An Introduction to Archival Research in Business History

Performance-based pay: alternative interpretations of the Portsmouth Block Mills’ savings

“…The Science Museum archives hold Simon Goodrich's journals and memoranda (Goodrich, Accession B, 1803-1815 of his correspondence, and notes of meetings with Brunel and Bentham and a chronological account (Goodrich, Accession A, item 219, 1803-1805 of the machinery installation with costs. As with any archival research, there may be missing materials or undiscovered items within the holdings (Armstrong, 1991). However, a thorough item-by-item search of the relevant accessions was made to mitigate those difficulties (Goodman and Kruger, 1988).…”

A new medium goes public: The financialization of Marconi’s Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company

“…Armstrong (1991) notes that prior to the passage of the 1900 Companies Act, there was only one mandatory requirement of a company’s financial prospectus, the listing of the company owners and any contracts agreed to among said owners (p. xxxviii). Subsequently, Armstrong concludes that “… it was open to the promoters, directors and officers of a company to omit from the prospectus anything, which they saw fit, provided that the statements contained in the prospectus were not untrue by reason of the omissions” (Armstrong, 1991). For this reason, Armstrong argues that “Even in the early twentieth century many prospectuses remained impressionistic and enthusiastic rather than factual” (p. 16).…”

“…Such a speculative outlook and operation befit the nascent rules of the market itself, as a set of protocols, documents, and processes that suggested future financial value and guided the public's financial speculation. Armstrong (1991) notes that prior to the passage of the 1900 Companies Act, there was only one mandatory requirement of a company's financial prospectus, the listing of the company owners and any contracts agreed to among said owners (p. xxxviii). Subsequently, Armstrong concludes that "… it was open to the promoters, directors and officers of a company to omit from the prospectus anything, which they saw fit, provided that the statements contained in the prospectus were not untrue by reason of the omissions" (Armstrong, 1991).…”

‘Best for the Family’: Researching Families and Business

“…Understanding business decisions is difficult without access to internal company papers. Although much has been done to trace and sort business records (Armstrong 1991), it remains the case that these are available for only a minority of firms, and, not surprisingly, these tend to be large and long-lived. Firms such as Christian Salvesen not only existed long enough to become interested in their history; they also had the physical continuity to preserve records.…”