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The Eyre Coote papers contain the military, family, and estate material of Sir Eyre Coote, a prominent British officer who participated in the Revolutionary war and many military expeditions in the early 19th century. The papers include military commissions, letters and letterbooks, orderly books, journals, notebooks, diaries, financial accounts, genealogical material, estate and legal papers, newspapers, and maps. The following calendar contains item-level description and additional background information on the Coote genealogy: Eyre Coote Papers Calendar.

The Eyre Coote papers consist of 41 boxes containing 1,925 numbered items, covering Eyre Coote’s military papers and family and estate material. These include: 13 Eyre Coote military commissions; 1,160 military letters, mostly to Coote; 22 letterbooks, containing copies of Coote’s correspondence, predominately to military and political figures; 69 orderly books covering Coote’s career from 1775 to 1809; 35 journals, notebooks, and diaries recording expedition details, day-to-day activities, and financial accounts; 14 items of genealogical material; 359 family letters; 200 financial papers; 235 estate and legal papers; 26 bound family and estate volumes; 83 newspapers, nearly all collected by Eyre Coote (1857-1925) with various references to either Sir Eyre Coote or the Coote family; and 40 maps.

The Military Papers series contains the letters, letterbooks, orderly books, and journals of Eyre Coote; these papers are organized into five subseries. See Additional Descriptive Data for a timeline of Eyre Coote's military placements.

The Commissions subseries (13 items) is comprised of Eyre Coote's official military commissions, from his assignment as an adjutant in the 37th Regiment in 1778 to his appointment as colonel of the 34th (Cumberland) Regiment in 1810. Such notable officers as William Howe, Henry Clinton, Thomas Townshend, William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck, and Thomas Pelham signed these documents.

The Military Correspondence and Documents subseries (1160 items) consists of letters and documents concerning Coote's activities in the British military. These cover his role in the Revolutionary War with the 37th Regiment; his expedition to Egypt and the Mediterranean; his governorship in Jamaica; and his service in England, Ireland, and the Netherlands. Item types include letters from all ranks of the British army and navy; copies of letters written by Coote; accounts and receipts for supplies and payment of Coote's regiments; general orders, instructions, regulations, and memoranda; and copies of addresses given to various military and political audiences. Correspondence topics include notable military events and division maneuvers; regimental management, reviews and inspections; disciplinary actions and courts martial; capture and requests for parole; appointments, promotions, the purchases of ranks; military intelligence; soldier defections; and health and sickness of soldiers and family.

• A Loyalist poem entitled "An address to Americans" [1775]
• Revolutionary War items concerning the 37th Regiment in Virginia and Pennsylvania (1776-1782)
• Private six-page memorandum containing Coote's description of landing near Ostend, his destroying the gates, and his subsequent capture (May 1798)
• Letters between Coote and John Hely-Hutchinson concerning the British/French conflict in Egypt, including 5 reports from Coote on the state of the Abū Qīr Hospital (March 1801)
• Material documenting Coote's governorship of Jamaica, such as letters from British Administration at Downing Street, including one item from Robert Stewart Castlereagh warning of the likelihood of a "negro insurrection" (April, 4, 1807), and material related to slavery and the slave trade in the West Indies
• Letters describing the attack and unsuccessful occupation of Walcheren, Netherlands, (1809)
• Two printed reports on the parliamentary inquiry into the Walcheren expedition (published 1811)

This series contains two printed items: two findings of the parliamentary inquiry into the Walcheren expedition, published in 1811.

The Letter Books subseries (22 volumes) consists of books with copies of letters to and from Coote concerning his military activities (1786-1809).

• Bandon, Ireland, 1796-1798
• Ostend, Netherlands, 1798
• Dover, England, 1798-1801
• Alexandria, Egypt, 1801
• Southampton, England, 1800-1801
• Athlone, Loughrea, Castlebar, Fermoy and Cork, Ireland, 1803-1804
• Jamaica, 1805-1808
• Walcheren, Netherlands, 1809

Many of the copied letters concern other British officers, including: Major Boulter Johntone, Captain Thomas Neill, Lieutenant Thomas Walsh, and Lieutenant Colonel William Yorke, among others. Of note are copies of messages from the Jamaican House of Assembly with Coote's replies and speeches (21 October 1806 -- 5 April 1808).

The Order Books subseries (69 volumes) consists of regimental and battalion orderly books and rosters, as well as books of general orders.

• 37th Regiment of Light Infantry's activities in Dublin, Ireland; York Island [Manhattan], New York; and Elkton, Maryland; their march towards Chadds Ford, New Jersey; their participation in the Battle of Brandywine; and their efforts at Germantown, Philadelphia, Jamaica [Long Island], and New York City, 1775-1779
• Battalion Order Book: Staten Island; at sea; James Island; Drayton House; William’s House; Charleston; Monk’s Corner; Philipsburg, South Carolina; and Flushing, New York, 1779-1781
• 47th Regiment at New York and later at various English cities: Lancaster; Preston; Warrington; Warrington [Cheshire]; Whitehaven [Cumbria]; Whitehaven; Drogheda; and Limerick, Ireland, 1781-1785
• Also a duty roll of the 56th and 47th Regiments for 6 September 1783
• Standing orders for the 70th or Surrey Regiment, 1786
• Standing orders for the Sussex Regiment of militia, 1792
• General Order Book of the expedition to the West Indies, 1793-1794, with headquarters in Barbados, Guadeloupe, and Port Royal, Martinique
• General and Garrison Order Book of the regiment garrisoned at Dover, Canterbury, Bandon and Dunmanway, Cork, throughout 1797-1799
• General Order Book for the expedition to Ostend, Netherlands,1798-1799
• General and battalion orders for the expedition to Helder, Netherlands, headquartered at Schagerburg and Helder
• General orders for the expedition to Egypt, at sea on board HMS Kent, and at headquarters in Alexandria, 1800-1801
• General and district orders for the regiment garrisoned at Dublin, Cork, and the south-western district, Ireland, 1804
• General orders for the regiment intended for the West Indies, including Jamaica, 1805-1808
• General orders for the regiment intended for Walcheren Island, Netherlands, expedition, garrisoned at Portsmouth, London, and ‘at sea’ and later at headquarters in Middleburg and on Walcheren Island. Endorsed ‘Lieut.-Colonel [Thomas] Walsh', 1809

• A list of the General and Field Officers, as they Rank in the Army. Printed by J. Millan, London, 1758 (160 pages).
• Standing Orders to be Observed in the 47th (or Lancashire) Regiment, by Order of Lieutenant-Col. Paulus Æmilus Irving. Printed by Edward Flin, opposite Quay-Lane, Limerick, 1785. (40 pages with additional blank forms of documents).
• Regimental Standing Orders, Issued by the Field Officers and to be Observed by the 70th (or Surry [sic]) Regiment of Foot. And to be Read to the Men, with the Articles of War. Printed by Catherine Finn, Kilkenny, 1788 (50 pages with additional blank forms of documents).

The Journals and Notebooks subseries (35 items) contains journals, notebooks, and diaries related to both military and personal matters. Eyre Coote kept many volumes that contain his remarks and reflections on regiments, forts, and military expeditions lead by him. Fellow officers, including Major General Archibald Campbell, Major Henry Worsley, and Lieutenant Thomas Walsh, kept the other journals. Of particular interest are two of Walsh's journals kept during Coote's expedition to Egypt; these contain numerous maps of the region and sketches and watercolors of cities, landmarks, and monuments in Egypt and along the Mediterranean coast (June-December 1801). Locations mentioned are Alexandria, Egypt; Ceuta, Spain; Houat, France; Marmaris, Turkey; Tangiers, Morocco; and Valletta, Malta. Monuments pictured include the Grecian mausoleum at Marci; the Great Sphinx; the Great Pyramids of Giza; Pompey’s pillar; Cleopatra’s needle; Porte des Bombes; Palace of the Grand-Masters; and funeral monuments for various Grand Masters of the Order of St. John in Malta. Also of interest are 10 volumes recording Coote’s daily movements and his expenses (1784-1800).

The Family and Estate Material series contains genealogical materials, family correspondence, financial papers, and personal journals and notebooks; these are organized into five subseries.

The Genealogy Material and Notes subseries (14 items) consists of documents relating to Coote family genealogy. Among the 14 items are a 17th-18th century genealogical chart, a volume entitled Memoirs of the Anchent and Noble family of Coote (late 18th century), the wills of Reverend Chidley Coote (1730) and Sir Eyre Coote (1827), and memoranda of biographical information on Coote and the Coote family. The series also contains locks of hair from Eyre Coote's immediate family, and two official Coote seals.

The Family Correspondence subseries contains letters concerning various members of the Coote family.

• Coote, Eyre, Sir, 1726-1783, to Susan Hutchinson Coote
• Coote, Eyre, Sir, 1759-1823
• Coote, Jane Bagwell
• Fordingbridge Yeomanry Cavalry (1830-1833)
• Miscellaneous

The correspondence of Coote’s second wife Jane and his son Eyre are also catalogued under a separate heading. The remaining correspondence concerns Eyre Coote’s (d. 1834) education, and the organization of the Fordingbridge Yeomanry Cavalry.

The Financial Papers subseries contains 200 items largely grouped into bundles of bills and receipts for Eyre Coote and Lady Jane Coote's expenses. These include receipts for a service of china, a list of personal jewelry, and a veterinary bill for Coote's horses.

The Estate and Legal Papers subseries is organized into three groups: the Estates in Ireland (1798-1827); the Estates in England (1807-1828); and the Estate and family papers (1897-1925). These papers include letters and documents concerning leases and rent payments, property sales, land disputes, feuding tenants, land use (agriculture), property development, wills and estate transfers, and banking matters. This subseries also contains published correspondence between Coote's family and their legal representative, A plain statement of facts, relative to Sir Eyre Coote (London, 1816), relating to Coote's prosecution for indecency (1815-1816).

Lady Jane Coote handled many letters concerning the estates in Ireland, including decisions regarding raising or reducing rent and managing accounts that were in arrears. Other Ireland material includes 28 half-yearly accounts prepared by the firm Dublin and Maryborough, covering 1796-1817. The England papers largely concern the West Park property, which were largely handled by Eyre Coote. Of note are the audited income and expenditure accounts for West Park, prepared by William Baldwin (1815-1822) and a wine cellar inventory book (1810-1839 and 1966). Estate and family papers document Eyre Coote's (1857-1925) handling of the Coote properties.

The Family, Estate, and Financial Bound Volumes subseries contains the bound estate papers and the personal journals and notebooks of the Coote family. Estate volumes include an item containing copies of wills and accounts, and 5 lists of tenants at the Coote's West Park estate and their Irish estates. Among the personal items are two journals kept by Eyre Coote (1806-1834) that contain his observations of Italy and Switzerland (1821), and a sketchbook of pencil and ink drawings of coastlines, towns, boats, antiquities, buildings, and volcanoes, which he made while sailing in the Mediterranean. Financial volumes include private account books of Eyre Coote (1830-1864) and of his son Eyre Coote (1857-1925) and accounts for their West Park estate.

The Newspapers series contains 83 newspaper clippings, nearly all collected by Eyre Coote (1857-1925), with various references to either Sir Eyre Coote or the Coote family. These clippings span from 1766-1926 and come from 24 different publications (see Additional Descriptive Data for a complete list). Articles document honors bestowed upon the Coote family, death notices for members of the Coote family, and reports of Eyre Coote's activities in the House of Lords and in the military. Of note is an item mentioning the first Sir Eyre Coote's defeat of Hyder Ali at Porto Novo, Benin (The Gazetteer and New Daily Advertiser, December 18, 1781); a "Law Report" concerning Major Armstrong's attempt to summon Coote for a duel (The Times, June 11, 1801); and 16 items related to the Walcheren Expedition and Coote's attack on Flushing, Netherlands (The Morning Chronicle, July 1809-April 1810).

The Maps series (40 items) consists of maps of England, Ireland, the Netherlands, Portugal, and locations in the Mediterranean, including Egypt and Asia Minor (Turkey). Thirty-three maps are housed to the Map Division (see Additional Descriptive Data for list of maps). Additionally, the collection contains 63 maps found within the military papers, orderly books, journals, and notebooks. These have been cataloged and can be found in the University of Michigan library catalog (search for "Coote Maps").

The Manuscripts Division has detailed a calendar of the Eyre Coote papers. The following calendar contains item-level description and additional background information on the Coote genealogy: Eyre Coote Papers Calendar.

The Henry Newman family papers document Henry Newman's land speculation in the southeastern United States and Ohio, and Henry Newman, Jr.'s, efforts to manage these properties and resolve legal quandaries--primarily in relation to the family's involvement with the Yazoo Land Fraud. The collection also details activities of Henry Newman's other children, particularly William Newman and the business he established in Buffalo, New York, in the 1820s.

The Henry Newman Family Papers document Henry Newman's land speculation in the southeastern United States and Ohio, and Henry Newman, Jr.'s, efforts to manage these properties and resolve legal quandaries--primarily in relation to the family's involvement with the Yazoo Land Fraud. The collection also details activities of Henry Newman's other children, particularly William Newman and the business he established in Buffalo, New York, in the 1820s.

The bulk of the Correspondence Series is letters between Henry Newman and his son, Henry Newman, Jr., from 1803 to 1811, relating to the management of their land holdings. Notably, they discussed Henry Newman, Jr's, lobbying efforts in Washington, D.C., regarding their Georgia claims. In this work, he interacted with President Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), the commissioners appointed to consider the Yazoo land claims-- James Madison (1751-1836), Albert Gallatin (1761-1849), and Levi Lincoln (1749-1820)--as well as Perez Morton (1751-1837) and Gideon Granger (1767-1822), agents for the New England Mississippi Land Company. The letters from 1803 to 1811 periodically reference John Peck, another speculator in the Yazoo lands who would eventually become embroiled in the landmark Supreme Court Case Fletcher v. Peck in relation to the Georgia land claims.

Henry Newman, Jr., also wrote detailed letters to his father describing his travels, meetings, and financial difficulties as he worked to manage issues with land titles, taxes, surveys, squatters, and determining the quality of their disputed properties in Virginia, Mississippi, Alabama, and Ohio. Several of Henry Newman, Jr.'s, letters also describe his interest in Ohio, Tennessee, Kentucky, and western New York as developing centers of settlement, commenting on business prospects and rising land prices.

William Newman's letters detail his business enterprises in Buffalo, New York, where he settled in the 1820s. Other letters written between members of the Newman family, particularly the siblings, document the family's social life.

• Descriptions of meeting Samuel Blodget (1757-1814) in Debtor's Prison and discussions regarding his failed lottery to finance construction in Washington, D.C. (November 26, 1803; November 30, 1803; December 11, 1803; December 21, 1803)
• Land speculators' deliberate fraud in Virginia (December 10, 1803; November 9, 1805)
• Legislative negotiations concerning compensating Yazoo claimants (March 5, 1804; March 14, 1804; December 2, 1804; December 18, 1804; February 4, 1805; February 18, 1805; February 28, 1807)
• Mentions of the Burr conspiracy (January 28, 1807; February 1, 1807)
• Tennessee Governor Willie Blount's comments on Congressional support for settlement in the state and the possible threat of Native American conflict should war break out with Great Britain (March 17, 1812)
• Discussion of Ohio's promise as a site of settlement (December 2, 1804; January 28, 1807; February 28, 1807)
• Description of Huntsville, Alabama Territory, and its prospects (July 16, 1818; May 5, 1819)
• Prospects for settling in Texas and inducements provided by the Mexican government (October 27, 1833)
• Commentary on a German communal society (the Community of True Inspiration) and how the rising value of western New York lands convinced them to emigrate (April 15, 1856)

The Land and Estate Documents Series consists of eight items relating to the estates of William Newman and Henry Newman, Jr., as well as documents concerning Newman lands in Alabama, Mississippi, and Virginia, including three survey maps.

The Genealogy, Family Record, and Poetry Series consists of six items, which relate to the Newman and Cushing families' histories, including a detailed account of Henry Newman's final illness and an acrostic poem written for Henry Newman.

The John Fraser Estate collection consists of letters and legal documents relating to the drawn-out litigation over John Fraser's property in Eastern Florida, which he left to his African-born children. His sister disputed the validity of the will based on the race of the children, and the dispute was drawn out for decades, as executors and lawyers mismanaged the property.

The John Fraser Estate collection consists of 22 letters and documents relating to the litigation for the disputed estate of John Fraser, one of the wealthiest men in Eastern Florida at the time of his death in 1813. The collection begins with a 30-page probate document from William Robertson and Ann Fraser Robinson, Fraser's sister who contests the legitimacy of his will on the grounds that his wife and children were slaves. The probate document includes several "Exhibits" including a copy of the letter to his executors, in which he leaves the estate to his "natural children," whom he notes are "persons of colour" living in Africa. Another exhibit is an 1822 letter from one of his executors, describing the settlement of the estate and the sale of slaves and property. Also included is a detailed estate inventory, indicating that he owned " land, Negros, money, bank stocks and other things of value of three hundred thousand dollars, or upward," and listing by name and value many of his slaves and the values of the land and plantations that he owned. The Robertsons also contested the value of the estate, since much of it was destroyed in the Patriot War of 1812.

Subsequent items document Fraser's children's protracted legal fight for their inheritance between the years 1837 and 1857. These contain evidence of thousands of dollars in legal fees, and the convoluted ways the estate was divided and distributed over the course of the many legal disputes. By this time, only Fraser's youngest daughter Elizabeth was still alive. The 1850’s letters are from Elizabeth to her lawyer William W. Campbell as they approach a final settlement that would give her $12,500 for the remaining estate. The legal disputes, however, continued throughout the decade. The final letter, dated 1873, is from Henry Younge, son of Philip R. Younge (one of the original executors), who is still inquiring about the sale of Fraser's land in Florida. Together, these items closely document the latter part of a long and complicated legal battle, borne largely from untrustworthy executors and problems with ambiguities in interracial and transnational estates law in the 19th century.

This collection contains materials relating to the Loomis family of Columbia, Connecticut, between the 1820s and 1890s, primarily concerning the education of the children Ormond P., Mary, Emily, Aurelia, and Dwight. Educational content includes penmanship exercises, cypher books, drawings, maps, and various mathematical and astronomical calculations.The collection also includes documentation of Ormond P. Loomis's teaching, classroom, and students for Fall-Winter 1829-1830. An estate inventory produced upon the death of their father, Elam Loomis, in 1855 is also present, as well as a partially completed family record. Several pieces of poetry, speech notes, and other writings by members of the Loomis family are also included.

This collection contains materials relating to the Loomis family of Columbia, Connecticut, between the 1820s and 1890s, primarily concerning the education of the children Ormond P., Mary, Emily, Aurelia, and Dwight. Educational content includes penmanship exercises, cypher books, drawings, maps, and various mathematical and astronomical calculations. Some of the illustrations and pen work are based on Eleazer Huntington's The American Penman and on "Aaron Yeomans Instructor." Two are datelined "Pine Swamp." The collection also includes documentation of Ormond P. Loomis's teaching, classroom, and students for Fall-Winter 1829-1830. An estate inventory produced upon the death of their father, Elam Loomis, in 1855 is also present, as well as a partially completed family record. Several pieces of poetry, speech notes, and other writings by members of the Loomis family are also included.

• Penmanship and Forms, beginning January 23, 1828 (11 pages) kept by Ormond P. Loomis, featuring elegant, different scripts and illustrations.
• Penmanship exercise by Ormond P. Loomis: "Duties of Men," February 21, 1828; with an illustration of an American eagle and shield, with an ornate oval border.
• "Miscellaneous Matters &c." cypher book with astronomical content by Ormond P. Loomis, March 20, 1828.
• Two loose sheets with illustrated projections and calculations for solar eclipses in 1831 and 1836, dated April 1 and 3, 1829, produced by Ormond P. Loomis.
• Penmanship exercise, with different versions of Ormond P. Loomis' name, phonetically spelled with Hebrew and Greek characters, May 31, 1828.
• Illustration of an American eagle with a shield and banner, made by Ormond P. Loomis 1828.
• Illustrations of modern winged cherubim, with a quotation beginning "O! Righteous! thou lovely thing!", made by Ormond P. Loomis on January 18, 1829.
• Sheet of penmanship practice by Ormond P. Loomis with quotations on verso respecting eloquence, and a statement "Andrew Jackson of Tennessee President!", June 1829.
• Illustrated projection drawn by Ormond P. Loomis of the moon's eclipse of September 2, 1830, dated March 20, 1829.
• Illustration of an eagle with a banner by Ormond P. Loomis in 1828.
• "Journal kept at the 3rd school District in the school society in Hebron", maintained by Ormond P. Loomis in 1829. Including a foldout of tabular information about daily school attendance by 10 students, and daily weather. Concludes with a statement about why Loomis decided to leave the profession of teacher. A separate list identifies male and female students in the School Society in Hebron by class status.
• Two sheets with miscellaneous astronomical calculations, canal lengths, and numerical Christian Bible information produced by Ormond P. Loomis in 1830 and 1831.
• Handmade, stab-sewn volume with poetry, literature, and biblical extracts kept by Aurelia Loomis between 1838-1841.
• "Appendix to Report on Free Schools," compiled in 1847, possibly by Dwight Loomis before his graduation from Yale Law School.
• Circa 1855 volume inventorying the estate of Elam Loomis.
• Letter from Dwight Loomis to Mary Loomis dated March 26, 1863, and a copy of correspondence between Dwight Loomis and Cyrus White including a riddle about white lies dated February 21, 1889.
• Circa 1890s bound volume of notes for a speech to the Burpee Post of the Grand Army of the Republic about the Civil War, possibly by Dwight Loomis, concerning memorialization of the Civil War dead, naturalization, suffrage, citizenship, patriotism and education.
• Undated manuscript map of England, Ireland, and Scotland drawn by Ormond P. Loomis.
• Newspaper clipping showing demographic information for the states and territories in the United States, [1822?].
• Two undated pencil sketches drawn by Emily Loomis of the exterior of buildings, including the "Mill at Hartford."
• Undated poem about Abraham Lincoln, "Hitch Your Wagon to a Star," possibly written by Dwight Loomis.
• Undated "Family Record" for the Loomis family with entries for family members and their birth dates. Includes record of Loomis P. Ormond's death.
• Undated cypher book kept by Mary Loomis with several patriotic and religious calligraphic exercises.

The Wilkes County, Georgia collection is made up of probate inventories, estate records, indentures, receipts, accounts, and other documents relating to the inhabitants of Wilkes County, Georgia.

This collection contains 204 items, chiefly probate inventories, receipts, records of sales of decedents' property, indentures and other legal documents. Eighty-seven of the items pertain to the estate of Robert Toombs (d. 1826). Most of the items date from between 1778 and 1830. Twenty-one items date from 1839 to 1867; there are no probate inventories for those decades. Almost all of the material in this collection comes from Wilkes County, but a few documents are from other counties.

The probate inventories provide a wealth of details about the lives of Wilkes County residents, enslaved and free. Inventories can be used to reconstruct some details of slaves' lives. These documents show the number of slaves on plantations with the monetary value assigned to them, often give names of slaves, and indicate if women had children. Sometimes appraisers noted the names of a woman's children. For some decedents, the records of the disposition of estates show the scattering of slaves to various slaveholders as well as the distribution of other property. The "List of the property sold of Lewis Biddles Estate Deceased," has unusual value: It breaks down the slaves sold into family groups (information beyond the more frequent notations of mothers and children). A poignant 1828 estate sale record relates that Old Andrew and Old Amy were "offered & no bidder." The collection includes other material about slaves and slavery, such as records of the hiring out of slaves and a 1784 bond that expressed a preference for a "country born negroe boy." Four court documents from the late 1780s and early 1790s reveal cases of "Negroe Stealing" but with scant detail. Another court document, from 1792, declares that a Capt. John Man "saw a Negro man Ben, said to be the property of Richard Baily on the morning of the 29th June Instant, much wounded, which appeared to be done by shooting." Man testified that one Norcut Slaven had told Man that Slaven "has shot the said Negro Ben." The court took action against Slaven and other men, though the documents do not show the final outcome of the case. The records in this collection can be used to study the economy of Wilkes County. In addition to slaves, inventories list livestock and equipment, such as plows, cotton cards and looms, and blacksmiths' tools -- details that allow scholars to study the extent of plantations' self-sufficiency or participation in the market. With qualifications due to uncertainty about completeness, these inventories can be used to study wealth and consumption over time and to compare the lifestyles of the well-off versus the poor. The records also allow analysis of levels of literacy. The collection also offers information regarding material culture and consumption. William Grant furnished his house with "3 Painted Pine dressing tables," "1 Dozen Rush Bottom Chairs," and several pieces of mahogany furniture among other things. Inventories indicate that Wilkes County residents might own musical instruments, pillow cases, sugar dishes, custard cups, decanters, looking glasses, and books (occasionally listed by title) to name a few of the consumer goods that turn up in the records. The "Inventory of the estate and effects of William Rogers" suggests that Rogers may have been a teacher or bookseller. His books included Lessons for Reading, Schoolmasters asst, two copies of Ovid's Metamorphoses, a few dictionaries and a number of grammars. Some other miscellaneous inventory items listed were traps for rodents, 55 gallons of peach brandy, 22 thimbles, spice mortars, coffee mills and waffle irons.

Inventories can be used to study women's and men's legal and financial roles. Some probate inventories contain lists of debts. Women rarely served as administrators or controlled property that went through the probate process, but a few women appear in this collection in those positions. Women's presence is greatest as buyers of property sold at estate sales and as slaves. The collection contains a few wills, receipts, contracts and miscellaneous legal documents.

Approximately 80 documents about Robert Toombs's estate provide an especially full record of one family's spending on goods and services. Toombs's wife, Catherine, settled the estate's accounts over the few years after Toombs's death in 1826. Pages of accounts and receipts show the cost of education, library fees, the children's board, food, clothes, furniture, postage, medical services (including those of midwives), legal services, piano tuning, transportation, and taxes. The records also show the price that Toombs's got for their cotton and corn. A picture of the lives of the Toombs's family emerges from these records. The sons attended Franklin College, daughter Sarah Ann played the piano. The family received the Wesleyan Journal according to a receipt for paying postage for the journal. To drink, the Toombses might choose from coffee, gin, whisky or "the best Madeira Wine."