KENNEBEC COUNTY MAINE ME Handwritten Textile Mill Ledger/Manuscript Account Book

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KENNEBEC COUNTY MAINE ME Handwritten Textile Mill Ledger/Manuscript Account Book:
$272.00

FANTASTIC, ORIGINAL EARLY 19TH CENTURY MANUSCRIPT ACCOUNT BOOK FROM A TEXTILE MILL IN KENNEBEC COUNTY, MAINE. This terrific early ledger dates from 1807 and was kept by Joseph H. Underwood (1783-1867) of Fayette, ME. Inscription to verso of front cover reads, \"T. G. & J. H. Underwood\'s Ledger No. 1\". Underwood was one of Fayette\'s most successful early merchants, establishing a textile operation at Underwood\'s Mills in Eastern Fayette where he engaged in wool-carding, cloth-dressing, fulling, etc. The enterprising Underwood also operated a general store, invested in local industries, and served as an elected official in a variety of offices. In addition, Underwood went on to establish one of the earliest and best blooded herds of Hereford cattle in all of Maine. \"He was one of the best known business men in Kennebec County\" (see Illustrated History of Kennebec County, Maine, 1625-1799-1892, Part II, p. 970).

Inscription denoting \"Ledger No. 1\" suggests this was the first account book kept by Underwoodat his textile mill. \"T. G. Underwood\" was likely Joseph\'s father Thomas who was still living at the time. Years later Joseph would hand over the reins of the business to his son \"G. G. Underwood\". Many of ledger\'s entries involve \"carding\", a mechanical process by which fibers are disentangled, cleaned and intermixed to produce a continuous web or sliver suitable for subsequent processing. This is achieved by passing the fibers between differentially moving surfaces covered with card clothing, breaking up locks and unorganized clumps of fibre and then aligning the individual fibres to be parallel with each other. In preparing wool fiber for spinning, carding is the step that follows teasing.\"The first merchant who opened a store at Underwood\'s Mills--more familiarly known as the \'Mills\'--was Joseph H. Underwood. He was in active business in this place more than fifty-five years. He not only carried on his store, but for several years was engaged in wool-carding, cloth-dressing and tanning. His business at one time was so extensive that he had accounts open with more than eight hundred people at the same time. His patronage extended all along the line from Andover, in Oxford county, to Edgecomb, in Lincoln county. He was the first to introduce and breed Hereford cattle to any extent in Maine\" (see Illustrated History of Kennebec County, Maine, 1625-1799-1892, Part II, p. 956).Underwood\'s impressive customer base extended beyond Fayette and Kennebec County. In addition to Fayette, other Maine communities referenced here include Chesterville, French, Jay, Livermore, Mount Vernon, New Sharon, Readfield, Turner, and Wayne. Numerous customer names also appear throughout, making volume a treasure trove of early Maine genealogy. Surnames found here include Adkins, Anderson, Ball, Bamford, Barnsdell, Bartlett, Batcheldor, Berry, Billings, Blackwell, Blake, Blazdel, Bly, Bodge, Bolton, Bump, Burt, Buzel, Carne, Carr, Chapman, Chandler, Chase, Crane, Darscomb, Davis, Day, Dorr, Dutton, Eaton, Edes, Elkins, Fearing, Fifield, Fisk, Foord, French, Gale, Godding, Gravy, Haines, Ham, Haskell, Hazelton, Howard, Hubbard, Hutchinson, Jones, Joselyn, Judkins, Kent, Kitteridge, Knight, Knowles, Lane, Leadbetter, Livermore, Lovejoy, Marston, McClench, Morrison, Morse, Nichols, Norcross, Packard, Page, Paine, Palmer, Parker, Parkhurst, Pettingill, Phillbrown, Pike, Pratt, Randell, Richards, Russell, Samson, Smith, Southward, Stevens, Sturtevant, Stubbs, Sweat, Swift, Talbot, Taylor, Thomas, Tilton, Tuck, Usher, Walker, Walton, Warren, Watson, Waugh, White, Willy, Wing, Winston, Woodman, Young, etc. Kennebec County, Maine, was established on February 20th, 1799, from portions of Cumberland and Lincoln Counties. The name Kennebec comes from the Eastern Abenaki meaning \"large body of still water, large bay\". The county seat is the state capital of Augusta, and according to recent census figures Kennebec County is today home to a population of about 122,151. Along with Augusta, the county also includes the communities of Albion, Belgrade, Benton, Chelsea, China, Clinton, Farmingdale, Fayette, Gardiner, Hallowell, Litchfield, Manchester, Monmouth, Mount Vernon, Oakland, Pittston, Randolph, Readfield, Rome, Sidney, Unity, Vassalboro, Vienna, Waterville, Wayne, West Gardiner, Windsor, Winslow, and Winthrop.Condition: Rare book remains in good overall condition (see images). Folio bound in original leather-backed patterned boards; cover worn, front hinge starting, mild toning, scattered staining and spotting, occasional ink smudging, etc., generally clean internally. Volume contains 130 hand-numbered leaves (i.e., 260 p.) of manuscript entries plus index of customer names in front; and measures approx 13\" tall x 8\" wide x 1\" thick. Quite a find and a very worthy acquisition indeed.Payment and Shipping: Please see our response and offer with confidence. Never a reserve and very low opening offer as always. For international shipping quote, please contact us. buyers with no established response must contact us before offerding. Massachusetts residents must add 6.25% sales tax or include dealer tax resale number. Payment must be received within 5 days after close of sale unless other arrangements are made beforehand. Thanks for your interest!

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