This 1886 letterhead from G. M. Wattles reflects Buffalo’s late nineteenth-century role as a major commercial hub for agricultural goods moving through Great Lakes and rail-based distribution networks.
General commission merchants served as intermediaries between producers and urban markets, handling staples such as butter, eggs, cheese, fruits, vegetables, and poultry for regional sale and redistribution. In a city like Buffalo, these firms were essential to managing perishable goods, pricing volatility, and steady supply for grocers and institutions. Letterheads functioned as both transactional records and professional identifiers, reinforcing credibility and specialization within competitive food markets.
The letterhead is printed with bold G. M. Wattles identification as a general commission merchant, prominently noting choice butter as a specialty. A Buffalo dateline dated June 1886 appears at the top, with handwritten notations and signatures occupying the lower portion of the sheet. The compact 4 x 5 format and minimal itemization suggest use as a receipt or acknowledgment rather than a full invoice, making it a concise primary-source example of nineteenth-century produce and dairy commerce.
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