An important collection of stock certificates printed by Grafton Taylor Brown in San Francisco, the first African-American printer and artist to depict the Pacific Northwest and California. He competed with Britton & Rey for the best, prettiest, and most intricate vignettes on certificates. Exceptional to find such a collection! Includes:1) Atlantic Consolidated Mining Co. [x=#8211/] Devils Gate Mining District, Storey County, NV [x=#8211/] GT Brown Design - Cert. #432 issued to David Wilder, Trustee on Feb. 24, 1879, for 100 shares. Signed by David Wilder as Secretary and by James J. Green as vice-president. Incorporated in San Francisco on August 10, 1875, and capitalized at $10,000,000; 100,000 shares at $100 per. J. Robert Barr who was the San Francisco manager of the Anglo-California Land Company, was able to get some English investors to buy stock in a number of Nevada mines including the Atlantic Consolidated. Ref. (Spence, British Investors in American Mines, p. 36-7). The certificate has an artistic black border and decorative text. Printed by G. T. Brown in San Francisco, Uncancelled. Sealed Pass-Co security # STGC09326. 2) Andes Silver Mining Company [x=#8211/] Virginia Mining District, Storey County, Nevada - Stock certificate #11967 dated March 21st, 1878, for 10 shares made out to W. L. Duncan, Trustee. Incorporated December 18th, 1873, and capitalized at $10,000,000; 100,000 shares at $100 per share. The dateline is San Francisco. Signed by President George S. Dodge and Secretary M. Landers. According to a listing in LaSalle's New Pocket Map July 1875 the mine had 1000 feet and 50,000 shares so it was later recapitalized. From the Pacific Coast Annual Mining Review and Stock Ledger 1878, p.170: [x=#8220/]Office, Room 2, Nevada Block. George S. Dodge, president; M. Landers, secretary; Jno. F. Egan, superintendent; George S. Dodge, Jno. Landers, B, F. Bunker, B. G. Brown, George W. Brittan, trustees. Annual meeting 18th December. No. of shares, 100,000. No. of feet, 1,000. Shares per foot, 100. No. of assessments, 10. Total assessment, $325,000. Bullion yield, £62,000. Listed on San Francisco Stock and Exchange Board, Pacific Sloe Exchange, and California Stock Exchange Board. This mine is situated directly west of the Consolidated Virginia and California, it was originally located in 1859, but re-located on 17th August 1872. The company has a United States patent for its ground, dated 18th October 1873. The work of development has been actively carried on since the re-location. The company has a three-compartment shaft six hundred feet in depth, with powerful hoisting and pumping machinery. It has expended $325,000 in the development of the mine; a great deal of work having been done. Extensive drifts have been run on the 150, 300 and 450-feet levels. The ground of this company is that formerly owned by the Old Virginia and Burning Moscow companies and is about three hundred feet west of the Comstock croppings.[x=#8221/] Another later certificate was in the Alexandra Tillson Filer Collection [x=#8211/] Auction Part II June 3, 2000, Item # 541, p. 88 by Holabird Americana. It was dated Nov.16. 1897 and was of a later design: [x=#8220/]The Andes was located off the West end of the California and intruded into the Co- Virginia and Ophir by prior location rights. It was located on a footwall sliver of the Comstock Quartz breccia. Its production from 1875 [x=#8211/] 1918 was well under a $100,000 but may have had production prior to that time that went unrecorded or became part of the California's records. (Reference: Becker Atlas and C&C, Couch & Carpenter: Nevada's Metal and Mineral production 1943)[x=#8221/]. According to the Mines Register Vol. 14 1920, p.1001, the Andes mine was still active at that time: [x=#8220/]Office: 381 Bush St., San Francisco, Cal.; and Virginia City. Nev. Officers: H. Zadig, pres.; Wm. Bannan, v. p.; J. W. Twiggs, sec.; 1009 Fargo National Bank, treas.; W. W. Turney, Wm. Bannan and W. H. Moise, directors; Frank Higginson, supt. Inc. Dec. 18, 1873. in California. Cap. authorized and outstanding, $100,000: shares $1 par; assessable. Assessment No. 86 levied in 1916. Registration Security Co., San Francisco, registrar. Annual meeting, December 20th, at San Francisco. Stock is listed on New York Curb and San Francisco Exchange. Property: 2 claims, patented, 22 acres, in the Virginia mining district. Virginia City, Storey County. Nov. Company is operating and producing, but details are lacking.[x=#8221/]. Extremely Fine. Rare. 3)Sullivan Silver Mining Company Stock [x=#8211/] Gold Hill Mining District, Storey Cty., NV [x=#8211/] GT Brown Design - Certificate# 107 for 10 shares to Charles Kelsey trustee on Sept. 27, 1875. Signed by secretary O. H. Bogart and president A.S.R. Nauidou(?). Dog and safe small vignette. Fancy scroll work on left of cert. GT Brown printer. 4) Peoples Ice Company, Peoples Ice Co. Boca, CA (just northwest of Truckee, CA) Certificate #23, for 10 shares dated August 11th, 1875. Issued to H. Balis. Signed by John Caskin as president and Jno H. Sweeny. Incorporated June 21st, 1875, and capitalized at $300,000; 3000 shares at $100 per. Nice printing job by G.T. Brown of San Francisco. Vignette of a lake with ice houses at the top left. Ice was a valuable commodity in the 1870's. It was used in the mines at Virginia City as the underground temperatures were as high as 140 degrees. Ice was also used to refrigerate rail cars to ship California produce to the east. The lakes near Truckee and Donner Pass would freeze over in the winters and the ice was cut into blocks and stored in the icehouse. Nine different ice companies operated at Boca alone. Star cancels thru signatures. Folds and toning on edges. 5) South End Mining Company, South End Mining Company Stock Certificate - Devil's Gate Mining District, Lyon County, NV [x=#8211/] G.T. Brown Design - Cert. #284, issued to John B. McGee for 100 shares datelined San Francisco on Oct. 26, 1877. Signed by Edw. F. James, president, and J.W. Clark, secretary. Incorporated in Feb. 25th, 1876 and capitalized at $10,000,000; 100,000 shares at $100 per. The South End mine, some 3000 feet, was formerly known as the Comet, (p. 246 of the Pacific Coast Mining Review, 1878-79). Great vignette of a miner standing with a pick and shovel over his shoulder. Black border and print. U/C., Datelined San Francisco. Lithographer: G.T. Brown, S.F. Meas. 4 x 9.[x=#8221/] African American lithographer G.T. Brown was a famous San Francisco artist. To quote distinguished Nevada professor and artist Jim McCormick: Grafton Tyler Brown (1841-1918) was born of free parentage in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In all likelihood, he had the distinction of being the first professional African American artist to venture into Nevada. In the 1860s, Brown created numerous hand-drawn black and white lithographs of communities and buildings around northern Nevada, notably in the celebrated Comstock mining district [www.onlinenevada.org/grafton_brown: lithography]. See [x=#8220/]San Francisco Lithographer[x=#8221/] by Robert J. Chandler, 2014. 6) Succor Mill & Mining Company, Succor Mill & Mining Company Stock Certificate - Gold Hill Mining Dist. Nevada [x=#8211/] G.T. Brown -Certificate # 5177, issued to W.G. Crandall, Jr., Trustee on April 14, 1879, for 100 shares. Incorporated on May 25, 1869, and capitalized at $3,420, 000; 68,400 shares at $10 per. Signed by Janer as President and Watson as Secretary. The claim is a tract some 2400 feet covering several ledges running nearly east and west across Gold Canyon, between the Justice and Silver Hill Claims, (p. 243-44 Pacific Coast Mining Review 1878-79). Vignette of mine and mill in lower center. No seal noted. Creme paper with black ornate border and black print. Shareholders name is a blue ink stamp. "Gold Hill Mining Dist. Nevada." center, below name. Printer: Lith G.T. Brown & Co. S.F. One of the first, if not the first African American printer in the Western U.S. 5) Sullivan Silver Mining Company, Sullivan Silver Mining Company Stock [x=#8211/] Gold Hill Mining District, Storey Cty., NV [x=#8211/] GT Brown Design - Certificate# 107 for 10 shares to Charles Kelsey trustee on Sept. 27, 1875. Signed by secretary O. H. Bogart and president A.S.R. Nauidou(?). Dog and safe small vignette. Fancy scroll work on left of cert. GT Brown printer. 7) Atlantic Consolidated Mining Co. [x=#8211/] Devils Gate Mining District, Storey County, NV [x=#8211/] GT Brown Design - Cert. #432 issued to David Wilder, Trustee on Feb. 24, 1879, for 100 shares. Signed by David Wilder as Secretary and by James J. Green as vice-president. Incorporated in San Francisco on August 10, 1875, and capitalized at $10,000,000; 100,000 shares at $100 per. J. Robert Barr who was the San Francisco manager of the Anglo-California Land Company, was able to get some English investors to buy stock in a number of Nevada mines including the Atlantic Consolidated. Ref. (Spence, British Investors in American Mines, p. 36-7). The certificate has an artistic black border and decorative text. Printed by G. T. Brown in San Francisco. Uncancelled. Sealed Pass-Co security # STGC09326. 8) Rock Island Gold & Silver Mining Co Stock, Rare certificate #2802 issued for 100 shares in 1876 at San Francisco. The co. incorporated in 1872. Nice printing job by Grafton (G.T.) Brown of San Francisco. Gold Hill, Storey County printed on the certificate. Not sure if we have ever seen this one from the Comstock Lode before. VF. Uncancelled. San Francisco California