Papers of John W. McComb, 1926-1944
Part of collection: William du Pont family papers (2317)
Dates
- Creation: 1926-1944
Historical Note
John W. McComb (born October 15, 1874), an acquaintance of William du Pont Sr., was involved in real estate operations in Virginia and West Virginia. He moved from Richmond, Virginia to Wilmington, Delaware in 1926 to become president of the Delaware Land Development Company. McComb stayed in this capacity until his resignation in September 1944; he held the position of vice president for Stockford Farms, Inc., and its subsidiaries, also. From 1928 to 1947, he was on the board of directors of Delaware Trust Company.
McComb was appointed as an agent to purchase real estate for Stockford Farms, Inc., in September 1928, and he acquired farms and tracts of land in Maryland and Pennsylvania. He conducted operations of the company and its subsidiaries (Center Square, Inc., Fair Hill, Inc., Little Elk, Inc., New London, Inc., Springlawn, Inc., Tri-State, Inc., and Turkey Town, Inc.) until the dissolution of the subsidiaries.
Scope and Content
McComb's papers consist of a) Working Papers-material for the corporation tax return, 1926-1944 (copies of agreements on sale and construction, estimates for various sections of the development, financial statements and reports, incoming correspondence); b) Outgoing Correspondence, 1926-1966; and c) Miscellaneous Papers, 1926-1934.
While the outgoing correspondence of John W. McComb encompasses the period of 1926-1944-almost two decades of his activities as an associate of William du Pont and William du Pont, Jr.-it mainly contains letters regarding his own business concerns in Virginia and West Virginia, primarily in real estate and horses. Also, there are letters related to decorating and maintenance of a house he built in 1927 for his family at the Westover Hills development in Wilmington. There are numerous letters to owners and renters of farms acquired by Delaware Land Development Company and Stockford Farms, Inc., to attorneys, insurance companies, and banks dealing with titles, mortgages, and fire insurance. Correspondence (carbon copies) is organized chronologically, years 1942-1944, appears in two sets of copies.
Extent
From the Record Group: 339 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Additional Description
Access Restrictions
No restrictions on access; this collection is open for research.
These records are located in remote storage. Please contact staff 48 hours in advance of research visit at askhagley@hagley.org
Repository Details
Repository Details
Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository
