George W. Ludington Collection
name: label: Creator
content: Turrell, Orlando B.
label: Creator
content: Warshaw, Isadore, 1900-1969
label: Creator
content: Caldwell, Edwin
label: Creator
content: Camby, Henry B.
label: Creator
content: Ludington, George W. (bank cashier)
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Harrison
label: Creator
content: Ludington, B. L.
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Charles H.
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Sam
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Sims
label: Creator
content: Ludington, James
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Nelson
label: Names
content: Bank of Kent
label: Names
content: Caldwell and Company
label: Names
content: H. Ludington & Company
label: Names
content: Lathrop, Ludington & Company
label: Names
content: Savings Bank of Caldwell, Whitney, and Company
label: Names
content: U.S. Appraisers Office
place: label: Place
content: United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865
topic: label: Occupation
content: Bankers
label: Topic
content: Exports -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Indians of North America -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Local finance -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Draft resisters -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Draft -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Commercial products -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Cashiers -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Money -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Banks and banking, American -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Lumber trade -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: finance -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Substitute soldiers, Civil War
label: Topic
content: Indian relations
label: Topic
content: International trade -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Imports -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Commodities -- 19th century
label: Topic
content: Hiring of war substitutes, Civil War
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The collection was purchased from Augusta Warshaw, widow of Isadore Warshaw, in 1971.
creator: label: Creator
content: Turrell, Orlando B.
label: Creator
content: Warshaw, Isadore, 1900-1969
label: Creator
content: Caldwell, Edwin
label: Creator
content: Camby, Henry B.
label: Creator
content: Ludington, George W. (bank cashier)
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Harrison
label: Creator
content: Ludington, B. L.
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Charles H.
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Sam
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Sims
label: Creator
content: Ludington, James
label: Creator
content: Ludington, Nelson
setName: label: See more items in
content: George W. Ludington Collection
abstract: label: Summary
content: Letters and memoranda written by Ludington family members to George Ludington, cashier of the Bank of Kent, Ludingtonville, New York.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: George Ludington was a banker who lived in Ludingtonville, Putnam County, New York.  Four of his brothers were in the lumber manufacture and merchandising and other businesses in the Midwest.  Another brother was in the import/export trade in New York City. 

James Ludington was a lumber dealer of Milwaukee and occasionally Bloomington, (Indiana?).  Most of his letters deal with financial relations with George Ludington and his bank.  The amounts mentioned were large for those times, and James seemed to be equal in status to George, frequently offering advice on business matters.  He was clearly in debt to George over the period covered by the correspondence, 1856-1864.

Nelson Ludington was a lumber manufacturer and dealer in Chicago, also in a debtor relationship to George Ludington.  His letters expressed strong criticism of the conduct of Civil War operations.

Charles H. Ludington was a senior partner in Lathrop, Ludington and Company, an import/export firm in New York City.

Harrison Ludington was a senior partner of H. Ludington & Co., lumber merchants of Milwaukee and later mayor of that city (1872-1876) and governor of Wisconsin (1876-1878).

Sims Ludington, apparently the youngest brother of George, was a lumber merchant in Winona, Minnesota.  He served in the Union Army and was seriously wounded in 1863.

Sam Ludington, based on a single letter in 1856, was apparently poorly educated  with uncertain employment.  

Other family members represented in the correspondence were B.L. Ludington (relationship uncertain), employed in the U.S. Appraisers Office, New York City, and a cousin, Henry B. Camby, New York City.  One brief note indicates he may have been in the apparel business.

Non-family correspondents include the following:

Orlando B. Turrell, an employee of Caldwell and Co., a bank in St. Paul, Minnesota and later the cashier of the Marine Bank of that city.  His letters, often lengthy and spanning 1857-1864, are mostly concerned with financial transactions and general business conditions in Minnesota but are written in a friendly style with many personal references. 

Edwin Caldwell, a senior partner of the Savings Bank of Caldwell, Whitney and Co., St. Paul, Minnesota.  His letters, written between 1857 and 1859, are primarily business-related, and are concerned with loan transactions for George Ludington's bank.  However, there are numerous personal comments, reflecting a somewhat adversarial relationship with Ludington.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 0.66 Cubic feet (2 boxes)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1817-1889
custodhist: label: Custodial History
content: This collection was once a part of the Warshaw Collection of Business Americana (AC0060).  It was removed and separated into an independent collection in 1985.
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives Center, National Museum of American History
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NMAH.AC.0135
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Correspondence
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is divided into three series.

Series 1: Family correspondence, 1848-1889

Series 2: Other correspondence, 1817-1889

Series 3: Certificates of Deposit, 1862-1863
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: Processed by Don Darroch, volunteer, supervised by Robert Harding, archivist, 1985.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Correspondence -- 19th century
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The Collection consists almost entirely of letters and business memoranda received by George Ludington.  The major correspondents are his six brothers.  Additional correspondents include other family members, friends and business associates.  The documents are in varying states of physical preservation.  A few fragments lack the originator's name or date.  

The bulk of the correspondence is dated in the years just prior to and during the Civil War.  The primary subject matter is business dealings, mainly financial transactions involving extension of loans by George Ludington, their servicing and repayment.  Some correspondence relates to merchandise purchases and to dealings in commodities, primarily grain but also including cotton and lumber.  There are numerous references to local "currencies" (the notes of banks, often of uncertain security) and to the credit-worthiness of individuals. 

The letters often refer to matters of personal and family interest and include revealing comments on military aspects of the Civil War (particularly the draft and the then legal practice of paying substitutes for military duty.)  One Ludington brother served in the Union Army and was seriously wounded.  There are references to difficulties with Indian tribes in Illinois and Minnesota.  A description of a disastrous railroad accident is included.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: Materials at Other Organizations

The State Historical Society of Wisconsin's holdings include the papers of Harrison Ludington, one of the Luddington brother's and a correspondent in this collection.