There are a few historic references to specific old securities. R.M. Smythe's books are probably the most well-known. He compiled his lists as an effort to buy and redeem old securities (mainly bonds) that still retained value. Smythe was in the business for many years, so he must have been successful. Many of the bonds he sought at the time are now rare or non-existant.

David Adams compiled lists of the more acquirable references and I offer them here as a starting pointing for your research. Some of these references are getting very hard to find, but you can often borrow them through inter-library loans. Some appear from time to time in stock and bond auctions, particularly Spink Smythe sales.

Fisher, Robert D. 1935, 2600 Old and Inactive Security Issues of Definite Value.

Smythe, Roland Mulville, 1904, Obsolete American Securities and Corporations.

Smythe, Roland Mulville, 1911, Obsolete American Securities and Corporations, Second Volume,: Illustrated with photographs of important repudiated bonds. (This volume is available online at Google Books.)

Smythe, Roland Mulville, 1929, Valuable Extinct Securities: The secret of the obsolete security business. (The is the most easily acquirable reference to old securities, often available at Amazon, Alibris and Abe Books.)

Smythe, Roland Mulville, 1939, Smythe's Valuable Extinct Securities Guide.