Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

The Business Correspondence series consists of letters of George N. Fletcher, Frank W. Fletcher, and the office correspondence of A.F. Fletcher & Co., Fletcher Pack & Co., and George N. Fletcher & Sons.

The collection consists of a single series of business records with subseries of: Incoming Correspondence, Letterbooks, Coal Business, Bicycle/Automobile Business, Other Records.

The Incoming Correspondence is arranged by the various names of Staebler firms: Staebler and Elmer, Michael Staebler, Michael Staebler and Son, and Staebler and Sons. The Letterbooks have been arranged chronologically. Where the dates of volumes overlap, the volumes presumably documented different business activities. The Coal Sales Order books have interest for the names of Ann Arbor family dealing with Staebler. The Bicycle and Automobile Business records document the changeover taking place in society as the automobile replaced the carriage and wagon as the principal means of transport. The researcher should note that later records of the Staebler family automobile dealership will be found in the papers of Edward W. Staebler.

The Business Records (1937-1966) series is comprised of two subseries, the Chronological Files and the Topical Files, and pertains to Mr. Kresge's tenure as chairman of the board of S.S. Kresge Company, and his involvement with Kresge Department Store, Newark, New Jersey, and Kresge Department Stores Incorporated. The series consists almost entirely of the records of Kresge's nephew and personal secretary, Amos F. Gregory. When Gregory wrote to Kresge, he sent along a carbon copy of each letter so that Kresge could make notes on the copy and return it to him. Incoming correspondence to Gregory includes letters from Kresge and his wife Clara.