Archive Of Van Voorhies-Phinney Company, Including A History, Company Catalogs And Two Vanco Printers Blocks -

Sacramento, CA: Van Voorhies-Phinney Company, 1940. First Edition. The Gold Rush made Sacramento a major commercial center and distribution point for Northern California, serving as the terminus for the Pony Express and the First Transcontinental Railroad. Founded in 1850 (as R. Stone and Co.), by the late 1800s Alexander Van Voorhies and son-in-law George Phinney, now the Van Voorhies-Phinney Co., had established a reputation as one of the premier saddle and harness firms in California, rivaling the best San Francisco had to offer. Over time, and with the arrival of the automobile age, the company diversified its product line to include industrial supplies, mechanical rubber goods, boots and shoes and rubber footwear. By 1920 the company (now known as 'Vanco)' had become the sole western representative for the iconic Converse Rubber Shoe Company. The firm, family-operated for over 130 years, was one of the oldest in California when it closed its doors in 1986. 

Included in this rare collection of an early California saddle and harness firm:

'Threescore Years and Ten' (a string-tied history published in 1920 on the 70th anniversary of the firm);

Six scarce trade catalogs c. 1920s-1940 that illustrate the firm's successful transition from saddles to shoes;

Two printing blocks, one for 'Vanco Shoes' and one for 'Vanco Cowboy Outfits' .