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Subgroup 71: Private Land Companies, 1857-1900

 Sub-Group

  • Staff Only

Scope and Contents note

Starting in the 1860s, the demand for people to settle along the rail lines in the Midwest grew in earnest. The railroads had been given government land-grants in the Midwestern states to sell and generate revenue for construction. Dozens of companies and agents dedicated to the promotion of land to immigrants seemingly popped up overnight. Land offices were opened in several European countries including Sweden, Germany, and England, to convince foreign citizens to make the move to the United States and farm the land along the railroads, thus providing freight and consumers for the trains. The Burlington and other roads offered discounted excursion tickets in an effort to encourage prospective buyers to visit the lands. Posters, newspaper advertisements, pamphlets, and other promotional materials in various languages making grand claims about the quality of the land were produced to convince these various ethnic groups to make new homes in Nebraska and Iowa.

This subgroup contains materials from several private land companies. These organizations were not officially run by the CB&Q, but were more often than not owned or overseen by Burlington officials such as C. E. Perkins and H. B. Scott. Series contains records of land sales, financial statements, and correspondence pertaining to land promotion and sales.

Dates

  • Creation: 1857-1900

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company Records are open for research in the Special Collections Reading Room; 1 box at a time (Priority III).

Arrangement note

Arranged in 24 series: American Emigrant Company, 1864-1865 (71 A1); Burlington Land Association, 1857-1881 (71 B1); J. N. Converse & Company, 1872-1900 (71 C3); Creston Land Association – In-letters, 1870-1877 (71 C5.1); Denver Land Company – Day book, 1884-1886 (71 D2.1); Eastern Land Association – Miscellaneous Papers, 1857-1874 (71 E2.1); Emerson Land Company – In-letters, 1881 (71 E4.1); Fontanelle Land Association – In-letters, 1878-1881 (71 F3.1); W. H. Forbes Purchase / Forbes, Perkins and Scott Trust No. 1 – In-letters, 1875-1881 (71 F5.1); Forbes, Perkins and Scott Trust No. 2, 1879-1881 (71 F6); Grant City Land Association – In-letters, 1880-1881 (71 G7.1); E. J. Hale Purchase – In-letters, 1870-1881 (71 H2.1); Humeston Land Association – In-letters, 1876-1882 (71 H8.1); Iowa Land Association, 1864-1877 (71 I5); Lincoln Land Company – Statements, 1880-1883 (71 L3.1); Missouri Land Association – In-letters, 1879-1882 (71 M4.1); Nebraska Land Company – Miscellaneous papers, 1873-1878 (71 N2.1); Nebraska Land & Loan Company - Record of sales, 1872-1881 (71 N3.1); Nodaway Valley Land Association – In-letters, 1881 (71 N4.1); Northwestern Land Association – In-letters, 1879-1881 (71 N5.1); H. S. Russell Trust, 1867-1881 (71 R3); South Platte Land Company, 1874-1883 (71 S4); Southwestern Land Association, 1881 (71 S5.1); and Tarkio Land Association – In-letters, 1881 (71 T2.1).

General Physical Description note

14.2 linear feet (27 boxes, 1 oversize folder, and 7 oversize volumes)

Repository Details

Part of the The Newberry Library - Modern Manuscripts and Archives Repository

Contact:
60 West Walton Street
Chicago Illinois 60610 United States
312-255-3512