Special Collections Department
403 Parks Library
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-2140
MS 556
Ellis and Ellis, Inc.
Records, 1913-1949, undated
Descriptive summary
| creator: | Ellis and Ellis, Inc. |
| title: | Records |
| dates: | 1913-1949, undated |
| extent: | 4.2 linear feet (10 document boxes) |
| collection number: | MS 556 |
| repository: | Special Collections Department, Iowa State University. |
Administrative information
| access: | Open for research |
| publication rights: | Consult Head, Special Collections Department |
| preferred citation: | Ellis and Ellis, Inc. Records, MS 556, Special Collections Department, Iowa State University Library. |
Historical note
The Charles City, Iowa, corporation of Ellis & Ellis, Inc. was formed 29 May 1917. The new corporation took over the business and property of the copartnership of Ellis and Ellis, which had been in existence for close to forty years. The partners in this venture were brothers Adelbert E. Ellis (1848-1919) and Charles D. Ellis (1854-1933). Upon the formation of the corporation, these two men continued to be the sole owners of the business and property of the corporation. The first officers were Charles D. Ellis, president; Adelbert E. Ellis, vice president; Melvin W. Ellis, treasurer; and W. B. Johnson, secretary. Ellis and Ellis, Inc., invested in stocks and bonds and in real estate in Charles City and elsewhere. Melvin W. Ellis (1881-1946) served as the second president. Following his death in 1946, the shareholders voted to dissolve the corporation. Ellis and Ellis, Inc. was officially dissolved in 1949. The officers at that time were Harlan "Hoot" M. Ellis, president; Raymond W. Ellis, vice president; and H. Elsie Calvert, secretary. |
Collection description
This collection contains correspondence, financial records, legal documents, tax files, and ledgers from Ellis and Ellis, Inc. The records document the company's investments in stocks and in properties including the Ellis Hotel in Waterloo, the Woolworth building in Charles City, and the Sherman Nursery Company (also called the Charles City Nursery Company). The 1949 dissolution of the company is well documented by the records. The collection also includes documents relating to the Melvin W. Ellis family's personal finances and their Charles City home, known as Boulder Point. |
Organization
The collection is organized in three series: |
Description of series
| Series 1 | General Files | 1913-1949, undated |
| extent: | 1.03 linear feet (2 document boxes and 6 folders) | |
| description: | Contains correspondence, financial records, and legal records of Ellis and Ellis, Inc. Also included is a modest amount of legal and financial records of the Ellis family, including papers related to their home, Boulder Point. Arranged alphabetically. | |
Container list
Box |
Folder |
Title |
Dates |
1 |
1 |
Balance Sheets |
1916-1945, undated |
1 |
2 |
Boulder Point Papers |
1920-1928 |
1 |
3 |
Business and Bank Records (notebook): accounts and statements |
1923-1943 |
1 |
4 |
Correspondence and Balance Sheets (includes company liquidation, Ellis and Ellis Block and other property) |
1946-1949, undated |
1 |
5 |
Correspondence and Legal Documents Relating to Melvin W. Ellis Estate and Company Dissolution |
1944-1949, undated |
1 |
6 |
Dissolution of Company |
1946-1949 |
1 |
7 |
Financial Records (notebook): bank account registers, loans, stocks, bonds, and personal expenses and statements |
1929-1946, undated |
1 |
8 |
Financial Reports |
1927 |
1 |
9 |
Financial Reports |
1928-1929 |
2 |
1 |
Financial Reports |
1930-1931 |
2 |
2 |
Financial Reports |
1933, 1946 |
2 |
3 |
Financial Statements, Property Listing, and Correspondence Regarding Investments |
1913-1921, undated |
2 |
4 |
Fred C. Krueger Loan Papers |
1916-1933, undated |
2 |
5 |
Legal and Financial Records: balance sheets, materials regarding company dissolution, estates of Kate G. Ellis, Mina W. Ellis, and Melvin W. Ellis, and death certificate of Melvin W. Ellis |
1930-1949, undated |
2 |
6 |
Legal Matters (includes application for stock issuance and company dissolution) |
1917-1949 |
2 |
7 |
Legal Matters (includes Mina Ellis estate and Carlisle Ellis and Prudence Kinsley withdrawal from company) |
1937-1948 |
2 |
8 |
National Republic Bank Stock Certificates and Papers |
1931-1946 |
2 |
9 |
National Republic Company and Central Republic Bank and Trust: legal and tax matters (includes Melvin W. Ellis statements of net worth) |
1928-1933 |
2 |
10 |
National Republic Company and Central Republic Trust Company: correspondence, accounts, and agreements: |
1929-1946 |
3 |
1 |
Notes, Loans, Insurance |
1925-1946, undated |
3 |
2 |
Personal Accounts (notebook): assets, liabilities, statements, and checks (1- 2.5 x 5" b/w photograph) |
1929-1945, undated |
3 |
3 |
Property and Investments: deeds, contracts of sale, leases, mortgages, property improvements, stock, tax assessments |
1940-1949, undated |
3 |
4 |
Property and Loans |
1927-1949 |
3 |
5 |
Property and Stock Valuation (includes Sherman Nursery Company and Ellis Hotel) |
1946-1948, undated |
3 |
6 |
Woolworth Building Specifications |
1939, undated |
3 |
10 |
Hart-Parr Company (tractors) Financial Statement |
1922 |
Description of series
| Series 2 | Tax Records | 1914-1949, undated |
| extent: | 10.03 linear feet (2 document boxes and 3 folders) | |
| description: | Contains tax returns of Ellis and Ellis, Inc., and related documentation including correspondence and legal records. Arranged chronologically. | |
Container list
Box |
Folder |
Title |
Dates |
3 |
7 |
Income Tax and Legal Matters (includes financial statements and 1935 tax returns) |
1914-1949, undated |
3 |
8 |
Tax Returns and Correspondence |
1915-1928, undated |
3 |
9 |
Tax Returns and Correspondence |
1917-1926, undated |
4 |
1 |
Tax Returns, Correspondence, and Financial Statements (1 of 2) |
1927-1938, undated |
4 |
2 |
Tax Returns, Correspondence, and Financial Statements (2 of 2) |
1927-1938, undated |
4 |
3 |
Income Tax Study (includes 1936 tax returns) (1 of 2) |
1935-1939, undated |
4 |
4 |
Income Tax Study (includes 1936 tax returns) (2 of 2) |
1935-1939, undated |
4 |
5 |
1937 Income Tax, Federal and State (includes social security tax correspondence) |
1937-1940, undated |
4 |
6 |
1938 Income Tax, Federal and State |
1938-1939 |
5 |
1 |
1939 Income Tax, Federal and State |
1940-1944, undated |
5 |
2 |
1940 Income Tax, Federal and State (includes tax correspondence regarding First Security Inc. of Charles City and Oliver Farm Equipment Company conditional rights certificates) |
1941-1946, undated |
5 |
3 |
1941 Income Tax, Federal and State (includes material regarding 1944 audit) |
1942-1944 |
5 |
4 |
1942 Income Tax, Federal and State |
1943, undated |
5 |
5 |
1943 Income Tax, Federal and State |
1944-1947, undated |
5 |
6 |
1944 Income Tax, Federal and State |
1945-1946, undated |
5 |
7 |
1945 Income Tax, Federal and State |
1946-1948, undated |
5 |
8 |
1946 Income Tax, Federal and State |
1947, undated |
5 |
9 |
1947 Income Tax, Federal and State |
1948, undated |
5 |
10 |
1948 and 1949 Income Tax, Federal and State |
1948-1949, undated |
Description of series
| Series 3 | Ledgers | 1926-1947 |
| extent: | 2.1 linear feet (5 document boxes) | |
| description: | Contains ledger pages recording accounts maintained by Ellis and Ellis, Inc., including rents and expenses from their farm and city properties. These pages were originally in post bound ledgers and have been disbound. Arranged alphabetically. | |
Container list
Box |
Folder |
Title |
Dates |
6 |
1 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (1 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
6 |
2 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (2 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
6 |
3 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (3 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
6 |
4 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (4 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
6 |
5 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (5 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
6 |
6 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (6 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
7 |
1 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (7 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
7 |
2 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (8 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
7 |
3 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (9 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
7 |
4 |
Farm Accounts Ledger (10 of 10) |
1926-1947 |
7 |
5 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts |
1926-1947 |
8 |
1 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts |
1926-1947 |
8 |
2 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts |
1926-1947 |
8 |
3 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts |
1926-1947 |
8 |
4 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts |
1926-1947 |
8 |
5 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts |
1926-1947 |
8 |
6 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts |
1926-1947 |
9 |
1 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts |
1926-1947 |
9 |
2 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts |
1926-1947 |
9 |
3 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts (10 of 11) |
1926-1947 |
9 |
4 |
Transfer Binder: All Accounts except City Building Accounts and Analyses of Rents and Farm Accounts (11 of 11) |
1926-1947 |
9 |
5 |
Transfer Binder: Analyses of City and Farm Rents and City Building Accounts (1 of 8) |
1926-1947 |
9 |
6 |
Transfer Binder: Analyses of City and Farm Rents and City Building Accounts (2 of 8) |
1926-1947 |
10 |
1 |
Transfer Binder: Analyses of City and Farm Rents and City Building Accounts (3 of 8) |
1926-1947 |
10 |
2 |
Transfer Binder: Analyses of City and Farm Rents and City Building Accounts (4 of 8) |
1926-1947 |
10 |
3 |
Transfer Binder: Analyses of City and Farm Rents and City Building Accounts (5 of 8) |
1926-1947 |
10 |
4 |
Transfer Binder: Analyses of City and Farm Rents and City Building Accounts (6 of 8) |
1926-1947 |
10 |
5 |
Transfer Binder: Analyses of City and Farm Rents and City Building Accounts (7 of 8) |
1926-1947 |
10 |
6 |
Transfer Binder: Analyses of City and Farm Rents and City Building Accounts (8 of 8) |
1926-1947 |