Lunsford Richardson (1854-1919) began marketing various remedies in Greensboro, N.C. in 1898. The operation became Vick Chemical Company in 1911 and made increasing profits with its Vicks VapoRub cold remedy. The Company was managed over the following decades by Richardson's sons H. Smith (1885-1972) and Lunsford, Jr. (1891-1953). After various mergers and acquisitions, it became Richardson-Vick, Inc., in 1980. In 1985 the Richardson family sold the company to Procter & Gamble Co. The collection includes files kept by H. Smith Richardson, Sr., while he was president of Vick Chemical Company, 1919-1929; files pertaining to the operation of the company, chiefly generated by the General Manager's Department; files from the Advertising and Sales Department, including campaign books; financial and legal papers; personnel materials; files from the Production Department; ; clippings; files of H. Smith Richardson, Jr., concerning hostile takeover bids; Richardson family papers; product samples; photographs; and audio-visual materials. Although the papers include material from the early years of the company through its sale to Procter & Gamble Company in 1985, the bulk of material dates from the years 1919-1929. Coverage of the years before 1919 is scant, consisting of a few mementoes and some correspondence. Coverage of the years 1929-1985 is very uneven. A notable exception is material from the Advertising and Sales Department, which is nearly complete from 1920 to 1960. historical material
