Wednesday, July 5, 1843: Today my two sons drew a load of sand from the Douglass sand bank.
Thursday: This morning I took my single wagon and rode up to Russel D. Pierce and bargained with him to work his Mother’s highway tax at 63 cts per day and I fetched two barrels of sand from the sand bank. I worked on the highway with the ox team and plow which pays up my road tax and 3 1/2 days works for Russel D. Pierce and I this afternoon took my one horse wagon and drew 230 bricks from Mr. Francis in Pittsfield. I paid for them on last Saturday in barley.
Monday: Today we ground three new scythes and began to mow.
Wednesday: We hayed, and today a colored man by the name of Henry Lyons began to help us to pay house rent. He came on the fifth of June and bargained for my house and garden and agreed to pay me for planting the garden and agreed to do me a months work in haying to work the first four days in each week until the month was paid, and the time to be out on the first day of April next and said Henry Lyons moved his goods into my house on the first day of this month and came on to housekeeping on this week on Monday.
Thursday: We hayed, and said Henry helped.
Saturday: I took my single wagon and went to Lanesborough and carried three bushels of barley to Curtis and Company and exchanged for nine bushels of lime in the stone. On the way home I called to Pardie Lapum store and got trusted for four pounds nails 25 cts and half a pound tea 37 cts and got home at dusk.
Monday: Today quite rainy. I this afternoon rode to Lebanon to see Mr. Mathew to engage him to build a chimney in my cheese house but did not bargain with him but he told me he could come in two weeks. I came to Aaron Gilbert’s herbest store and sold two pounds roses dried at 37 cts per and trusted them.
Tuesday: I took a grist of corn and carried to Adams Mill and called to Squ Nathan Howard’s post office and paid 25 cts for a letter from Cincinnati, Ohio, from Mrs. H. Twichel and paid in advance for one quarter Budget Papers (newspaper based in Troy) 13 cts.
Wednesday: We hayed and said Henry Lyons helped for rent.
George, his sons, and Henry Lyons hayed every day for the rest of the week and all through the following week.
Saturday, July 29: I am unwell. I took the single wagon and carried my boys on to my Rodgers farm to hay, said Henry helped them mow all day. Mr. Daniel Brady paid me five dollars towards house rent, and today I paid up a note of 45 dol and interest of one dol and 53 cents to James M. Glass for a gray colt. I gave a note the 2nd day Feb. last. Today I rode to Lebanon. I carried Gay and Mattison seven pounds butter and exchanged for nine pounds sugar and then I rode to Aaron Gilbert herbest store and got my cash for the roses dried that I sold him the other day, two pounds for 75 cts, and then I rode to Nelson Gilbert store and carried him four new cheese 99 pounds at five cts per.