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Abrom Kaplan Papers

Collection 200

Kaplan, Abrom (1872–1944). Papers, 1890–1960, n.d.

10 feet

Abrom Kaplan was considered one of the greatest pioneers of the Southwestern Louisiana rice industry. He was born in Poland on 1 September 1872 and immigrated to the United States in 1885, where he worked in cigar and furniture factories. In 1886, he moved to Louisiana and became a resident of Acadia Parish in 1888. Kaplan was married twice and had a child by the name of Irving B. with his first wife.

Kaplan first opened a mercantile business and invested in real estate. He was then responsible for helping to establish rice irrigation systems, opening rice mills in Crowley, Abbeville, Gueydan, Esterwood, and Donaldsonville, Louisiana. He was also the owner of a large rice mill in Dewitt, Arkansas. In 1902, the town of Kaplan in Vermilion Parish was named after him. While very active in the Jewish community, Kaplan also helped fund the creation of churches in town. Land was donated by his nephew to build the Abrom Kaplan Memorial Hospital of Kaplan. Abrom Kaplan died in Crowley, Louisiana on 30 March 1944.

Note: For fuller biographical information, see Dictionary of Louisiana Biography, 1988.

Abrom Kaplan kept extensive records of any business transactions that he conducted or was a part of. This collection consists of diaries, correspondence, financial records, ledgers, letterpress books, microfilm, notebooks, and other miscellaneous materials as well. The bulk of the material in this collection is dated from around 1908 through the 1930s. There are some records that begin in the late 1890s.

This collection was donated by Brian Kaplan [nephew of Abrom Kaplan] with the concurrence of his siblings Conrad Kaplan and Beverly Kaplan Speer. It was transferred from the University of New Orleans with the help of Whitney Broussard.

Series:

A. Diaries 1-01 through 5-04
B. Correspondence 5-05 through 8-16
C. Financial Records 8-17 through 8-37
D. Ledgers 9-01 through 9-06
E. Stock Certificates 9-07
F. Bank Records 9-08
G. Letterpress Books 9-09 through 9-11
H. Miscellaneous 9-12
I. Notebooks 9-13 through 9-14
J. Microfilm 10-01 through 12-07

Inventory:

 
A. Diaries
1-01 Diary: 3 August 1908 - 31 July 1909
1-02 Diary: 1 August 1909 - 30 March 1910
1-03 Diary: 1 April 1910 - 8 April 1911
1-04 Diary: 9 April 1911 - 31 December 1912
1-05 Diary: 1 January 1912 - 31 December 1912
1-06 Diary: 1 January 1913 - 30 June 1913
1-07 Diary: 1 July 1913 - 31 December 1913
1-08 Diary: 1 January 1914 - 30 June 1914
1-09 Diary: 1 July 1914 - 31 December 1914
1-10 Diary: 1 January 1915 - 30 June 1915
1-11 Diary: 1 July 1915 - 31 December 1915
1-12 Diary: 1 January 1916 - 30 June 1916
2-01 Diary: 1 July 1916 - 31 December 1916
2-02 Diary: 1 January 1917 - 30 June 1917
2-03 Diary: 2 July 1917 - 31 December 1917
2-04 Diary: 1 January 1918 - 30 June 1918
2-05 Diary: 1 July 1918 - 31 December 1918
2-06 Diary: 1 January 1919 - 30 June 1919
2-07 Diary: 1 July 1919 - 31 December 1919
2-08 Diary: 1 January 1920 - 30 June 1920
2-09 Diary: 1 July 1920 - 31 December 1920
2-10 Diary: 1 January 1921 - 30 June 1921
2-11 Diary: 1 July 1921 - 31 December 1921
2-12 Diary: 1 January 1922 - 30 June 1922
2-13 Diary: 1 July 1922 - 31 December 1922
3-01 Diary: Index, 1923
3-02 Diary: 1 January 1923 - 30 June 1923
3-03 Diary: 1 July 1923 - 31 December 1923
3-04 Diary: 1 January 1924 - 30 June 1924
3-05 Diary: 1 July 1924 - 31 December 1924
3-06 Diary: 1 January 1925 - 30 June 1925
3-07 Diary: 1 July 1925 - 31 December 1925
3-08 Diary: 1 January 1926 - 30 June 1926
3-09 Diary: 1 July 1926 - 31 December 1926
3-10 Diary: 1 January 1927 - 30 June 1927
3-11 Diary: 1 July 1927 - 31 December 1927
4-01 Diary: 1 January 1928 - 30 June 1928
4-02 Diary: 1 July 1928 - 31 December 1928
4-03 Diary: 1 January 1929 - 30 June 1929
4-04 Diary: 1 July 1929 - 31 December 1929
4-05 Diary: 1 January 1930 - 30 June 1930
4-06 Diary: 1 July 1930 - 31 December 1930
4-07 Diary: 1 January 1931 - 30 June 1931
4-08 Diary: 1 July 1931 - 31 December 1931
4-09 Diary: 1 January 1932 - 30 June 1932
4-10 Diary: 1 July 1932 - 25 December 1932
5-01 Diary: 1 January 1933 - 30 June 1933
5-02 Diary: 1 July 1933 - 31 December 1933
5-03 Diary: 1 January 1934 - 30 June 1934
5-04 Diary: 1 July 1934 - 31 December 1934
   
B. Correspondence
5-05 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 1
    2 November 1897 - 24 May 1898
5-06 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 2
    3 July 1898 - 1 June 1899
5-07 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 3
    24 May 1899 - 2 September 1899
5-08 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 4
    2 June 1899 - 17 November 1909
60-1 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 5
    30 January 1900 - 27 June 1900
6-02 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 6
    6 August 1902 - 18 January 1903
6-03 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 7
    4 March 1904 - 29 August 1904
6-04 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 8
    21 March 1905 - 16 August 1905
6-05 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 9
    31 January 1906 - 30 May 1906
6-06 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 10
    30 May 1906 - 14 November 1906
6-07 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 11
    1 April 1907 - 13 October 1907
7-01 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 12
    25 May 1908 - 28 December 1908
7-02 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 13
    29 December 1908 - 27 October 1909
7-03 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 14
    27 January 1902 - 16 January 1908
7-04 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 15
    24 August 1909 - 20 September 1910
7-05 Correspondence: letterpress books, volume 16
    22 June 1909 - 26 February 1912
     
7-06 Correspondence: letters
    2 November 1897 - 31 October 1910
7-07 Correspondence: letters
    18 march 1911 - 10 September 1922
8-01 Correspondence: letters
    20 February 1923 - 12 February 1924
8-02 Correspondence: letters
    18 February 1924 - 28 August 1930
8-03 Correspondence: letters
    31 December 1931 - 12 March 1932
8-04 Correspondence: letters
    7 April 1932 - 24 September 1932
8-05 Correspondence: letters
    27 September 1932 - 20 December 1932
8-06 Correspondence: letters
    4 January 1933 - 13 February 1933
8-07 Correspondence: letters
    17 February 1933 - 21 March 1933
8-08 Correspondence: letters
    22 March 1933 - 24 June 1933
8-09 Correspondence: letters
    24 June 1933 - 30 August 1933
8-10 Correspondence: letters
    2 September 1933 - 31 October 1933
8-11 Correspondence: letters
    1 November 1933 - 10 December 1933
8-12 Correspondence: letters
    11 December 1933 - 17 January 1934
8-13 Correspondence: letters
    17 January 1934 - 9 March 1934
8-14 Correspondence: letters
    10 March 1934 - 30 April 1934
8-15 Correspondence: letters
    1 May 1934 - 26 May 1934
8-16 Correspondence: letters
    5 September 1934 - 15 May 1935
   
C. Financial Records
8-17 Assets and liabilities
    30 January 1904 - 31 March 1909
8-18 Assets and liabilities
    30 April 1909 - 28 February 1934
   
8-19 Bank records
    6 March 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-20 Budget
    30 July 1904 - 28 December 1919
8-21 Budget
    12 April 1920 - 22 April 1922
8-22 Budget
    29 October 1922 - 1 April 1935
   
8-23 Canals and mills
    6 March 1894 - 1 April 1935
8-24 Canals and mill earnings
    6 March 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-26 Federal estate tax
    6 March 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-27 Insurance records
    6 March 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-28 Memorandums
    20 December 1909 - 31 October 1932
8-29 Memorandums
    2 March 1933 - 30 April 1934
   
8-30 Rice crop estimates
    6 march 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-31 Salary and bonus schedules
    6 march 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-32 Stockholders
    6 march 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-33 Miscellany: Court decisions
    6 march 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-34 Miscellany: Maps, envelopes, receipts
    6 march 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-35 Miscellany: Newspaper clippings
    6 march 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-36 Miscellany: Personal trips
    6 march 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
8-37 Miscellany: Postcards
    6 march 1894 - 1 April 1935
   
D. Ledgers
9-01 Ledgers: 1890 -1900
9-02 Ledgers: 1900 - 1905
9-03 Ledgers: 1936 - 1948
9-04 Ledgers: 1941 - 1948
9-05 Ledgers: 1946 - 1960
9-06 Ledgers: Warehouse receipts, n.d.
   
E. Stock Certificates
9-07 Stock certificates, n.d.
   
F. Bank Records
9-08 Bank records, 1924 - 1928, 1931, 1932
   
G. Letterpress Books
9-09 Letterpress books, volume1 (separate index)
    12 October 1900 - 24 May 1902
9-10 Letterpress books, volume 2
    10 April 1902 - 1 May 1904
9-11 Letterpress books, volume 3
    1 May 1904 - 20 February 1911
 
H. Miscellaneous
9-12 Scrapbook, 1914, 1918 - 1921, 1932
   
I. Notebooks
9-13 Notebooks, 1891, 1893 - 1897
9-14 Notebooks, 1891 - 1908
   
J. Microfilm
10-01 Accession no.50, roll #1, v.1-5, 3 August 1908 - 31 December 1912
10-02 Accession no.50, roll #2, v.6-13, 1 January 1913 - 31 December 1916
10-03 Accession no.50, roll #3, v.14-21, 1 January 1917 - 31 December 1920
10-04 Accession no.50, roll #4, v.22-29, 1 January 1921 - 30 June 1924
10-05 Accession no.50, roll #5, v.30-35, 1 July 1924 - 30 June 1927
10-06 Accession no.50, roll #6, v.36-41, 1 July 1927 - 30 June 1930
10-07 Accession no.50, roll #7, v.42-46, 1 July 1930 - 25 December 1932
11-01 Accession no.50, roll #8, v.47-50, 1 January 1933 - 31 December 1934
11-02 Accession no.50, roll #8, v.47-50, 1 January 1933 - 31 December 1934
   
11-03 Accession no.50, roll #4, v.22-29, 1 January 1921 - 30 June 1924 [duplicate]
12-01 Accession no.50, roll #1, volume 1-5, 3 August 1908 - 31 December 1908 [duplicate]
12-02 Accession no.50, roll #2, volume 6-13, 2 January 1913 - 31 December 1916 [duplicate]
12-03 Accession no.50, roll #3, volume 14-21, 2 January 1917 - 31 December 1920 [duplicate]
12-04 Accession no.50, roll #4, volume 22-29, 1 January 1921 - 30 June 1924 [duplicate]
12-05 Accession no.50, roll #5, volume 30-35, 1 July 1924 - 30 June 1927 [duplicate]
12-06 Accession no.50, roll #6, volume 36-41, 1 July 1927 - 30 June 1930 [duplicate]
12-07 Accession no.50, roll #7, volume 42-46, 1 July 1930 - 25 December 1932 [duplicate]