The George Steiner papers consist of correspondence and financial records documenting Steiner's storekeeping and involvement in the wheat and flour trade in central Pennsylvania in the mid-1800s. The collection holds 242 items, of which 224 are incoming letters to Steiner, primarily business correspondence, and 18 receipts and financial accounts. The Correspondence series pertains mainly to Steiner's business affairs in Water Street, Pennsylvania, and includes correspondence with associates throughout central Pennsylvania, as well as in Philadelphia and Baltimore. Several agents from Philadelphia regularly reported the fluctuating prices of flour and wheat, which changed with the arrival of transatlantic steamers from Liverpool and other European ports. Though most of the material relates to the trade of wheat, flour, rye, cornmeal, and similar products, one letter regards Steiner's receipt of "India Cholagogue" (September 3, 1849), and another concerns a request by M. T. Wallace & Company, a Brooklyn-based supplier of medical tonics, for Steiner's to act as their agent for central Pennsylvania (June 2, 1849). One partially printed letter is a report of recent losses sustained by the Lycoming County Mutual Insurance Company, and a request for an assessment fee (January 21, 1851). Financial documents consist primarily of accounts for wheat, rye, clover seed, and similar products, reflecting the differing prices between England and the United States.
George H. Steiner of Water Street, Pennsylvania, was born c. 1814 in Pennsylvania. He married Jane Eliza Smith, of Scotch Valley, Pennsylvania, on October 19, 1847; they had six children: William A. Steiner (b. 1848), Ashbel, Ella, George, Lillian, and Cora. Steiner was a merchant, who sold wheat and flour to his business contacts in Philadelphia and Baltimore, and purchased goods for his store in central Pennsylvania. He traded locally throughout central Pennsylvania, and with merchants in Philadelphia; Harrisburg; and Baltimore.