by George Holcomb
Transcribed by Betty McClave • Edited by Alex Brooks
The Cheese Business; An Unruly Bull
Monday, June 17, 1844: Today I went to Pittsfield with my one horse wagon and Russel Palmer with his one horse wagon and we carried 25 boxes of new cheese to Dodge & Peck to sell on commission in Boston. We deliver the cheese to their care at the railroad house and said Dodge & Peck agreed to freight our cheese to Boston for twenty cents per hundred pounds profit and for selling two dollars and 50 cts for every hundred dollars worth. Said Dodge & Peck took of us 691 pounds gross weight and said Peck & Dodge paid me in cash three dollars for three old cheese.
Tuesday: This forenoon I took my two wheel carriage and carried my daughter Charlotte to Doctor Thomas to have a tooth drawn, but he was not at home and we went to Hancock Village and I paid Doctor Selden 12 cts for drawing said tooth for my daughter. I paid Nicholas Gardner one dollar for the use of his bull as I before agreed and he agreed to have me return him for the bull was so unruly that I could not keep him and this afternoon I drove the before-mentioned Nicholas Gardner’s bull home.
Tuesday, June 25: Today I took my one horse wagon and fetched my cheese boxes 25 in number from the widow Lucy Pierce’s, they were fetched by Sylvenas Carpenter from Pittsfield, returned from Boston, that I had sent them with new cheese in and today carried 13 in number of said cheese boxes to Russel Palmer’s in readyness and today worked at my hog pen building the old one over.
Wednesday: Today I took Mr. Russel Palmer’s horse and wagon and carried twelve of our company new cheese in boxes to Pittsfield and left eleven boxes of cheese with said Dodge & Peck and likewise got returns of the 25 cheeses that said Palmer and myself left in said Dodge & Peck;s care last week and got the pay. We had 505 pounds, it fetched 17 dol and 96 cts and our freight bill was one dol and 66 cts and the carting cheese to market 47 cts and commission on selling was 45 cts which leaves a balance, they paid over to me in cash 15 dol and 66 cts and a cheese sold in Pittsfield today was 24 pounds at five cents per added to our company money which makes 16 dol and 86 cts and tonight when I returned home I paid over to said Russel Palmer his share which was four dol and 22 cts.