Curries & Co

Curries & Co (1773-1864), established in London, was a past constituent of the Royal Bank of Scotland.

This private bank was established in 1773 as Mason, Currie, James & Yallowley. It had offices at 29 Cornhill in the City of London and a capital of £30,000. The capital was largely provided by John Mason, a director of the Sun Fire Office, and William Currie, a malt distiller. The main business of the bank lay in discounting bills of exchange and dealing in government securities. Its customers were largely merchants, linen and woollen drapers, distillers and brewers, and it also acted as London agent for a number of country banks. By 1814 the bank's annual profit was £1,266.

The Currie family dominated the partnership from the outset and, from 1826, the firm was known simply as Curries & Co. By 1843 the bank's annual profit was £17,000. In 1842 Curries & Co acquired the firm of Dorrien, Magens, Mello & Co. In 1864 Curries & Co merged with Glyn, Mills & Co, which closed the Cornhill premises, thereafter adopting the name Glyn, Mills, Currie & Co. 

Detailed list of name changes

• Mason, Currie, James & Yallowley from 1773
• Currie, Lefevre, James & Yallowley in 1781
• Lefevre, Curries, James & Yallowley from 1784
• Lefevre, Currie, Raikes & Yallowley from 1788
• Curries, Raikes & Co from 1804
• Lefevre, Curries, Raikes & Lawford from 1807
• Curries & Co from 1826

Summary of our archive holdings

Our archival records of Curries & Co have the reference code CU.

For help understanding words used here, check our glossary of banking record types (PDF 68 KB).

Partnership records

• partnership agreements 1773-1859
• letter re retirement of Charles James 1787
• assignment of interest on the dissolution of the partnership 1780
• papers of Job Matthew Raikes 1780-1827
• memorandum re division of the partnership 1830
• merger papers: Dorrien, Magens, Mello & Co 1841, 1845-7, Glyn, Mills & Co 1864
• papers of Raikes Currie 1854-81
• correspondence re Isaac Currie's share in the business 1856

Financial records

• profit and loss accounts 1774-80, 1813-4, 1854-63
• bills of exchange 1778-93
• balance sheets: partners' 1786-9, annual 1854-63
• details of bills: exchequer 1804-5, navy and transport c.1804
• promissory note 1816
• correspondence and unpaid bills of exchange 1833-61
• half-yearly financial results 1845-8
• cash book 1846-62
• general ledger 1847-64
• papers re income tax 1860-4

Legal records

• writs re Court of Exchequer of Pleas case 1845-8

Customer records

• customer account ledgers 1773-91
• assignment of stock in trade 1774
• papers re estate of Nathaniel Bayly, West Indian plantation owner, 1780-1827: source overview (PDF 108 KB)
• customer debit and credit balances 1786-9, 1815-87
• correspondence from customers 1795, 1805, 1809, 1845-7, 1855-8
• cheques 1799-1830
• papers of London (Watford) Spring Water Co Ltd, water supply company, 1851-3: source overview (PDF 128 KB)