ABSTRACT: Collection of early twentieth century St. Louis receipts and invoices.
SCOPE: This collection contains a large number of receipts and invoices for the family of J. Benoist Carton and Julia Fay (Hurt) Carton. The documents reflect the personal purchases of one prominent St. Louis family over the course of several years, predominantly within the period 1902-1907. A variety of local businesses are reflected in the documents, including grocers, florists, tailors, caterers, and a piano rental company.
EXTENT: One box.
HISTORY: J. Benoist Carton (1878-1958) was a St. Louis businessman and stock broker. After purchasing membership in the St. Louis Stock Exchange, he opened the brokerage firm of Carton & Carton with his brother, DeSmet Carton. In 1901, Benoist married Julia Fay Hurt (1881-1951) in Kansas City, Missouri. Julia was the daughter of James Hurt, a prominent figure in Kansas City trade. The Cartons were active in the St. Louis community, holding membership in the Bellerive Country Club, St. Louis Country Club, Noonday Club, Racquet Club, and Cornell Graduate Club. Julia also served as an assistant treasurer for the St. Louis Maternity Hospital.
ACCESS: This collection can be viewed on-site in the Rare Book and Manuscripts Reading Room. Some of the material may be photocopied, digitally scanned or photographed, subject to condition and other access restrictions. Information on conducting research with the archival collections of the Library, including current building hours and reading room policies, can be found on our Research page. The St. Louis Mercantile Library is located on levels one and two of the Thomas Jefferson Library building on the University of Missouri-St. Louis’ north campus.
Preferred Citation note: The preferred citation for this collection is “From the Special Collections of the St. Louis Mercantile Library at the University of Missouri – St. Louis."
