Pan American World Airways , Inc . stock certificate issued to Baker , Weeks & Co ., December 14 , 1972 .
American War , financial editor for the New York Commercial from 1899 – 1904 and editor-in-chief of the Chicago Journal from 1904 – 1905 . In 1903 , he married Ruth Vanderlip , the sister of Frank A . Vanderlip , who became the head of the National City Bank of New York . Like Harden , Vanderlip had been a journalist before entering into the banking business , and the two men had a long-time friendship . Vanderlip had been Harden ’ s predecessor as financial editor of the Chicago Tribune . They both served in the federal government with “ Mr . Vanderlip as Comptroller and Mr . Harden as a special agent of the Treasury Department ” under Vanderlip .
Baker , Weeks & Co . ( f . 1953 , New York )
In January 1953 , Baker , Weeks & Harden changed its name to Baker , Weeks & Co . It had one office in New York City and another in Philadelphia . Later that year , in June 1953 , George K . Weeks , the founding and senior partner of Baker , Weeks & Co ., died of a heart attack in the New York office , but the firm continued with his name .
Reynolds Securities ( 1976 )
That changed when Baker Weeks was acquired by Reynolds Securities ( f . 1971 , New York ) in 1976 . Reynolds Securities was the descendant of Reynolds & Co ., a partnership founded in 1931 by Richard S . Reynolds Jr ., Thomas F . Staley and Charles H . Babcock , who were all interrelated . With that change , the name of Baker , Weeks & Co . as an independent firm was lost to history .
Postscript
In 1978 , Reynolds Securities merged with Dean Witter & Co . and became Dean Witter Reynolds .
Susie J . Pak is an Associate Professor in the Department of History at St . John ’ s University ( New York ). A graduate of Dartmouth College and Cornell University , she is the author of Gentlemen Bankers : The World of J . P . Morgan ( Harvard University Press ), a Trustee of the Business History Conference , co-chair of the Columbia University Economic History Seminar and a member of the editorial advisory board of the Business History Review . She is also a member of the Financial History editorial board .
About Where Are They Now ? The “ Where Are They Now ?” Series traces the origins and histories of 207 of the underwriters of the 1956 Ford Motor Company IPO . The research for this series has been generously funded by Charles Royce of The Royce Funds . The Museum ’ s “ Where Are They Now ?” blog can be found at : wherearetheynowblog . blogspot . com .
38 FINANCIAL HISTORY | Spring 2021 | www . MoAF . org