Alvin Adams
Encyclopedia
Alvin Adams was the founder of Adams and Company, a forerunner to Adams Express
, one of the first companies to act as a carrier for express shipments by rail
in the United States
. Adams and Company provided shippers with a complete shipping solution, picking up goods at the shipper's location, carrying them to the railroad terminal, and then delivering them from the distant railroad terminal to the recipient's door.
Alvin Adams was born on June 16, 1804 in Andover, Vermont
. On May 4, 1840 he established his first express freight route between Boston and New York under the name Adams and Company. The company established offices in Boston and New York, and soon added express routes to Baltimore, Maryland, Norwich, Connecticut
, Worcester, Massachusetts
, Washington, D.C.
, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
, Cincinnati, Ohio
, Louisville, Kentucky
, and St. Louis, Missouri
. Adams and Company started out by hauling mail for the nascent postal service, until that business was suspended by the US Government in 1845; in that year the transportation of mail was transferred to solely government-owned entities.
In 1854 Adams and Company merged with three other express agencies, Harnden and Company, Thompson and Company, and Kinsley and Company to form Adams Express Company, with Mr. Adams as the president of the new company. The company was initially capitalized with $1,200,000. He was succeeded in 1855 by George Washington Cass
.
Alvin Adams died September 1, 1877 in Watertown, Massachusetts
. The company that he formed still exists, headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland.
Adams Express Company
The Adams Express Company is a publicly traded diversified equity fund that traces its roots to a 19th century freight and cargo transport company. The Company uses a conservative investment philosophy, and the portfolio is managed with the expectation that it will generate solid returns with...
, one of the first companies to act as a carrier for express shipments by rail
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Adams and Company provided shippers with a complete shipping solution, picking up goods at the shipper's location, carrying them to the railroad terminal, and then delivering them from the distant railroad terminal to the recipient's door.
Biography
Andover, Vermont
Andover is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 496 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 28.8 square miles , of which 28.8 square miles are land and 0.03% is water.-Demographics:As of...
. On May 4, 1840 he established his first express freight route between Boston and New York under the name Adams and Company. The company established offices in Boston and New York, and soon added express routes to Baltimore, Maryland, Norwich, Connecticut
Norwich, Connecticut
Regular steamship service between New York and Boston helped Norwich to prosper as a shipping center through the early part of the 20th century. During the Civil War, Norwich once again rallied and saw the growth of its textile, armaments, and specialty item manufacturing...
, Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
, Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
, Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, and St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. Adams and Company started out by hauling mail for the nascent postal service, until that business was suspended by the US Government in 1845; in that year the transportation of mail was transferred to solely government-owned entities.
In 1854 Adams and Company merged with three other express agencies, Harnden and Company, Thompson and Company, and Kinsley and Company to form Adams Express Company, with Mr. Adams as the president of the new company. The company was initially capitalized with $1,200,000. He was succeeded in 1855 by George Washington Cass
George Washington Cass
George Washington Cass was an American industrialist and president of the Northern Pacific Railway.- Family :George Washington Cass was born near Dresden, Ohio, March 12, 1810, to George W. and Sophia Cass...
.
Alvin Adams died September 1, 1877 in Watertown, Massachusetts
Watertown, Massachusetts
The Town of Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 31,915 at the 2010 census.- History :Archeological evidence suggests that Watertown was inhabited for thousands of years before the arrival of settlers from England...
. The company that he formed still exists, headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland.