Farmer's Ledger

8vo.  185 x 155 mm., [6 x 7 ¼ inches] .Manuscript in ink.   89 pp.  Marbled boards, calf spine. Cover and corner wear, some cover separation, few pages torn. Text written in legible hand.

Accounts of a farmer from the town of Middleborough which show entries ranging from purchased foodstuffs to money received for work mowing and plowing fields and cutting and delivering cords of wood.  These accounts show the date, the work or item, and the payment. Several notes reveal that farmhands moved onto the property at various times: "1844 William Tinkham moved in to my house... Novem 4th 1842 William Carter moved into my house."  There is a record of payment for work performed by temporary employees of farm in Middleborough.

There are a few pages which indicate that the farmer, whose name is not shown, may be Lorenzo Wood (1792-1860). One page shows "A. Dearborn & Co. to Lorenzo Wood to fourteen cords of oak wood delivered at the depot in Middleboro at four dollars and a half. October 30, 1847."  A tantalizing note near the end of the book reads: "Joshua Wood Esq. Newport RI, Mariah Wood, Ichabod, Lorenzo, Leonard, P. Wood, Lorenzo Wood" with no further explanation, but perhaps provides some indication of the origins of this family.

A few names of customers include Zenubble Pratt, Luen Perry, Col. Charles Soule, Ira Tinkham, and Capt. Sylvanus Warren (likely 1785-1872). Middleborough, incorporated in 1669, was once called the shoe capital of the world. In 1850, it had less than 6,000 residents.