The William Mershon collection consists of correspondence dealing with Mershon's various activities as a lumberman, Saginaw businessman, and member of the State Tax Commission in 1912. Subjects included in the papers are Michigan wildlife conservation, the Michigan Sportsmen Association, the Michigan Manufacturers Association, the Michigan State Tax Commission, Michigan politics, the Democratic party, personal business investments, lumbering and mining interest, and personal affairs.
The collection also includes diaries, a book of notes on hunting and fishing trips, and various business records such as cash books, time books, ledgers, and journals. These primarily concern his investments and lumbering business. Many of the business records are available on microfilm. The collection also includes photographs.
William Butts Mershon was the third generation of his family to engage in lumbering in and around Saginaw, Michigan. When he first became active in the family business in 1866 the firm was already large and diversified. In addition to lumbering and the operation of a planing mill, the firm was one of the nation's largest manufacturers of knock-down wooden boxes, the standard form of storage and shipping box prior to the development of cardboard cartons.
After spending several years working within the family concern, Mershon founded his own company, William B. Mershon and Company. He also formed several other partnerships including one formed by himself, S.L. Eastman, William Schuette, and Parker, Sheldon & Co. While he divided his time among many interests, after 1905 he generally concentrated on William B. Mershon and Co., rather than his other business interests. This firm manufactured bandsaws designed by his brother Edward. In 1926 William Mershon sold the business and retired.
Mershon also had financial interests outside the state of Michigan. In 1900 he became a stockholder (later he was elected president) of the Saginaw & Manistee Lumber Company, headquartered at Williams, Arizona. He also invested in copper mining in Arizona and lumbering operations in Montana.
Privately, Mershon was a well known conservationist and sportsman. He published two volumes, one regarding the passenger pigeon and the other relating his hunting and fishing experiences over fifty years. He also was active in Saginaw political life, serving as mayor of Saginaw (1894-1895), city alderman, member of both the parks and the cemetery commissions, and the citizen's water committee.
