The Activities of General Trading Company Branch Offices in the United States Prior to World War II Mitsubishi Trading Company

Nobuo KAWABE

doi:10.5029/jrbh1984.17.35

The Activities of General Trading Company Branch Offices in the United States Prior to World War II

Mitsubishi Trading Company

Nobuo KAWABE

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JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

2001 Volume 17 Pages 35-65

DOI https://doi.org/10.5029/jrbh1984.17.35

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Published: March 15, 2001 Received: - Available on J-STAGE: June 28, 2010 Accepted: - Advance online publication: - Revised: -
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Date of correction: June 28, 2010 Reason for correction: - Correction: CITATION Details: Right : 1Little research has been done on the investment activities of Japanese businesses in the United States prior to World War II.I made use of the annual reports(from1942to1946)of the Office of Alien Property Custodian and of the Census of Foreign-Owned Assets in the United States (Washington,D.C.,1945)compiled by the United States Treasury Department,Office of the Secretary.Also helpful was Mira Wilkins,“American-Japanese Direct Foreign Investment Relationship,1930-1952,”Business History Review56(Winter1982).
2One of the few exceptions is Nobuo Kawabe,“Japanese Business in the United States before World War II:The Case of Mitsubishi Shoji Kaisha,the Seattle and San Francisco Branches,”Ph.D.dissertation,Ohio State University,1980.
3Mitsubishi Trading Co.(Mitsubishi Shoji Kaisha in Japanese)was a part of Mitsubishi Goshi until March1918.For information on Mitsubishi's Seattle and San Francisco branch offices,I rely on“R.G.131,Office of Alien Property World War II Seized Process,Mitsubishi Shoji Kaisha(San Francisco and Seattle)”found in the National Record Center in Suitland,Maryland.The materials on the New York branch office were returned by the National Record Center to Mitsubishi,but it is not known what happened to them after
4Mitsubishi Bulletin24,p.2590.
5Ibid.,pp.2655and2684.
6Mitsubishi Bulletin25,p.2979.
7Ibid.,p.2977.
8Ibid.,p.4437.
9Mitsubishi Shoji shashi,vol.1,p.110.
10Ibid.,pp.149and111.
11Mitsubishi Bulletin26,p.4889.
12Mitsubishi ShOji shashi,vol.1,p.149.
13From Kenkichi Imai to Managing Director,“On the Seattle branch audit report,”19February1927,R.G.131(Seattle),G.F.,1927,no folders,between“Athletic Affairs”and“Fuel Order 391-400.”
14Mitsubishi Shoji shashi,vol.1,p.157.
15Mitsubishi Bulletin30,p.5294.
16Mitsubishi Shiyi shashi,vol.1,p.146.
17Yasuaki Nagasawa,Mitsubishi Shpji seiritsu shi no kenkyu[A study of the history of Mitsubishi Trading Co.'s establishment](Nihon Keizai Hyoronsha,1990),pp.179-80.
18Mitsubishi Shoji shashi,vol.1,p.148.
19Ibid.,p.214.
20For more on such problems of business management,see Kawabe,“Japanese Business in the United States,”chapters3and4.
21Mitsubishi Shoji shashi,vol.1,pp.206-207
22Ibid.,pp.182-85.
23Ibid.,p.188.
24Ibid.,p.190.
25Ibid.,pp.204and209.
26Ibid.,pp.209-10.
27Ibid.,p.274.
28Ibid.,pp.215-16.
29Ibid.,p.226.
30Ibid.,p.227.
31From Momotaro Miyakegawa to head of San Francisco branch office,1February1934.
32For more details on the role of Mitsubishi Trading Co.in canned crab transactions,see Kawabe,“Japanese Business in the United States,”chapter5.
33Important Documents and Papers Transferred from Nasu to Takeuchi,“Business under Jurisdiction of Marine Products Dept.(Seattle),”31March1935,R.G.131(Seat-tle),F.S.box484,loose papers.
34Letter from Takeuchi to the head of General Affairs Department,“On the Restructuring of This Office,”15April1937,and chart comparing volume of business and business expenses of the Seattle branch office,14April1937,R.G.131(S.F.),box669.
35Mitsubishi Shoji shashi,vol.1,pp.276-77.
36Ibid.,p.292.
37Ibid.,p.301.
38Ibid.,pp.304-306.
39Ibid.,pp.353-54.
40Ibid.,p.355.
41Ibid.,pp.363-66.
42Ibid.,pp.367-68.
43Ibid.,pp.369-70.
44Ibid.,p.371.
45Ibid.,p.381.
46Ibid.,p.283.
47Ibid.,pp.396-97.
48Ibid.,pp.408and410.
49Ibid.,pp.412-14.
50Ibid.,pp.419-20.
51Ibid.,p.421.
52Letter from Shun'ichi Takeuchi to head of General Affairs Department,“On the Restructuring of This Office,”dated6April1938,Private Letter from Wasaburo Murase to Takeuchi(around1937),and Letter from Takeuchi to head of General Affairs Department,“On the Restructuring of This Office,”dated15April1938,R.G.131(S.F.),box669.
53Letters from Takeuchi to head of General Affairs Department,“On the Dispatching of a Representative to Mexico,”dated11and13July1939,R.G.131(S.F.),box621.
54More on this move can be found in Kawabe,“Japanese Business in the United States,”chapter7
55Mitsubishi Shoji shashi,vol.1,p.481.
56Mitsubishi Trading Co.,Record of Beginnings in Trade(see note3),p.580.
57Mitsubishi Shoji shashi,vol.1,p.499.
58Ibid.,p.508.
59Ibid.,pp.508-10.
60Ibid.,p.514.
61Ibid.,p.517.
62Ibid.,pp.519-20.
63Ibid.,pp.521-22.
64Ibid.,p.523.
65Ibid.,p.527.
66Ibid.,p.529.
67Kawabe,“Japanese Business in the United States,”chap.7.
68Robert A.Nelson,Representative,Alien Property Custodian to A.L.Stone,Office of Alien Property Custodian,24November1942,R.G.131(S.F.),Liquidation File,February1940to May1943,“Letters Sent Out by R.A.Nelson.”

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