Stock Certificate Guidance

Special Collections and Archives frequently receives patron inquiries about how much stock certificates are worth and/or where the patron can find more information about their stock certificate(s). The following is some guidance regarding how to respond to these inquiries, including some language to copy/paste in emails.

General guidance

  1. Let the patron know that Special Collections and Archives cannot provide an assessment of a stock certificate’s monetary value.

  2. Advise the patron to look up information about the company that the stock certificate is associated with. Companies should have been registered as a business with the state government (although not all of them still have records), so state government websites should be able to provide some information.

  3. Spec employees can do some research about the company as well, if time allows.

  4. If the company is no longer in operation and was not acquired by another company, then the stock certificate cannot be redeemed. It may still have value as a collectible. If the company is still in business or was acquired by another company that is still in business, it is possible that the stock certificate can still be redeemed.

  5. Spec employees can provide the patron with some additional resources regarding stock certificates.

Response language

Feel free to copy/paste/edit the following language as needed. Make sure links work!

Thank you for your inquiry. While Special Collections and Archives cannot provide an assessment of stock certificates’ monetary value or provide recommendations regarding specific stock certificates, we can offer some avenues for further research.

State government websites usually have information about companies registered in the state. If the company associated with the stock certificate was registered in Idaho, you can visit the Idaho Secretary of State’s website at https://sos.idaho.gov/business-services/. Under “Are you looking for other services,” click Business Search. Type the company name into the search bar (use Advanced Search for more search options). You’ll see the status of the company, its filing date, and whether it has an agent. Clicking on the business name will open a bar with more information about the company, including a box labeled “View History.”

Most of the stock certificates in our collections were registered in Idaho, but some were registered in other states or in Canada. Other states should have similar information on their Secretary of State’s website, and information about Canadian companies can be found at https://www.securities-administrators.ca/investor-tools/how-to-determine-the-value-of-an-old-stock-certificate/. The state archives of individual states may also have further information about companies registered in those states.

In general, if the company is no longer in operation and was not acquired by another company, then the stock certificate cannot be redeemed. It may still have value as a collectible. If the company is still in business or was acquired by another company that is still in business, it is possible that the stock certificate can still be redeemed.

Here are a few resources that may be helpful in determining what to do with old stock certificates:

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