William L. McPheeters to Charles W. Chesnutt, 14 January 1931
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AGENCY OF THE UNION CENTRAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY
WILLIAM L. MCPHEETERS, GENERAL MANAGER
816 KEITH BUILDING
PHONE MAIN 9386
CLEVELAND, OHIO
Jan. 14, 1931.
Mr. Charles W. Chesnutt,
1649 Union Trust Bldg.,
Cleveland, O.
Dear Sir:
In re - Policies 388334, 3891731
In connection with the assignment recently executed under the above numbered policies, kindly complete the attached blank 2887 and return to us, in the enclosed envelope, so that we may complete our records and send notices and receipts to the proper parties.2
Very truly yours, W. L. McPheeters General Manager GIH [illegible] to U. T. Co3Jan 15/31
Correspondent: William Leavenworth McPheeters (1878–1948) was a White insurance agent originally from Virginia. After moving to the Cleveland area in 1918, he worked for Union Central Life Insurance until his retirement as the company's general manager in 1943.
1. Chesnutt's life insurance policies served as collateral for his large loan with the Union Trust Company. Chesnutt is reminded to submit proof that he kept up the payments on the annual premium with Union Central Life Insurance, an insurance company founded 1867 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Using life insurance policies (especially those that could be cashed before death in an emergency) as collateral security for bank loans only became common practice during the Depression, after the stocks and bonds which had previously served Chesnutt and many other investors as collateral had lost all of their value in the 1929 stock market crash. [back]
2. See the January 9, 1931, letter from Ralph L. Williams at the Union Trust Company to Chesnutt. [back]
3. The Union Trust Company was a Cleveland bank trust, by 1920 a large nationwide bank following several mergers. In 1924, Chesnutt's company began renting offices in the new Union Trust Building that housed the bank's headquarters. Many of Chesnutt's investments were also with Union Trust. After the stock market collapse in 1929, he had to service a $18,500 loan for which the collateral had been stock market shares that were now worthless; the company also held the mortgage for his home at 9719 Lamont St. and for at least one rental property he owned (11900–02 Superior Ave.). Union Trust survived the early years of the Depression, but was not allowed to reopen after another collapse of the Cleveland banks in February 1933. [back]
