The Hackley and Hume papers contain the business records of several inter-related Michigan-based business firms and some of the private papers of the families of Charles Henry Hackley and Thomas Hume. The papers span the years 1859-1955. The papers document lumbering and lumber investments in Michigan and other states. The papers also document Charles Henry Hackley and Thomas Hume, both prominent timbermen and philanthropists, as well as other family members. Hackley and Hume were active in their hometown of Muskegon, Michigan, which is documented in the collection as well.

Types of Records in the Collection:

Correspondence

Corporate and personal correspondence are included in the papers of Hackley and Hume. The letterpress books, 1870-1946, provide a major portion of the corporate correspondence for all of the companies controlled by Hackley and Hume. Because the letters were reproduced using the mechanically hand-driven letterpress of the nineteenth century, the print in the early books varies from good to almost illegible. For a complete list of the letterpress books by company, see the inventory below. After the death of Thomas Hume in 1920, the individual descriptions of the various companies he controlled were written for the use of the Internal Revenue Service. These corporate descriptions can be found in the letterpress books of Hackley and Hume and Hume-Hefferan, Volumes 47, 48, and 49.

Additional correspondence files (other than the letterpress books) for the period 1916-1955 were also maintained by the Humes. Much of this correspondence is corporate, but it also reflects the wide-ranging personal interests of the Hume family in these years. This correspondence should also be consulted when investigating particular business aspects of the collection. It is arranged alphabetically and by year.

Another category of correspondence is that contained in the boxes of each separate company. The inventory gives a detailed listing of the correspondence accompanying the contracts and corporate papers of each company. All forms of correspondence form an integral part of the corporate papers of many of the companies in this collection. Each form of correspondence, where applicable, must be consulted for a complete picture of a specific company.

Personal correspondence of the Hackley and Hume families is contained in the series Hackley and Hume Personal Family Papers. There is also some interesting personal commentary in the corporate correspondence, especially in the letters between George and Thomas Hackley Hume and their father Thomas Hume.

Financial Records

The financial records of the various companies in this collection (journals, ledgers, cash books, blotters, etc.) are extensive. They document the lumber companies and also the many Muskegon-based firms of the post-lumbering area. Because business was conducted by many firms under one roof throughout the entire period of this collection, the financial records of several firms are often times integrated into one volume. Therefore, even though a cashbook has embossed on its binding "Hackley and McGordon," it may also include the records of other companies. The cash disbursements of other firms of the Hackley and Hume interests may be involved and these will be identified inside the volume.

Receipts

Seven boxes of receipts are contained in this collection. These are almost exclusively personal in nature and do not include the tax receipts of the corporations in the Hackley and Hume Papers. All corporate tax receipts are included with the papers of each company.

Corporate Papers

The bulk of the "loose" corporate papers are organized under their appropriate corporate categories. Thus, to thoroughly study any particular company, one must consult these papers as well as the correspondence and the financial records in the bound volumes. The finding aid gives a complete description for every company of the collection's holdings for corporate, financial and correspondence materials.

Photographs

The photographs include one image of Hackley and Hume Mill on Muskegon lake, as well as a few portraits of Charles Henry Hackley and Thomas Hume. Other photographs include the operations in the California Redwood country in the early twentieth century. Topics of the California photos include logging railroad of the Sanger Lumber Company, Boole tree, flume of the Sanger Lumber Company, Hume Lake in California, mill at Sanger, California, trees at Hume Lake, logging scenes of Hume, California, mill at Hume, California, landscape scenes of the Sierra Nevada mountains, people at Hume California, Mountain Home Tract at Hume California. Also included is photo album of the construction of the dam at Hume Lake in 1909 and a scrapbook of redwood trees and lumbering from 1949.

Film

There are 12 films in this collection from the period 1930-1941. They are amateur films of trips to Europe, locations in the United States and Panama.

Series in the Collection:

J.H. Hackley & Co., 1859-1866

Correspondence, financial records, tax receipts, land patents and title papers comprise the bulk of this firm's papers. Included are the log receipts from the Muskegon Booming Co., of which Joseph Hackley was a principal founder.

General Contents

• Correspondence, 1870-1872 • Financial Records, 1859-1879 • Land Patents, circa 1860s • Deeds, circa 1850s • Abstracts of Title • Bank Drafts, 1865-1868 • Log Receipts, 1864-1865 • Log Marks, 1864-1919

Hackley & Sons, 1866-1877

Correspondence, financial reports, bank drafts and log receipts comprise the corporate papers of Hackley & Sons. As the successor to J.H. Hackley & Co., Hackley & Sons continued the work of the older firm with essentially the same personnel and property holdings.

General Contents

• Correspondence, 1870-1879 • Financial Records, 1866-1878 • Bank Drafts, 1865-1878 • Log Receipts, 1867-1877

Hackley & McGordon, 1866-1880

Correspondence, financial records, taxes, bank drafts, log receipts, law suits and land contracts are included in the corporate records of the Hackley & McGordon timber operation. In addition, a land contract involving W.S. Gerrish, a Michigan timberman, and the Flint-Pere Marquette Railroad is included.

General Contents

• Correspondence, 1870-1882 • Financial Records, 1866-1883 • Deeds, circa 1870s-1880s • Bank Drafts, 1869-1881 • Contracts

C.H. Hackley & Co., 1876-1900

Correspondence, financial records, tax receipts, title papers, bank drafts, log receipts and contracts. Included in these papers are materials related to the purchase of the Lake George and Muskegon River Railroad, which was established by W.S. Gerrish as the world's first logging railroad in the decade after the United States Civil War.

General Contents

• Correspondence, 1873-1899 • Financial Records, 1869-1901 • Title Papers, circa 1870s-1880s • Bank Drafts, 1877-1887 • Log Receipts, 1877-1885 • Contracts, 1879-1882

Hackley & Hume, 1881-1905

The firm of Hackley & Hume was the most significant of the companies contained in this collection. Under the direction of Charles Hackley and his longtime associate and partner, Thomas Hume, business was expanded into several states besides Michigan as well as British Columbia, Canada. The general contents of these papers are listed by state. The volumes in this series contain correspondence, financial records and other pertinent material for all Hackley and Hume holdings, not just one particular state.

Michigan Lands General Contents • Correspondence, 1879-1925 • Financial Records, 1881-1955 • Deeds & Title Papers • Bank Drafts, 1881-1920s • Log Receipts, 1881-1894 • Contracts, 1881-1925 • Law Suits • Miscellaneous

Mississippi Lands General Contents • Correspondence, 1899-1912 • Financial Records, 1889-1912 • Contracts

Minnesota Lands General Contents • Correspondence, 1884-1955 • Financial Records, 1884-1919 • Contracts • Rent Collection Reports, 1903-1914 • Land Plats & Maps

British Columbia Lands General Contents • Correspondence, 1898-1952 • Financial Records, 1902-1952 • Contracts • Land Plats & Maps

Hackley & Hume Co. Ltd.

General Contents

• Articles of Association, By-Laws, Dissolution • Capital Stock Papers

Hume, Hefferan & Co., 1907-1942

As the holding company for the Carolina Timber Co. and the Hume-Bennett/Sanger Lumber Co., Hume, Hefferan & Co. oversaw the management of both of these subsidiaries. Included in the papers of Hume, Hefferan & Co. are correspondence, financial records, and tax matters that relate to the subsidiary firms.

General Contents

• Correspondence, 1907-1942 • Financial Records, 1907-1942 • Law Suits • Carolina Timber Co. • Hume-Bennett Lumber Co./Sanger Lumber Co.

Carolina Timber Co., 1908-1939

As the principle subsidiary of Hume, Hefferan & Co., the Carolina Timber Co. held lands in North Carolina and in California. However, the Carolina Timber Co. carried on no business operations in North Carolina other than to pay taxes and transfer property. In 1927, for reasons of legal protection, the California lands controlled by Hume, Hefferan & Co. were put under the control of the Carolina Timber Co.

General Contents

• Correspondence, 1907-1947 • Financial Records, 1907-1945 • Holding Company Papers, 1921-1941 • North Carolina Lands

California Lands, 1907-1927

The California lands were the largest operation undertaken by Hume, Hefferan & Co. They were originally organized under the corporate title of Hume-Bennett Lumber Co., later the name was changed to the Sanger Lumber Co. in 1917.

Thomas Hume & Co., 1907-1954

Correspondence, financial records, law suits, directors meetings and stocks & bonds books make up the primary holdings of the papers of Thomas Hume & Co. Hume and his sons, George A. & Thomas H. Hume, managed Thomas Hume & Co. as an investment business. The principle firms in which they held controlling or large interests are classified under the heading Thomas Hume & Co. Other firms where funds were invested can be found in the volumes of Thomas Hume & Co.

General Contents

• Articles of Agreement, 1911 • Trail Balances, 1922-1925 • Audits • Miscellaneous

Vandergrift Box Co.

• Articles of Association & Board Meetings • Trial Balance, 1910-1923 • Labelle Box Co. & Elkins Box Co., Incomplete Statements

Sargent Mfg. Co.

• Miscellaneous Material, 1890-1925

Gray Jockey Mining Co.

• Miscellaneous Material, 1891-1893

Twelve Mile Strip Lands-North Carolina

• Deeds and Conveyances • Correspondence • Contracts • Miscellaneous

Lacey-Buek Iron Company

• Reports & Correspondence, 1903-1909 • Reorganization and Absorption

Receipts, 1867-1886, 1896-1943

The receipts in these boxes cover every aspect of the Hackley and Hume Papers (other than taxes) and include personal as well as business related matters. All receipts are arranged alphabetically by years.

Newspaper Clippings & Miscellaneous

Newspaper clippings that relate to the various bequests, activities and organizations found in the Hackley & Hume Papers is the main category in this section. Jean Hume Browning's correspondence on the history of the Hackley and Hume Companies is also contained.

General Contents

• Hackley Bequest Clippings • Hackley House Clippings • Muskegon General History • Jean Hume Browning Correspondence • Miscellaneous Materials

The Life of Charles Henry Hackley (Muskegon: Dana Printing Co., 1948)

Box 26, Folder 1, vol. 254 Johnson, Victor E., Michigan Log Marks (East Lansing: Agricultural Experiment Station, 1941).

Box 26, Folder 2, Read, Frederick, Beyond the Windswept Dunes: The Story of Maritime Muskegon (Wayne State University Press, 2003)