Joseph B. Jacobs Papers

Joseph Benjamin Jacobs (1887 – 1965) was born and educated in Atlanta, GA. On April 1, 1919, Isadore. M. (I.M.) Weinstein and a partner, Herman Gross, formed the Atlanta Linen Supply Company, with total start-up capital of $1,700. Gross sold out to his partner in 1920, but Weinstein quickly secured two new partners, Abraham J. Weinberg, and Joseph B. Jacobs. Mr. Jacobs purchased a substantial interest in the Southern Linen Service in 1922, forming the superbly successful trio of Messrs. Weinstein, Weinberg and Jacobs. The trio’s wise counsel, keen business judgment and executive ability were powerful factors in the company’s growth. In 1922 Jacobs opened the company's first branch in Birmingham, Alabama. In 1928 the National Linen Service Corporation was formed, opening sixteen new plants in 16 progressive cities. The collection contains a brief history of the business relations between three brothers, Hyman, Edward and Joseph Benjamin Jacobs. The brothers operated several business ventures under the corporation name of Joseph Thompson Company in Georgia, and Joseph Thompson Liquot Company in Alabama (beer – wholesale whiskies, candy, silk, and nails and tacks). The brothers had many business disagreements and misunderstandings about the amount of interest owned by each. They eventually went to court to settle their business differences and the court issued a settlement in favor of Joseph; Hyman and Edward had to repay his note(s).