Guide to the Merchants and Planters Oil Company archives, 1894-1941


Descriptive Summary
	Creator:	Merchants and Planters Oil Company
	Title:	Merchants and Planters Oil Company archives
	Dates:	1894-1941, Bulk Dates 1930-1945
	Abstract:	Correspondence, contracts, credit reports, and leases in this collection document the business of Houston, Texas based Merchants & Planters Oil Company, particularly during the last period of its existence, 1930 through 1941. This company was owned by William Marsh Rice and associated with Rice Institute after Mr. Rice's death.
	Identification:	MS 260
	Quantity:	18 linear feet
	Language:	Materials are in English.
	Repository:	Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library, Rice University, Houston, TX

Organizational History

Merchants and Planters Oil Company, manufacturers of cottonseed oil, oil cake, meal and linters, based in Houston, Texas, was founded in 1890. The business was one of a number of cotton-based businesses owned by Rice Institute founder, William Marsh Rice at the time of his death in 1900. On September 8, 1900, a powerful hurricane struck the Gulf Coast, causing severe damage to one of the company's warehouses and inventory. The business manager telegraphed Rice stating that the company needed money for repairs; the sum nearly equaled the total of Rice's most liquid assets. This financial turn of affairs accelerated an already brewing plot to murder Rice for his extensive fortune, and indeed Rice was killed on September 23, 1900 by his valet and a lawyer marginally associated with Rice. (See Rice University Archives and general Rice University histories for further information on the story of William Marsh Rice.)

At that time B.B. Rice, the youngest son of William Marsh Rice's brother F.A. Rice, was the secretary and treasurer for the company. Probably shortly after his uncle's death, B.B. Rice became the Vice President and general manager of the company, a position he held until the company's demise in 1941. In some correspondence, William Marsh Rice II, an older brother of B.B. Rice, is referred to as president of the company, although it remains unclear who actually was president. The Rice Institute Board of Trustees were members of several governing boards and both W.M. Rice II and B.B. Rice were members of the Board of Trustees. By the terms of his will, the Institute inherited all of William M. Rice's businesses, and the Board of Trustees was ultimately responsible for the management of those businesses. Therefore, a close connection between the company and Rice Institute existed, with many of the company's papers and contracts being sent to the Institute for signature.

The company bought cottonseed and manufactured various products such as Polar White shortening for retail sale through brokers. Having persevered through the Depression, a December, 1940 cottonseed storage and equipment warehouse fire put the company out of business.

The history of the company is very hazy, little is known about the years before 1935. Papers pertaining to prior years have been lost or destroyed. This void may be explained by business practices of keeping only a limited number of previous years' records.

Scope and Contents

Correspondence, contracts, credit reports, and leases in this collection document the business of Houston, Texas based Merchants & Planters Oil Company, particularly during the last period of its existence, 1930 through 1941. The largest of the four series is the first, Correspondence (1931-41), relating to product orders, inventory, billing, and railroad transportation of goods for clients such as wholesale grocers and other businesses, in Texas, Louisiana, and other U.S. states. Small maps and blueprints of various sections of Houston date from 1908-1927, and are located in IV. Leases (1893-1934).

This material reflects the cottonseed market workings of the early 20th century, including relations between growers, brokers, and manufacturers of various cottonseed products. Additionally, a close connection between the company and Rice Institute existed, in that William Marsh Rice, founder of Rice Institute, owned the company at the time of his death, after which the new Rice Institute became responsible for the management of the company. As a result, many of the papers and contracts were sent to the Institute for signature.


Arrangement
	Series include: Series I. Correspondence (1931-1941), 16 linear feet (16 cartons), Series II. Contracts (1935-1940), 1 linear foot (1 carton), Series III. Credit Reports (1936-1938), 0.5 linear feet (21 folders), and Series IV. Leases (1893-1934), 0.5 linear feet (25 folders)
	Arrangement within each series is chronological by year, followed by alphabetical by correspondent or company.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions

No access restrictions; this material is open for research.

Use Restrictions

Permission to publish material from the Merchants and Planters Oil Company archives must be obtained from the Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library.


Index Terms

	Subjects (Persons)
		Rice, William Marsh, 1816-1900.
	Subjects (Organizations)
		Rice University, Houston, Tex.
		Baker & Botts.
	Subjects
		Shortenings.
		Cottonseed oil.
		Cottonseed -- Texas.
		Cottonseed oil -- Southern States -- History -- 20th century.
		Food brokers.
		Grocery trade - Southern States - 1900-1940.
	Formats
		Correspondence.
		Contracts.
		Reports.
		Leases.
		Telegrams.
		Blueprints.
		Maps.

Related Material

Baker & Botts Papers

Rice University Archives

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Merchants and Planters Oil Company - Papers, 1894-1941, MS #260, Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library, Rice University

Acquisition Information

Frank Vandiver and William Masterson donated the papers 1965, which were found on the sidewalk outside Wiess College. No one is certain of how or when these papers came to the Rice campus, but the collection was retrieved from the garbage around 1965, with most of the papers having been damaged by neglect and exposure to the weather.

Detailed Description of the Collection



Box
1-16		Series I. Correspondence (1931-1941)
Box
1-15			Subseries A : General Correspondence (1931-1941), Extent 14 feet (14 cartons).
			Correspondence largely regarding orders, inventory, and billing for clients including wholesale grocers and other businesses, in Texas, Louisiana, and other U.S. states. This material is arranged in chronological order by year, then alphabetical by company name, and within a company's correspondence, again chronologically. Much of the correspondence includes a carbon copy of the Merchants & Planters Oil Company's outgoing communications. A very few folders are not strictly correspondence, but might be an inventory or a grouping of newsletters or reports such as Market Reports, National Cottonseed Products Association, South Texas Cotton Seed Products Association, and Texas Cottonseed Crushers' Association newsletters.
Box	Folder
1	1			1931
	1				A-Z
	2-3			1934
	2				A-R
	3				S
Box
1-3				1935
Box	Folder
1	4				A
	5				Alexander Grocery Company
	6				American District Telegraph Company
	7				Anderson Brothers
	8				Armour and Company
	9				Atlanta Wholesale Grocer Company
	10				Avoyelles Wholesale Grocery Co.
	11-12				B
	13-14				Black, W. M. and Company
	15-17				C
	18				Central Texas Wholesale Grocery Company, Athens, TX
	19				Central Texas Wholesale Grocery Company, Mexia, TX
	20				Cooperative Association
	21				Crossett Mercantile Company
	22				D
	23				Desha Wholesale Grocery Company
	24				Dublin Wholesale Grocery Company
	25				E
	26				Everett and Sons
	27				F
	28				Fidelity Products Company
	29				G
	30				Gladney, A.T.
	31				Gordon, Sewall & Company
	32				Great A. & P. Tea Company
	33				H
	34				Heard, Raymond Inc.
	35				I
	36				International Great Norhtern Railroad v. Merchant & Planters Oil Co.
	37				Inventory
	38				J
	39				Jefferson Wholesale Grocery Company
	40				K
	41				Kalamazoo Vegetable Parchment Company
Box	Folder
2	1				L
	2				Lawrence Grocery Company
	3				Liberty Grain & Grocery Company
	4				Livingston Grain & Grocery Company
	5				Louisiana Tax Matters
	6				Lynn, V. Frank Company
	7-8				M
	9				Machinery
	11				Milam's Spot Cash Wholesale House
	12				N
	13				National Cottonseed Products Association, newsletter
	14				O
	15-16				P
	17-18				Pelican Provision Company
	19				Proctor & Gamble Company
	20				Q
	21				R
	22				Requisitions, Lard plant
	23				Rice, Ben B. (officer of Merchants & Planters Oil Co.)
	24-25				S
	26				Salley, C.T., Cash Wholesale
	27				Schuhmacher Company
	28				Sealy Oil Mill & Manufacturing Company
	29				Shipping (correspondence with railroad companies)
	30				Sims Wholesale Grocery
	31				Simmons, J.W.
	32				Smith's Flour & Feed Company
	33				South Texas Cotton Oil Company
	34				Southern Pacific Lines (railroad)
	35				Southwest Box Company
	36				S.T. Landry Wholesale Grocery
	37				Steinberg Maas Company
	38				Sutherland Paper Company
	39				T
	40				Texas Grocery Company
	41				Texas & New Orleans Railroad
	42				Theriot, Gaston, Cash Stores
	43				Tipps & Houston
	44				U
Box	Folder
3	1				V
	2				Varino, Frank, Company
	3				Vasek, W.H., Candy Company
	4-5				W
	6-7				Weatherly, E.M.
	8				X,Y,Z
Box
3-5				1936
Box	Folder
3	9				A
	10				Alexander Grocery Company
	11				American District Telegraph
	12				Anderson Brothers
	13				Anthony, R.E.
	14				Armour & Company
	15				Atlanta Wholesale Grocer Company
	16				Avoyrelles Wholesale Grocery Company
	17-18				B
	19				Baker, Botts, Andrews & Wharton (attorneys)
	20-21				Black, W. M.
	22-23				C
	24				Central Texas Wholesale Grocery Company, Athens, TX
	25				Central Texas Wholesale Grocery Company, Mexia, TX
	26				Commerce, Dept. of
	27				Cooperative Association
	28				D
	29				Delta Cash Wholesale
	30				Dermott Grocery & Commission Company
	31				Dodd, Howard, Company
	32				E
	33				Edge, W.M., Company
	34				Everett & Sons
	35				F
	36				Fidelity Products Company
	37				Frey Brothers
	38				G
	39				Gladney, A.T.
	40				Goose Creek Grain Company
	41				Gordon, Sewall & Company
	42				Great A. & P. Tea Company
	43				Green, R. H.
Box	Folder
4	1-2				H
	3				Heard, Raymond, Inc.
	4				I
	5				Inventory
	6				J
	7				Jefferson Wholesale Grocery Company
	8				K
	9				Kalamazoo Vegetable Parchment Company
	10				L
	11				Louis Levy Grocer Company
	12				Liberty Grain & Grocery Company
	13				Livingston Grain & Grocery Company
	14				Lynn, V. Frank, Company
	15-17				M
	18				Market Wholesale Grocer Company
	19				Meador & Barnett, Inc.
	20				Milam's Spot Cash Wholesale House
	21				Missouri Pacific Lines
	22				N
	23-24				National Cottonseed Products Association
	25				O
	26				P
	27				Pailet, Maurice Brokerage Company
	28				Panola Grocery Company
	29				Paterson Parchment Paper Company
	30-31				Pelican Provision Company
	32				Picoffs, Maurice, Company
	33				Proctor & Gamble Company
	34				Q
	35				R (1 of 2)
Box	Folder
5	1				R (2 of 2)
	2				Rice, Ben B. (officer of Merchants & Planters Oil Company)
	3-4				S
	5				Salley, C.T., Cash Wholesale
	6				Shortening Bulletins
	7				Simmons, J. W.
	8				Smith's Flour & Feed Company
	9				South Texas Cotton Seed Products Association
	10				Southern Brokerage Company
	11				Southern Pacific Lines
	12				Southwest Box Company
	13				Steinberg Maas Company
	14				Sutherland Paper Company
	15				T
	16				Texas & New Orleans Railroad
	17				Texas Cottonseed Crushers' Association
	18				Texas Grocery Company
	19				Theriot, Gaston, Cash Stores
	20				Tipps & Houston
	21				Traffic file (regarding costs of rail transportation for products)
	22				U
	23				V
	24				W
	25-26				Weatherly, E.M.
	27				X, Y, Z
Box
5-8				1937
Box	Folder
5	28-29				A
Box	Folder
6	1				Accident Information (Workmen's Compensation reports and correspondence)
	2				American District Telegraph
	3				Anderson Brothers
	4				Anthony, R.E.
	5				Armour & Company (Armour Soapworks)
	6				Armstrong Packing Company
	7				Avoyelles Wholesale Grocery Company
	8-9				B
	10				Baker, Botts, Andrews & Wharton (attorneys)
	11				Baker, Lawhon & Ford, Inc., Alexandria, La.
	12				Baker, Lawhon & Ford, Inc., Monroe, La.
	13				Baker, Lawhon & Ford, Inc., Shreveport, La.
	14				Barnhill, E. F., personal (officer of Merchants & Planters Oil Company)
	15				Best Foods, Inc.
	16-18				Black, W.M.
	19-20				C
	21				Central Texas Wholesale Grocery Company, Athens, TX
	23				Commerce, Chamber of (Houston and U.S.)
	24				Commerce, Dept. of (U.S.)
	25				Crane Company
	26				D
	27				Delta Cash Wholesale
	28				Dermott Grocery & Commission Company
	29				Dodd, Howard, Company
	30				E
	31				Edge-Cline Company
	32				F
	33				Faulk Grocery Company
	34				Fidelity Products Company
Box	Folder
7	1				G
	2				Gladney, A.T., Groceries - Hardware
	3				Gordon, Sewall & Company
	4				Gough Brokerage Company
	5				Great A. & P. Tea Company
	6				Green, R.H., Wholesale Grocery Company
	7				Grubbs Tank Line
	8				H
	9-10				Heard, Raymond, Inc.
	11				I
	12				Inventory
	13				J
	15				K
	16				Kalamazoo Vegetable Parchment Company
	17				L
	18				Lacy-Logan Company
	19				LeFlore Grocery Company
	20				Louisiana, State of, Bureau of Food and Drugs
	21				Lynn, V. Frank, Company
	22-23				M
	24-26				Meador & Barnett
	27				Milam Spot Cash Wholesale
	28				Missouri Pacific Lines
	29				N
	30-31				National Cottonseed Products Association
	32				O
	33-34				P
	35				Paterson Parchment Paper Company
Box	Folder
8	1				Pelican Provision Company
	2				Proctor & Gamble Company
	3				Q
	4-5				R
	6				Rice, Ben B. (officer of the Merchants & Planters Oil Company)
	8				Richmond Cotton Oil Company
	9				Ritchie Grocery Company, Bastrop, La.
	10				Ritchie Grocery Company, Monroe, La.
	11				Ritchie Grocery Company, Ruston, La.
	12-14				S
	15				Shortening bulletins (regarding price changes)
	16				Smith Flour & Feed Company
	17				South Texas Cottonseed Products Association
	18				Southern Brokerage Company
	19				Southern Pacific Lines (a.k.a. Texas & New Orleans Railroad Company)
	20				Southwest Box Company
	21				Sutherland Paper Company
	22-23				T
	24				Tax - City of New Orleans
	25				Taylor-Lowenstein Company
	26				Texas Cottonseed Crushers' Association
	27				Toma, Joseph E., Grocery Co.
	28				Traffic file (regarding costs & management of rail transportation for products)
	29				U
	30				V
	31				Van Loan & Bigner
	32				Varino, Frank, Company
	33-34				W
	35				Weatherly, E. M.
	36				X, Y, Z
Box
8-11				1938
Box	Folder
8	37				A
	38				American District Telegraph
	39				Anthony, R.E.
	40				Armour & Company
	41				Avoyelles Wholesale Grocery Company
	42-43				B
Box	Folder
9	1				Baker, Botts, Andrews & Wharton (attorneys)
	2				Baker, Lawton & Ford, Inc., Alexandria, La.
	3				Baker, Lawton & Ford, Inc., Monroe, La.
	4				Baker, Lawton & Ford, Inc., Shreveport, La.
	5				Best Foods, Inc.
	6-8				Black, W.M. & Company
	9-10				C
	11				Commerce, Chamber of (Houston and U.S.)
	12				Commerce, Dept. of (U.S.)
	13				Continental Can Company, Inc.
	14-15				Cottonseed Oil and Market Reports
	16				Cuero Cotton Oil & Manufacturing Company
	17				D
	18				Delta Cash Wholesale Company
	19				Dermott Grocery & Commission Company
	20				Dodd, Howard, Company
	22				Drew Grocery Company
	23				E
	24				F
	25				Faulk Grocery Company
	26				G
	27				Gordon, Sewall and Company
	28				Great A. & P. Tea Company
	29				Green, R. H.
	30				Grubbs Tank Line
	31				H
	32				Heard, Raymond, Inc.
	33				I
Box	Folder
10	1				J
	2				K
	3				Kalamazoo Vegetable Parchment Company
	4				L
	5				LeFlore Grocery Copmany
	6				Lynn, V. Frank, Company
	7-8				M
	9				Market News
	10-11				Meador & Barnett
	12				Milam's Spot Cash Wholesale
	14				Morris, E. Louis
	15				N
	16				National Cottonseed Products Association
	17				O
	18-19				P
	20				Paterson Parchment Paper Company
	21				Pelican Provision Company
	22				Proctor & Gamble Company
	23				Q
	24-25				R
	26				Rapides Packing Company
	27				Rice, B.B. (officer of the Merchants & Planters Oil Company)
	28				Ritchie Grocery Company, Bastrop, La.
	29				Ritchie Grocery Company, El Dorado, Ark.
	30				Ritchie Grocery Company, Haynesville, La.
	31				Ritchie Grocery Company, Monroe, La.
	32				Ritchie Grocery Company, Pine Bluff, Ark.
	33				Ritchie Grocery Company, Ruston, La.
	34				Rush Wholesale Grocery Company
	35-36				S
Box	Folder
11	1				Shortening Bulletins
	2				Smith Flour & Feed Company
	3				South Texas Cottonseed Products Association
	4				Southern Brokerage Company
	5				Southern Pacific Lines
	6				Southwest Box Company
	7				Sutherland Paper Company
	8-9				T
	10				Taft Cotton Oil Company
	11				Tax
	12				Texas Cottonseed Crushers' Association
	13				Toma, Joseph E., Grocery Co.
	14				Traffic file
	15				U
	16				V
	18				Van, Loan and Bigner
	19				Varino, Frank, Company
	20				W
	21				Walker-Craig Company, Brownsville, TX
	22				Walker-Craig Company, Kingsville, TX
	23				West Texas Cotton Company
	24				X, Y, Z
Box
11-12				1939
Box	Folder
11	25				A
	26				Agriculture, U.S. Dept. of
	27				B
	28				Baker, Botts, Andrews & Wharton (attorneys)
	29				Black, W. M., Company
	30				C
	31				Chamber of Commerce (U.S.)
	32				Continental Can Company, Inc.
	33				Cottonseed Oil Market Reports
	34				D
	35				E
	36				F
	37				Faulk Grocery Company
	38				G
	39				Great A. & P. Tea Company
	40				H
	41				I
	42				Insurance
	43				J
	44				K
	45				L
	46				Louisiana Taxes
	47				M
	48				Market News
	49				Meador & Barnett
Box	Folder
12	1				Morris, E. Louis
	2				N
	3				O
	4				P
	5				R
	6				Rice Institute (A. Dwyer of Rice Institute, Secretary of Merchants & Planters Oil Company, outgoing correspondence only)
	7				S
	8				Shepherd, Tom
	9				Shortening Bulletins
	10				Shortening, Returned
	11				T
	12				Traffic
	13				U
	14				V
	15				W
	16				X, Y, Z
Box
12-14				1940
Box	Folder
12	17				A
	18-19				Allen, Charles R.
	20				American District Telegraph Company
	21				Anthony, R.E.
	22-23				B
	24				Barnhill, E.F., personal
	25				Black, W.M., Company
	26				Busbee Brokerage Company
	27				Butt, H.E., Grocery Company
	28				C
	29				Cantu, S., & Sons
	30				Carruthers, J. L. (Merchants & Planters Oil Co. traveling salesman)
	31				Carruthers, J. L. - Salesman's Daily Call Report
	32				Census Bureau
	33				Coleman, W. L., & Company
	34				Collins, O. P., & Sons
Box	Folder
13	1				Continental Can Company
	2				Coyle Company
	3				D
	4				Depts. Of Agriculture, Commerce, War
	5				Dorsett Company
	6				Drew Grocery Company
	7				E
	8				Empire Fiber Company
	9				Employment (letters of application)
	10				F
	11				Faulk Grocer Company
	12				Fidelity Products Company
	13				Fort Worth Wholesale Grocery Company
	14				G
	15				Garcia, Gomez & Champion
	16				Gordon, Sewall & Company, Inc.
	17				Great A. & P. Tea Company
	18				Griffith Company
	19				H
	20-21				Hall, John T.
	22				Hutchings Brokerage Company
	23				I, J, K, L
	24				Louis Levy Grocer Company, Ltd.
	25				Luckenbach Gulf Line
	26-27				M
	28-29				Market Letters
	30				N
	31				O, P
	32				Paterson Parchment Paper Company
	33				Pattison, W. C., Wholesale Grocery Company
	35				Peoples Packing Company
	36				Peoples Cotton Oil Company
	37				Pollock Paper Box Company
	38				Presley, Gus, Grocery Company
	39				R
	40				Raclin, H. L., Brokers
	41				Rice, Ben B. (officer of the Merchants & Planters Oil Company)
	42				Rice Institute
	43				Richardson, C.C., Food Broker
Box	Folder
14	1-2				S
	3				Scharff-Koken Manufacturing, Inc.
	4				Sharples Corporation
	5				Shortening Bulletins
	6				South Texas Cotton Oil Company
	7				T
	8				Traffic file
	9				U, V
	10				W
	11				Walker-Craig Company
	12				Webster, J. P., & Sons
	13				Whitson-Bowen Company
	14				X, Y, Z
Box
14-15				1941
Box	Folder
14	15				A
	16				Allen, Charles R.
	17				B
	18				Black, W.M., Company
	19				Busbee Brokerage Company
	20				Butt, H. E., Grocery Company
	21				C
	22				Carruthers, J. L. (travlling salesman)
	23				Carruthers, J. L. - Salesman's Daily Call Record
	24				Census Bureau
	25				Cline, W. G.
	26				Coleman, W. L., & Company
	27				Collins, O. P., & Sons
	28				Continental Can Company
	29				Coyle Company
	30				D
	31				Depts. Of Labor and Commerce
	32				Drew Grocery Company
	33				E
	34				F
	35				G
	36				Gordon Sewall & Company, Inc.
	37				H
	38				Hall, John T.
	39				I, J, K, L
	40				M
	41-42				Market Letters
	43				N
	44				P
	45				Quin, C.A. & Company
	46				R
	47				Raclin, H. L., & Sons
	48				Rice, Ben B. (officer of Merchants & Planters Oil Company)
Box	Folder
15	1				Richardson, C.C.
	2				S
	3				Shortening Bulletins
	4				T
	5				Traffic Files
	6				U
	7				V, W, X, Y, Z
Box
15-16			Subseries B : Seed Correspondence (1935-1941), Extent 2 lin. feet (2 cartons).
			This material is arranged in chronological order by year, then alphabetical by company name, and within a company's correspondence, again chronologically. Much of the correspondence includes a carbon copy of the Merchants & Planters Oil Company's outgoing communications. Subjects of the seed correspondence generally include the purchase and sale of cotton seed; the Merchants & Planters Oil Company purchased seed from growers, arranged to have it ginned and sacked, then either sold it as processed seed, meal, or hulls, or manufactured it into various products such as shortening and oils. "Seed Bulletin" files typically contain carbon copies of statements issued by Merchants & Planters Oil Company regarding their prices for cotton seed.
Box	Folder
15	8-25			1935
	8				A
	8				B
	9				C
	10				D
	11				E
	12				F
	13				G
	14				H (no existing "I" file)
	15				J
	16				K
	17				L
	18				M
	19				N
	20				O
	21				P
	22				S (no existing "R" file)
	23				T
	24				V (no existing "U" file)
	25				W (no existing "X, Y, Z" file)
	26-48			1936
	26				Seed bulletins
	27				A
	28				B
	29				C
	30				D
	31				E
	32				F
	33				G
	34				H
	35				K (no existing "I" file)
	36				L
	37				M
	38				P (no existing "N", "O", or "Q" files)
	39				R
	40				S
	41				Short, Frank - Runge, TX
	42				Stanley, W.N. - Lovelady, TX
	43				Summers, J.A. - Abbeville, LA
	44				T (no existing "U" file)
	45				Veal, D. L. - Corrigan, TX
	46				W
	47				Weatherly, E. M. - Appleby, TX
	48				X, Y, Z
Box
15-16				1937
Box	Folder
15	49				Seed Bulletins
	50				A
	51				B
	52				C
	53				D
	54				E
	55				F
Box	Folder
16	1				G
	2				H (no existing "I" file)
	3				J
	4				K
	5				L
	6				M
	7				N (no existing "O" file)
	8				P (no existing "Q" file)
	9				R
	10				S
	11				T (no existing "U" file)
	12				Veal, D.L. - Corrigan, TX
	13				W (no existing "X, Y, Z" file)
	14-34			1938-39
	14				A
	15				B
	16				C
	17				D
	18				E
	19				F
	20				G
	21				H
	22				I
	23				J
	24				K
	25				L
	26				M
	27				N (no existing "O" file)
	28				P (no existing "Q" file)
	29				R
	30				S
	31				T
	32				U
	33				Veal, D.L. - Corrigan, TX
	34				W (no existing "X, Y, Z" file)
	35-55			1940-41
	35				A
	36				B
	37				C
	38				D
	39				E
	40				F
	41				G
	42				H
	43				I
	44				J
	45				K
	46				L
	47				M
	48				N (no existing "O" file)
	49				P (no existing "Q" file)
	50				R
	51				S
	52				T
	53				U
	54				V
	55				W (no existing "X, Y, Z" file)



Box
16-17		Series II. Contracts (1935-1940) Extent 1 linear foot (1 carton).
	Contracts filed in chronological order by year, and then alphabetically by the name of the cotton seed seller. These forms include name and address of seller, quantity of seed sold, price, date, shipment terms, and the contact name at Merchants & Planters Oil Company. Some correspondence related to the contracts is also filed with the contracts. No records exist for the year 1939.
			1935
Box	Folder
16	56			A
	57			B
Box	Folder
17	1			C
	2			D
	3			E
	4			F
	5			G (no existing "H" or "I" files)
	6			J
	7			K
	8			L
	9			M
	10			N (no existing "O" file)
	11			P (no existing "Q" or "R" files)
	12			S
	13			T (no existing "U" file)
	14			V
	15			W
	16-32		1936
	16			A
	17			B
	18			C
	19			D
	20			E
	21			F
	22			G
	23			H (no existing "I" file)
	24			J
	25			K
	26			L
	27			M
	28			N (no existing "O" file)
	29			P (no existing "Q" file)
	30			R
	31			S (no existing "T" or "U" files)
	32			W (no existing "X, Y, Z" file)
	33-49		1937
	33			A
	34			B
	35			C (no existing "D" file)
	36			E
	37			F
	38			G
	39			H (no existing "I" file)
	40			J
	41			K
	42			L
	43			M
	44			N (no existing "O" file)
	45			P (no existing "Q" or "R" files)
	46			S
	47			T (no existing "U" file)
	48			Veal, J.L. - Chester, TX
	49			W
	50-51		1938
	50			A-G
	51			H-W
	52		1940
	52			A-W



Box
17-18		Series III. Credit Reports by Dun & Bradstreet (1936-1938) Extent 0.5 linear feet (21 folders).
	Arranged alphabetically by the name of the person or business whose credit record was investigated, these reports on grocers were acquired by the Merchants & Planters Oil Company. The reports give a brief business history, a detailed picture of financial status (assets / debts, income / expenses), and payment history.
Box	Folder
17	53		A
	54		B
	55		C
Box	Folder
18	1		D
	2		E
	3		F
	4		G
	5		H
	6		I
	7		J
	8		K
	9		L
	10		M
	11		N-O
	12		P
	13		R
	14		S
	15		T
	16		U-V
	17		W
	18		X, Y, Z



Box	Folder
18	19-43	Series IV : Leases, Indentures (1893-1934) Extent 0.5 linear feet (25 folders).
	Leases of warehouse spaces along railroad lines in Texas, dating from 1893-1934. Many of these documents were signed by B. B. Rice (nephew of Wm. M. Rice), who served as Secretary & Treasurer, and as General Manager for Merchants & Planters Oil Co. Most files include only lease documents and accompanying blueprints of land lots, many in Houston, TX; some also include correspondence regarding the leases, amongst the lessee, lessor, or attorneys Baker, Botts, Parker & Garwood. Arranged in chronological order by year, with some years missing, as indicated in folder listing.
	The first of the files is labeled "Leases used in Wm. M. Rice Litigation," and dated 1903, three years after Wm. M. Rice's death. The file is comprised of leases of warehouse space for the Merchants & Planters Oil Company, as are the remaining files in this series, but it does not specifically indicate how the leases were used in relation to Mr. Rice's estate litigation.
	19		Leases used in Wm. M. Rice Litigation, Returned by Messrs. Baker, B., B. & L., Jan. 29, 1903 (1893-1900)
	20		1895
	21		1901
	22		1902
	23		1903
	24		1907
	25		1908
	26		1910
	27		1911
	28		1914
	29		1915
	30		1916
	31		1918
	32		1919
	33		1920
	34		1921
	35		1922-23
	36		1925
	37		1926
	38		1927
	39		1928
	40		1929
	41		(linter litigation correspondence) 1930
	42		1932
	43		1933-34