Confederate Civil War Ledger Atlanta Rolling Mill / Milwaukee O.L. Packard Co.

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Confederate Civil War Ledger Atlanta Rolling Mill / Milwaukee O.L. Packard Co.:
$25000.00

This is the story of this ledger, and the man that penned it. Starts on page #2 July 1st, 1863. This would be the same day as the first Battle of Gettysburg. This entry is from the startup of the Confederate Rolling Mill in Atlanta Georgia. On this page the fundies of this endeavor are listed, along with their contributions to the effort. One of these partners contributes 31 slaves. 28 men, 2 women, and 1 child. The Capitol Stock totaled $705421.71. Customers of the mill include The Confederate Arsenal that they made cannons for, The Western Atlantic Railroad, they made rails, and Boilers for locomotives, one of the most frequent customers was Stephen R. Mallory the Secretary of the Confederate Navy. Alot of what they did was produce 2.00" thick Iron bars used for building Iron Clad Battle Ships. They also leased out the slaves to the Corn Mill. There are many entries about the slaves also. Some entries are labor charges toward customers, and others include expenses for the slaves. One such entry would be to Dr. J.F. Alexander for the confinement of "Peggy", another for "Sauie" with a case of Gonorrhea. The last day of the Atlanta Confederate Rolling Mill in operation was Jume 30th 1864. On that day the Fundies were all paid off, and Mallory was refunded money for an incomplete order, but only 28 slaves are accounted for on that last day. This was three days after the Union victory at Kennesaw Mountain. General William Tecumseh Sherman is on the march to Atlanta. Before the Union Army had arrived, General John Bell Hood's Cavalry set fire to ammunition cars that caused one of the largest explosions during the civil War. This set fire and also scuttled the Rolling Mill alongside it. There is a reenactment of this in the movie Gone with the Wind, during the escape from Atlanta scenes. To my knowledge this ledger is the only record of what was going on at the Mill and is a story that tells itself. This is not the end at all for this ledger; this ledger was owned by Mr. O.L. Packard Road Island. I have done a lot of research and will share with sale. He was the treasurer at the mill. The ledger has a few blank pages after the Atlanta information, now we are in Milwaukee Wisconsin in the year 1874. It appears the ledger was hidden for about 10 years. He had established a huge business marketing Machine Tools for wood and Iron. The company was the largest of its kind in the Western United States. His machines were steam propelled, and self-propelled mostly. There are literally hundreds of names in Milwaukee from 1874 to 1879. Customers, consignments, and suppliers. J.I.Case, B.F. Sturtevant, Mitchel, A.B. Briggs, the House of Corrections, Ames Iron Works, Yale lock Company are listed many times. I also have the catalog that belongs with this ledger. I wish I could have put 100 photos of the interesting content. Speaking of photos, I have one with O.L. Packard standing with a pin in his lapel, arms crossed holding a fedora, and the light shining over his shoulder next to his wife, and daughter to his left, new partners to his right. If you look Infront of Mr. Packard on the desk you see this very ledger. The photo is from the 1880s. Mr. Packard passed away in 1890.The partners in the photo bought out Mr. Packards wife, her and their daughters relocated to Orlando. The Rolling Mill area is now Cabbage Town in Atlanta, and this is what is left of both of those incredible stories. I will now share a note after the last written page by O.L. Packard by William T. Reiner. It reads, On the above date Mar. 5th, 1914, I received this book of records of the late O.L. Packard Co. This book was to have been sold for paper scrap to a junk dealer. Upon investigating, found some very old records which some may be of interest. I therefore have taken these records in my home at 726 48th Street City of Milwaukee. Signed this 5th day of March 1914, at 8:20 o'clock P.M. Wm. T. Reiner. "Good job Mr. Reiner". The condition of the ledger is good with some UV lightening on some pages, few tears, the cover looks like it may have taken a long saddlebag ride. The size is 15.00" tall, 10.63" wide, 2.00" thick, weighs 10.5 Lbs. Any questions contact me; I have a lot more info but not the space or photo option. Everything in the photos included, and my notes. I think it should be published for educational purposes. Thanks for looking!