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[identification of item], [box #, folder #], Deford Company Letter, 1916, SC 0279, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA.
Donated to Special Collections by Kevin Borg, Professor of History, JMU.
The Deford Company, established in 1882, was a local tannery located in Luray, Virginia. Its primary products were leather straps and gun holsters, but the company transitioned into creating sole leather for boots and finishing belt leather in the late 1990s. The Deford Company also underwent a name change in 1999, now being called the Virginia Oak Tannery (or V.O. Leather, Inc.).
The Deford Company Letter, 1916, is a business letter from the Deford Company (Tanners of Oak Sole Leather and Belting) to an undisclosed seller of tree bark. The Deford Company simply requests "the usual amount of Chestnut Oak Bark," with pricing at $10 per 2240 pounds. The company also discloses how much bark the Norfolk Western and Virginian Railway line can handle.