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Manuscript Group 311
LEHIGH COAL AND NAVIGATION COMPANY RECORDS
1792-1978
204 cubic feet



The Lehigh Navigation Company was formed in 1798 and the Lehigh Coal Company in 1792. They merged on Aprl 21, 1820 and were incorporated as the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company in 1822. As of 1978 the company no longer operates as a carrier or coal producer, but is currently doing business as Gella's Confections Inc. Besides documenting the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company's role in the coal and transportation industries, the records in this collection also document diverse business activities.

The records consist chiefly of Minutes, 1821-1931, Administrative Files, 1801-1950, and Accounts, 1818-1947, of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company and records of ninety-six of its affiliates. Included in the main collection are Agreements, Mortgages, and Leases, 1831-1951; Registers, 1827-1960; Maps, 1820-1959; Stock Ledgers, 1821-1869; Briefs of Title, 1880-1918; Accounts of Lots Sold, 1832-1937; Annual Reports, 1828-1978; Reference Literature, 1822-1972; and Circulars, 1867-1908 of the company. Of particular interest to genealogists are the Inactive Employment Record Cards [ca. 1913-1965], a series of 5" x 8" cards organized alphabetically by employee surname. Information typically found on each card includes the employee's name, address, birthdate, marital status, number of children, nationality, and social security number; his or her department, position, and salary; dates of service and the reason for termination of employment. Particulars about the individual's former employment, such as names and addresses of former employers and the positions held, are also routinely noted. Other records of genealogical value include Road Payments, 1825-1910; Account of Lots Sold, 1886-1918; Title Index to Property Through Wyoming Valley, 1909; and Personal Records on Psychological Testing, 1957.

Besides showing the company's participation in the coal and transportation industries, the records also document such diverse business activities as providing water supplies and shipping services. Representative records of subsidiaries include the Lehigh Coal Mine Company, 1792-1836; Panther Valley Water Company, 1866-1965; Lehigh and New England Railroad Company, 1895-1969; B & M Oil Company, Inc., 1938-1945; Delaware Division Canal Company, 1858-1942; Alliance Coal Mining Company, 1864-1927; Canal Company, 1858-1942;; Automatic Coal Burner Company, 1941-1951; B.M. Liquidating Corporation, 1954-1958; Wilkes-Barre and Scranton Railroad Company, 1886-1963; Split Rock Skeet and Trapshooting Association, Inc., 1961-1963; Nanticoke Railroad Company, 1859-1967; and Eureka Furnace Cleaning Company, Inc., 1929-1932.

Affilliated railroad companies for whom records are held include: Allentown Terminal Railroad Company, Bethlehem and Belvedere Railroad Company, Campbell Hall Connecting Railroad Company, Central Railroad Company of New Jersey, Crane Railroad Company, Lehigh and Water Gap Railroad Company, Leihigh and Lackawanna Railroad Company, Lehigh and New England Railroad Company, Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad Company, Nanticoke Railroad Company, Nesquehoning Valley Railroad Company, Northampton Railroad Company, Panther Creek Railroad Company, Popchuck Railroad Company, Treskcow Railroad Company, Wilkes-Barre and Scranton Railroad Company, and Wind Gap and Delaware Railroad Company.

 

A. Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company

B. Subsidiary Companies


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PA State Archives Hours, Directions, & Fees Research Topics Finding Aids for Collections Land Records