Collection search - Mercury Mills Ltd. [textual record, cartographic material]

Record information – Brief
1
Mercury Mills Ltd. [textual record, cartographic material]

Hierarchical level:

Series

Date:

1887-1956, predominant 1916-1955.

Reference:

R3736-3-8-E

Type of material:

Textual material, Maps and cartographic material

Found in:

Archives / Collections and Fonds

Item ID number:

161978

Context of this record:

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Mercury-Chipman Knit Ltd. fonds

Mercury Mills Ltd.
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Record information – Details

Date(s):

1887-1956, predominant 1916-1955.

Place of creation:

No place, unknown, or undetermined

Extent:

5.04 m of textual records.
1 map.
8 technical and architectural drawings.

Language of material:

English

Scope and content:

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Series consists of the operational and administrative records of Mercury Mills from the company's establishment in 1913 to its merger with the Chipman-Holton Knitting Co. Included in the series are company executive records and correspondence, extensive subject files, patent and trademark records, sales records as well as financial and accounting records. Executive records include minutes of meetings, shareholder records and documents relating to the company's reorganization efforts in 1940 and its eventual merger with Chipman-Holton in 1955. The correspondence and administrative files of company presidents R.H. Hommel, J.A. Roberts and R.W.S. Johnston, and those of secretary-treasurer H.J. Kennedy provide additional detail on corporate reorganizations, as well as government contract tenders, and other administrative matters.

The subject files cover a wide range of topics from the initial building of the Hamilton mill to company financing and municipal assessments. Other files provide information on Mercury Mills' labour force, inventories and earnings. Among the files are records relating to subsidiary companies Oxford Knitting, P-K Mills, Maitland Knitting and Maitland Spinning. Many of the files are legal agreements with suppliers and related companies. Other legal records include patent, trademark and copyright files. Sales records document the changes to sales operations during the merger period with Chipman-Holton, while agency agreements provide information on Mercury's international distribution network. The financial and accounting records provide detailed information on the firm and its financial health. Financial records include statements, annual reports, bond and mortgage files, tax returns, payroll records, cheque roll records and other working papers. The cheque roll files were generated by the company treasurer (and his department) and include information on pensions, salaries, hospitalization and unemployment insurance. The plans and technical drawings provide architectural information on the Mercury mill, as well as technical details on the machinery used in the factory.

Additional name(s):

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Mercury Mills

Biography/Administrative history:

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Mercury Mills : Mercury Mills Ltd. was organized by John Penman in 1912 and was incorporated under provincial charter in 1913. It obtained federal incorporation in 1922. Based in Hamilton, Ontario, the firm produced a wide range of knitted goods including synthetic and silk hosiery, underwear, sleepwear, as well as worsted and woolen yarns. After Penman retired, the firm was reorganized in 1928. The reorganization allowed the company to expand, and in 1928 Mercury Mills acquired the Oxford Knitting Mills of Woodstock, Ontario and the P-K Mills of Listowel, Ontario. R. H. Hommel became president in 1930, a position which he held until his death in 1949. He orchestrated further changes in Mercury Mills' capital structure in 1932 and the 1940. Under Hommel's guidance, Mercury Mills prospered during the war years, employing as many as a thousand people in its mills. After Hommel's death, the firm was in increasing difficulties with a succession of executives unable to improve the company's uncompetitive market condition. This predicament was exacerbated by Mercury Mills inability to win government contracts. Finally in 1954 Mercury Mills merged with Chipman-Holton to form Mercury-Chipman Ltd. The subsequent rationalization of production facilities only postponed the inevitable and in November 1955 the new firm was placed in receivership.

Source:

Private
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Conditions of access:

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Textual records

[Consultation90 Open]

Volume [R3736]

[Consultation 90 Open]

7--31;

[Consultation 90 Open]

34--38;

[Consultation 90 Open]

Cartographic material

[Consultation90 Open]

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Date modified:: 2024-07-24