This collection contains business records of the Appomattox Iron Works and Supply Company, a Petersburg, Virginia manufacturer of machinery for the peanut, tobacco, and lumber industries. The collection contains correspondence, notes, and other records of the company's operations. The majority of the collection consists of correspondence regarding the credit risk of potential customers. These files contain both the company's inquiries to references supplied by customers and the responses of those references. The collection also contains files of correspondence and other papers relating in other ways to its customers. Many of the letters concern purchase authorizations and other routine matters relating to customer accounts. A file of general business papers completes the collection and includes account collection lists, notations, and forms. Also included is a letter providing a very brief history of the company to 1933.