The Beebee, Ludlow and Company papers consist of business correspondence and financial documents related to the firm, which operated in New York City and Philadelphia in the mid-19th century. The collection holds both incoming and, to a lesser extent, outgoing correspondence related to the company's trade in bullion and specie, which included specie from several foreign countries across Europe and North America, as well as gold from around the world. Most of the letters contain financial figures and account statements between the firm and their business partners, who wrote from locations across the country. Particularly well represented were firms located in Charleston, South Carolina, and Cincinnati, Ohio. Following the Ludlows' departure, the firm represented itself as Beebee & Co, Bullion & Exchange Bankers, after January 1851, but continued to do business with Ludlow & Co. in Philadelphia. The records trace the financial history of the company in its prime and provide insight into the bullion business, and business affairs in general, just prior to the Civil War.
Samuel J. Beebee, George W. Beebee, and Robert M. Ludlow entered business together in New York City and Philadelphia in 1846 as Beebee, Ludlow & Co. and Ludlow, Beebee & Co., respectively. The business concentrated in bullion and specie exchange, and operated as such until 1850, with the departure of Ludlow's son, S. B. Ludlow, for San Francisco, where he opened his own related firm. The Beebees continued to do business as Beebee & Co. until at least 1851, when the three parties became involved in an extensive lawsuit, unresolved until May 1861.
