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Collection

Adam R. Barr mathematics exercise book, 1843

1 volume

Adam R. Barr of Conestoga Township, Pennsylvania, created this mathematics exercise book or cipher book of mathematical operations, rules and theorems, and example problems. Sections labeled with calligraphic lettering include the Single Rule of 3, Double Rule of 3, Simple Interest, Insurance, Commission, Barter, Fellowship, Exchange, Vulgar Fractions, Decimal Fractions, and others.

Adam R. Barr of Conestoga Township, Pennsylvania, created this mathematics exercise book or cipher book of mathematical operations, rules and theorems, and example problems. Sections labeled with calligraphic lettering include the Single Rule of 3, Double Rule of 3, Simple Interest, Insurance, Commission, Barter, Fellowship, Exchange, Vulgar Fractions, Decimal Fractions, and others.

Collection

Ambrose Huber cypher books, 1866-1868

2 volumes

This collection is made up of two cypher books kept by Ambrose H. Huber of Hereford, Pennsylvania, between 1866 and 1868. The books include problems and solutions in multiplication, fractions and decimals, arithmetical progression, roots, weights and measures. One volume has a yellow paper cover and the other a blue paper cover. The printed covers depict George Washington beside an American flag, with ships in the distance. On the backs of the volumes are printed advertisements for J. Washington Miller, Stationer and Publisher, No. 204 North Third Street.
Collection

Arithmetic copybook, [19th century]

1 volume

This arithmetic copybook was compiled by an anonymous student in the nineteenth century. It includes rules and examples for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, as well as practical examples relating to money and weights and measures.
Collection

Eighteenth-century cypher book, 1793

24 pages (1 volume)

This currently unidentified student's cypher book contains mathematical rules and examples largely in the service of commerce. Entries relate to the addition of money, addition of Troy weight, addition of dry measure, subtraction, a numeration table, a multiplication table, the Golden Rule (i.e. the rule of three), and similar concepts. Currency in this volume is almost exclusively British coinage, but at least one problem references conversion of British pounds into the (newly created) U.S. dollar. The covers of the volume are (apparently re-used) canvas, possibly sailcloth. The cypher book was owned by the Higgins family of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and it contains names of Higgins family members, but the author is yet undetermined.
Collection

Manuscript Recipe Book collection, 1793-1959 (majority within 19th century)

28 volumes

This collection comprises 28 American manuscript recipe books dated from 1793 to 1959 with the bulk dating from the nineteenth century. One of the books contains portions in German, while the rest are in English. Most regions of the United States are present, with the Northeast and Southern States best represented. Desserts represent the bulk of the recipes, cakes being the most popular. Some recipes include attributes to friends, family, or cookbooks, and some contain notes on quality of the dish. Directions for making medicinal remedies and practical household needs (such as cleaning product recipes or advice on fabric care) may also be included. Many volumes contain handwritten or printed inserts.

This collection comprises 28 American manuscript recipe books dated from 1793 to 1959 with the bulk dating from the nineteenth century. One of the books contains portions in German, while the rest are in English. Most regions of the United States are present, with the Northeast and Southern States best represented. Desserts represent the bulk of the recipes cakes being the most popular. Some recipes include attributes to friends, family, or cookbooks, and some contain notes on quality of the dish. Directions for making medicinal remedies and practical household needs (such as cleaning product recipes or advice on fabric care) may also be included. Many volumes contain handwritten or printed inserts.

All or most of the known authors of these recipe books appear to be by women. A man, James Campbell, authored the accounting portion of the Campbell receipt book and a male writer may have created the Manuscript Recipe Book, [1838]. Emma Hinricks Hilken is the only one known to have resided outside the United States when writing her recipe book (she resided in Frankfurt, Germany, for several years following her marriage). The women range in age from teenagers to the elderly and represent a variety of social backgrounds. Most of the recipe books were written or compiled in the second half of the nineteenth century, with some extending into the early twentieth. Approximately one-fifth of them were written in the first half of the nineteenth century or earlier.

See the box and folder listing below for a complete descriptive list of the recipe books present in this collection.

Collection

Plumer family penmanship and cypher books, 1831-1832

13 volumes

This collection is made up of seven penmanship books and six cypher books kept by brothers Stephen Plumer, Daniel T. Plumer, Horace Plumer, and unidentified individuals, dating from 1831-1832 (11 volumes are undated). As the books came from the same source, the unidentified volumes are likely by members of the Plumer family of Newbury, Massachusetts.

The seven penmanship books include two by Daniel T. Plumer, one by Stephen Plumer, and four by unidentified individuals. The students practiced writing individual words and short, largely moral and practical statements. Examples include: "Circumspection," "Saratoga," "Cherokee," "Choctaw," "Empyrean," "Command respect by deportment," "Incumber not the mind with toys," "Sound the waters of science," "God made the world," and many others.

The cypher books include one by Horace Plumer and the others by unidentified individuals. The volumes include arithmetic, decimals and fractions, proportions, weights and measures, Federal and English money, currency exchange, mercantile word problems, copies of bills of exchange, alligation, and interest.