Selling Turnips To The Shakers
by George Holcomb • Transcribed by Betty McClave • Edited by Alex Brooks
Wednesday, October 31, 1849: Some snow squalls and cold and froze some. Today noon Geo Owens began to work for me for one month, price agreed at seven dollars for the month. This afternoon Geo P. took the ox team and wagon and went onto my Rodgers farm and got a load of 42 bushels of corn that Mr. Aaron Merrils raised to the halves.
Saturday, Nov. 3: Today we pulled and cut turnips and the Shakers came and got two loads. Jonathan Wood got 30 bushels but did not pay for them for he is coming after more and Douglas Spencer came and got 24 bushels and paid six dollars for them. Today Geo Owen did not work for me, he says that he is sick.
Monday: I went to Pittsfield with one horse wagon and carried 14 bushels apples and sold them at 50 cents per excepting three bushel I sold at 63 cents per.
Friday: Quite rainy. My two sons husked corn in the cider house part of the day. We mended fence and wired the pigs noses.
Saturday: This afternoon Geo P. went to Hancock and took up the one hundred dollars note I gave to J. Acox and paid six percent, I borrowed the money for Geo P. to buy sheep. This afternoon I took the ox team and wagon and drew a load oak plank and scantling that E. Goodrich sawed last spring, the saw mill is now owned by John Conklin.
Monday: This morning I took my one horse wagon and carried four bushel turnip over near Charles Wheeler’s store and factory and sold them at 25 cents per bushel and got the cash, and I carried John F. to his school. He rode with me to Wheeler’s store and then walked. He commenced his school today in District near Geo. Glass factory and today we pulled turnips. Geo P. and I worked at the turnips and I paid Charlotte thirty six cents to cut 18 bushels and today the Shakers of Jonathan Wood’s family came and got three loads of turnips which makes four loads and Jonathan drew three loads of one hundred bushels, he paid the cash 25 dollars, which makes thirty one dollars in all the Shakers paid us for turnips and this evening I carried Lias Dike six bushels turnips at 25 cents per and he credits me the same for tallow. Today Nelson Rhodes moved in my house, he has agreed to pay one dollar in cash per month or to pay two days work per month.