Business Commons^™

Corporate Governance In The 19th Century: Evidence From The Chesapeake And Ohio Canal Company, Robert W. Russ, Gary John Previts, Edward N. Coffman

Accounting Historians Journal

Presenting evidence from a 19th century corporation, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Company (C&O), the paper shows that issues of corporate governance have existed since the first corporations were established in the U.S. The C&O used a stockholder review committee to review the annual report of the president and directors. The paper shows how the C&O stockholders used this committee to supplement the corporate governance structure. The corporate governance structure of the C&O is also viewed from a theoretical structure as espoused by Hart [1995].