#11a Type II on1852 Philadelphia drop letter from a stockbroker to a client
Letter Details & Context
Origin: New York, resent after receipt in Philadelphia
Addressee: Messrs. E. W. Clark & Co., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (a prominent 19th-century private banking firm).
Content: The letter discusses financial market updates, mentioning specific banking and railroad stocks including Planters' Bank of Tennessee, Reading Railroad, and a "dull market this morning."
This 1852 letter provides a unique look into mid-19th-century Wall Street trading practices. Here is a breakdown of the specific financial terms used and what they meant at the time:
Core Trading & Brokerage Terms
"Certf No. 280 for 50 sh Planters Bank Tennessee": This refers to a Stock Certificate representing 50 shares of ownership in the Planters' Bank of Tennessee. In the 1850s, physical delivery of these engraved certificates was required to settle trades.
"Order... continues in force until countermanded": This is an early version of an open order, known today as a Good-Til-Canceled (GTC) order. The broker will keep trying to sell the stock at the specified target price until the client manually cancels ("countermands") it.
"Dull market": A term used by 19th-century brokers to describe a low-volume, stagnant trading session with very little price movement or investor interest.
Specialized 19th-Century Expressions
"2d board" / "Between boards": In 1852, the New York Stock Exchange operated on a "call" system. The president of the exchange would read aloud the list of available stocks twice a day (the First Board in the morning, and the Second Board in the afternoon).
"After 2d board" means the transaction happened after the afternoon formal calling session ended.
"Sold between boards" means the transaction occurred informally out on the street or on the trading floor in between the official morning and afternoon call sessions.
"Florence & Keyport": This refers to the Florence & Keyport Plank Road Company, an early transportation enterprise chartered to build a cross-state plank road in New Jersey. It was a speculative, unlisted "fancy stock" prone to highly volatile price swings.
"Sold down to 32": This indicates the stock price dropped to $32 per share. In 1852, stocks were quoted in whole numbers and fractional eighths rather than decimals.
Lending & Money Market Terms
"Offered very freely on call": This refers to Call Loans (or demand loans). These were short-term, instant-liquidity loans extended by banks to stockbrokers, using the brokers' stock portfolios as collateral. If a market crashed, banks could "call" in these loans immediately.
"At 6 %": This represents the interest rate being charged for call money. A rate of 6% with money being offered "freely" means the New York banking system had high liquidity (a healthy supply of cash) on that particular morning.
