1811 Philadelphia PA Pennsylvania Stock Certificate for a Wine Company

Description

Early wine stock certificate No. 370 issued for one share to Joseph Warner on May 23rd, 1811 in Philadelphia. Certificate reads, "This Certifies that
Joseph Warner
holds one Share in the Company for promoting the Cultivation of Vines in Pennsylvania, for which
he
has paid Twenty Dollar in full; transferable in Presence of the Treasurer." Signed by President Hugh Ferguson. Notations of later transfer on reverse. Contains an embossed "Seal of the Vine Company of Pennsylvania - Incorporated 1802" at the center left. Printed on laid paper with a nice floral and scroll design around the periphery. Also contains a watermark with the initials W L.
According to "Pennsylvania Wine: A History" by Cattell & McKee, these stocks were issued by the Pennsylvania Vine Company by Frenchman Pierre Legaux to raise money after an 1793 act passed by the Pennsylvania legislature. His vineyard was on 206 acres of land located 13 miles north of Philadelphia at Spring Mill. Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, and Benjamin Rush were all investors in the Pennsylvania Vine Company. Legaux also sent vines to Thomas Jefferson in 1802, which were planted at Monticello. An excellent chapter on Pierre Legaux and his vineyard can be found online by searching, "Peter Legaux and the Pennsylvania Vine Company" (from A History of Wine in America From the Beginnings To Prohibition by Thomas Pinney, University of California Press 1989).
* CONDITION: Very Good- with some light staining at the bottom and 2 quarter inch tears at the top edge.
* SIZE: Measures approximately 7 1/8 x 7 3/4 inches.