Dec
1853 Jan - Aug
1854 Jul - Dec
1855 Jan - Jul
1855 Aug - Dec
1856
1857
1858 Jan - May
1858 Jun - Dec
1859 Jan - Jun
1859 Jul - Dec
1860 Jan - May
1860 Jun - Dec
1861 - 1864
1849 Jan - Aug
1849 Sep - Dec
1850 Jan - Jun
1850 Jul - Dec
1851 Jan - Jun
1851 Jul - Dec
1852 Jan - Aug
1852 Sep - Dec
1853 Jan - Jun
1853 Jul - Dec
1854 Jan - Jun
1854 Jul - Dec
1855 Jan - Jul
1855 Jan - Jun
1855 Jul - Dec
1857 Jan - Jun
1857 Jul - Dec
1858
1859 Jan - Jun
1859 Jul - Dec
1860 - 1861
Checkbook for Ship "Wabash" 1850
Commercial Bank, Bath, ME (1847-1852)
Commercial Bank, Bath, ME (1854-1857)
Exchange Book, Portland, ME (1848-1853)
Lagadomok Bank, ME (1849-1850)
Lincoln Bank, ME (1849-1851)
Bank of Old Dominion, Alexandria, VA (1853)
City Bank, Bath, ME (1853)
Long Beach Bank (1857-1861)
Account book (1842-1848)
Account book (1851-1856)
Ship "Lombard" bank book, 1834
"Notes and Bills paid on Demand," 1856
Ship "Lombard" bank book, 1857
Bill book-All ships
Invoice book, 1842-1852
Ship "Savannah,"1855
Ship "Wabash," 1849
Bank Book, 1844 Oct.
Order for Pitch Pine Lumber, 1849
Ship "Annie Kimball" ship log, 1856-1869
Brig. "Rio" bank book, 1846-1848
Ship "Naples," 1859-1860
This series contains insurance policies for ships "Asia", "Burlington", "Lombard", "Naples", "Tonquin", and "Wabash" from 1850-1860. Also included is a short history of Magoun & Clapp shipbuilders called "The Travelling Merchant" by John Johnson.
No restrictions.
"The Traveling Merchant" by John Johnson, 1969-Historical material
Photograph: Ship "Asia"
Ship "Asia" 1855-1860
Ship "Burlington" 1856-1862
Brig "Forrester"
Ship "Lombard" 1854-1857
Ship "Lombard" 1858-1861
Ship "Naples" 1850-1861
Bark "Tonquin" 1854-1861
Ship "Wabash" 1852-1860
Open Policies 1854-1860