An End to the Firm of Frost & Fowler
A straightforward dissolution notice captures the fleeting nature of 19th-century business partnerships in Snohomish County.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Notice is hereby given of the dissolution of the partnership heretofore existing between M. H. Frost and J. D. Fowler, under the firm name of Frost & Fowler, in Snohomish, Washington Territory, by mutual consent. All persons indebted to the firm of Frost & Fowler or to M. H. Frost, or J. D. Fowler, members of said firm, are hereby requested and required to settle the same immediately; as they have closed out, we desire to settle all old accounts. Prompt payment is expected. Dated July 20th, 1877.
“Prompt payment is expected.”
In 1877, dissolving a business required a public notice in the newspaper to clear debts. Today, while legal filings are digitized, the precarious nature of small town partnerships remains a staple of local economic life in Snohomish.
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