Letter from Joshua Coffin Chase to W. E. Edwards (April 26, 1928)
Dublin Core
Title
Letter from Joshua Coffin Chase to W. E. Edwards (April 26, 1928)
Alternative Title
Chase Correspondence (April 26, 1928)
Subject
Windermere (Fla.)
Chase, Joshua Coffin, 1858-1948
Chase and Company (Sanford, Fla.)
Fruit--Packing
Packing industry
Fruit--Grading--United States
Fruit--Inspection--United States
Description
An original letter of correspondence between Joshua Coffin Chase and sales agent W. E. Edwards. Topics discussed in the letter include Isleworth packinghouse superintendent Corbett Hutchinson's upcoming business trip to New York City, New York, and Washington, D.C. and Chase's request to have Edwards visit Potomac Yards for inspection.
Chase & Company was established by brothers Sydney Octavius Chase and Joshua Coffin Chase in 1884. The company sold insurance and later invested in storage facilities and fertilizer sales. Chase & Company was known mainly for its agricultural interests and maintained a series of citrus groves throughout Central Florida. The company was based out of Sanford and became one of the city's largest employers into the early twentieth century. By 1886, the Chase brothers purchased several citrus groves to expand their business, including Isleworth Grove in Windermere, Florida. Isleworth Grove covered a total of 1,300 acres along the Butler Chain of Lakes. Between 1894 and 1895, Central Florida was hit by several freezes and most of the citrus crop was destroyed. Chase & Company did not grow citrus crops again until 1904 when Joshua came back from an extended stay in California. Between 1894 and 1900, different types of pesticide equipment was created, including equipment driven by steam, machines, and horses.Randall Chase joined in the family business soon after his brother, Sydney Chase, Jr., did in 1922. Randall became the president of Chase & Company from 1948-1965. The Isleworth property stayed in the Chase family until 1984 when Franklin Chase, the son of Sydney Chase, sold the property to famed golfer Arnold Palmer.
Chase & Company was established by brothers Sydney Octavius Chase and Joshua Coffin Chase in 1884. The company sold insurance and later invested in storage facilities and fertilizer sales. Chase & Company was known mainly for its agricultural interests and maintained a series of citrus groves throughout Central Florida. The company was based out of Sanford and became one of the city's largest employers into the early twentieth century. By 1886, the Chase brothers purchased several citrus groves to expand their business, including Isleworth Grove in Windermere, Florida. Isleworth Grove covered a total of 1,300 acres along the Butler Chain of Lakes. Between 1894 and 1895, Central Florida was hit by several freezes and most of the citrus crop was destroyed. Chase & Company did not grow citrus crops again until 1904 when Joshua came back from an extended stay in California. Between 1894 and 1900, different types of pesticide equipment was created, including equipment driven by steam, machines, and horses.Randall Chase joined in the family business soon after his brother, Sydney Chase, Jr., did in 1922. Randall became the president of Chase & Company from 1948-1965. The Isleworth property stayed in the Chase family until 1984 when Franklin Chase, the son of Sydney Chase, sold the property to famed golfer Arnold Palmer.
Creator
Chase, Joshua Coffin
Source
Original letter from Joshua Coffin Chase to W. E. Edwards, April 26, 1928: box 49, folder 20.91, Chase Collection (MS 14), Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
Date Created
1928-04-26
Is Format Of
Digital reproduction of original letter from Joshua Coffin Chase to W. E. Edwards, April 26, 1928.
Is Part Of
Chase Collection (MS 14), box 49, folder 20.91, Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
Isleworth Collection, Citrus Collection, Chase Collection, RICHES of Central Florida.
Is Referenced By
Folder referenced in Chase Collection finding guide, http://web.uflib.ufl.edu/spec/pkyonge/chase.htm.
Format
image/jpg
Extent
97 KB
Medium
1-page typewritten letter
Language
eng
Type
Text
Coverage
Isleworth Grove, Windermere, Florida
Flacal Sales Agency, Star Building, Washington, D.C.
Accrual Method
Donation
Mediator
History Teacher
Economics Teacher
Geography Teacher
Provenance
Entire Chase Collection is comprised of four separate accessions from various donors, including Cecilia Johnson, the granddaughter of Joshua Coffin Chase, and the children of Randall Chase.
Rights Holder
The displayed collection item is housed at Special and Area Studies Collections at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. Rights to this item belong to the said institution, and therefore inquiries about the item should be directed there. RICHES of Central Florida has obtained permission from Special and Area Studies Collections at the University of Florida to display this item for educational purposes only.
Contributing Project
Special and Area Studies Collections, University of Florida
Digital Collections (UFDC), University of Florida
Curator
Cepero, Laura
Digital Collection
Source Repository
External Reference
Warner, S.C. "Development of Marketing Citrus Fruits in Florida." Florida State Horticultural Society vol. 36 (1923): 198-200.
Hopkins, James T. Fifty Years of Citrus, the Florida Citrus Exchange: 1909-1959. Gainesville, Florida: University of Florida Press: 1960.
"Joshua Coffin Chase (1858-1948)." Florida Citrus Hall of Fame. Copyright 2012. http://floridacitrushalloffame.com/index.php/inductees/inductee-name/?ref_cID=89&bID=0&dd_asId=960.
Transcript
April 26, 1928.
Mr. W. E. Edwards,
c/o Flacal Sales Agency,
408 Star Building,
Washington, D.C.
Dear Mr. Edwards:-
This will be handed to you by Mr. Corbett Hutchinson, Isleworth Packing house Superintendent, who is stopping off at Washington on his way back from New York. We wanted him to spend a few days in New York and be on hand while the final cars of Isleworth were being sold which were graded and packed under his supervision. We feel that this trip at this season will be of use to him in further improving the Isleworth grade and pack. We would like very much to have him meet you and if possible go with your inspector to Potomac Yards and see just how the cars of Florida fruit and vegetables are inspected by your office and just what are the good and bad points of the Florida grade and pack, so that he can endeavor to correct any of the weak points and enable you to sell more cars of Isleworth during the coming season. Mr. Hutchinson is an Ex-service man and you may be able to compare notes on your war experience.
Yours very truly,
JCC:H
Mr. W. E. Edwards,
c/o Flacal Sales Agency,
408 Star Building,
Washington, D.C.
Dear Mr. Edwards:-
This will be handed to you by Mr. Corbett Hutchinson, Isleworth Packing house Superintendent, who is stopping off at Washington on his way back from New York. We wanted him to spend a few days in New York and be on hand while the final cars of Isleworth were being sold which were graded and packed under his supervision. We feel that this trip at this season will be of use to him in further improving the Isleworth grade and pack. We would like very much to have him meet you and if possible go with your inspector to Potomac Yards and see just how the cars of Florida fruit and vegetables are inspected by your office and just what are the good and bad points of the Florida grade and pack, so that he can endeavor to correct any of the weak points and enable you to sell more cars of Isleworth during the coming season. Mr. Hutchinson is an Ex-service man and you may be able to compare notes on your war experience.
Yours very truly,
JCC:H
Document Item Type Metadata
Original Format
1-page typewritten letter
Collection
Citation
Chase, Joshua Coffin, “Letter from Joshua Coffin Chase to W. E. Edwards (April 26, 1928),” RICHES, accessed May 29, 2024, https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/items/show/2779.