📜 1850 0829 — Charles Stillman → Witherell, Wade & Co.
Expanding the Hide Trade: From Eastern Markets to New Orleans
By late August 1850, Charles Stillman’s correspondence reveals a quiet but important shift in strategy. While earlier trade patterns favored eastern markets for hides, this letter shows him testing and possibly redirecting part of that trade toward New Orleans. The tone is measured, even cautious—but the implications are significant.
This is not a speculative move. It is based on prior advice, observed results, and a growing confidence in alternative markets along the Gulf.
📜 Transcription (Archival — Reviewed Draft)
Brownsville August 29th 1850
Messrs. Witherell, Wade & Co. [?]
New Orleans
Gentlemen
We beg leave to acknowledge receipt
of your respects of 22nd inst., proposing your services
for the disposal of hides for our account. It is seldom
that we send hides to your market, generally giving
the preference to the eastern markets; for the last
year we have found your suggestions correct respecting
heavy hides particularly dry salted, and may in future
send part of our salted hides to your city. If you can
offer terms for the disposal of hides please inform us.
We have now on the way to your
city a fine lot of [—] salted hides (possibly “Dry’d Salt.”)
shipped per schr. “George Lincoln” [?] and consigned to
Messrs. Cramer & Co., also a few hundred dry heavy flint hides,
which we think are very well suited for your market
trade
We are
Very Respectfully
Your Obt Servts
Chas. Stillman & Bro
Reading the Letter
Stillman opens with a polite acknowledgment, but quickly frames the relationship in practical terms. New Orleans is not yet his primary outlet for hides:
“It is seldom that we send hides to your market…”
Instead, he notes a long-standing preference for eastern markets, likely meaning established commercial centers further along the Atlantic trade network. But this is immediately followed by a key admission:
“…for the last year we have found your suggestions correct…”
That line matters. It tells us this is not a cold introduction—it is a developing business relationship, built on prior correspondence and tested advice.
The Commodity: Hides as a Structured Trade
The letter gives us a clear look at the types of hides moving through Brownsville:
Dry salted hides
Dry heavy flint hides
These are not casual descriptions—they reflect graded and processed commodities:
Dry salted → preserved for transport
Flint hides → fully dried, often higher durability and value
Stillman is not simply shipping hides—he is matching product type to market demand.
Shipment in Motion
A new vessel enters the network:
Schooner “George Lincoln”
The hides are not sent directly to Witherell, Wade & Co., but instead:
“…consigned to Messrs. Cramer & Co.”
This reinforces a pattern we’ve already seen:
👉 Trade moves through intermediaries and commission houses
👉 Networks overlap rather than operate in isolation
A Market in Transition
The most revealing line in the letter is also the most understated:
“…may in future send part of our salted hides to your city.”
This is how expansion happens—not in bold declarations, but in measured redirection of goods.
The eastern markets are still dominant
But New Orleans is now proven enough to receive volume
What This Letter Reveals
By August 1850, the Stillman operation shows clear signs of diversification:
Multiple commodity streams (tobacco, hides, dry goods)
Multiple shipping routes and vessels
Flexible market strategy based on performance
Growing reliance on Gulf networks (New Orleans)
And importantly:
👉 Brownsville is acting as a sorting and decision point, not just a port
📜 Editorial Note
This transcription is based on original handwritten correspondence dated August 29, 1850.
Spelling, punctuation, and phrasing are preserved as closely as possible.
Certain words—particularly abbreviations relating to hide classification—remain uncertain and are noted accordingly (e.g., “Dry’d Salt.”). Interpretations are conservative and based on repeated handwriting patterns observed across the collection.
What’s fascinating here is how quietly this shift happens.
No announcement. No fanfare.
Just a line in a letter—and a new shipment headed toward New Orleans.
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