Expert: Steven Taylor - 6/6/2009

Question
I have come across a stock certificate purchased by my uncle who is now deceased.  The certificate #2322 for 500 shares in Mammoth Petroleums Limited dated March 3, 1950.
Is this worth anything???

Thanks for your time,

Joe Weidner

Answer
Joe, I was able to find some information about the Company. It was first acquired by Ellesmere Oil on the basis of 1 share of Ellesmere for every 10 shares of Mammoth. Ellesmere was in turn acquired by New Concord Developments on the basis of 1 share of Concord for every 3 of Ellesmere. Concord was later wound up in 1966. I don't know if there was any value for common shareholders - in a wind-up there sometimes is, but it is usually not much. Considering the number of shares and the acquisition ratios, your uncle would have had only 16 shares of Concord. Also, considering the wind-up was over 40 years ago, even if there was some value in the wind-up, your uncle may have already received it or, if not, it would be very hard to find now, if it were even still available. However, I suggest you might try the unclaimed property sections of each state or province in which your uncle lived from the time he bought the stock until after the wind-up in 1966. If the agent could not find your uncle, they would have turned any money over to the state or province in which he was last known to reside. The government would have kept the funds in safekeeping for a period of time for the benefit of him or his heirs. A few governments keep funds indefinitely, but most don't. Most allow free online searching for unclaimed property, so it is worth a look. You can access most of the states (and some Provinces) online at www.unclaimed.org. For searching, use your Uncle's name exactly as it appears on the certificate, even if it is misspelled or abbreviated, as that is how the government would list the property.