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This collection consists of correspondence between members of the Davenport and Kingsbury families of Bradford and Dorchester, Massachusetts, and Rutland and Brandon, Vermont. Elijah ("E.") Davenport wrote to his family about frontier life in Wisconsin and Iowa in the 1850s, and his family members wrote about social and religious life in Vermont during the late 1860s and 1870s.

This collection (50 items) consists of correspondence between members of the Davenport family of Dorchester, Massachusetts, and Rutland and Brandon, Vermont. Between August 29, 1853, and July 7, 1858, Elijah ("E.") Davenport wrote 13 letters to his father, Elijah L. Davenport, and to his sister Augusta, both of whom lived in Dorchester, Massachusetts. He wrote from Prospect Hill, Wisconsin, and Webster County, Iowa, describing his attempts to find work on the Wisconsin and Iowa frontier and commenting on the weather, construction of log cabins, agriculture, and local politics. He intended to farm, and grew potatoes while constructing a log cabin for himself. He also mentioned the culinary use of a special corn and his fondness for a local variety of bread (November 29, 1857).

The bulk of the collection consists of letters to Charlotte M. Kingsbury (née Field) of Bradford, Massachusetts, and her husband, Reverend John D. Kingsbury, from her parents, William M. and Minerva K. Field, and her grandfather, Barzillai Davenport, all of Rutland and Brandon, Vermont. Her family provided local news and often commented on religious matters; for example, her father praised her for joining the Church of Christ (February 20, 1857). They occasionally mentioned other news stories, such as a destructive windstorm (November 22, 1869), and the sinking of the Atlantic (April 16, 1873). Two of Minerva Field's later letters are addressed to Katie and Mattie Kingsbury, her granddaughters. The collection also has 5 receipts concerning purchases made by Ellis J. Burnham in Cambridgeport and Essex, Massachusetts, between 1876 and 1880.

The Elisha Burton ledger records financial transactions for liquor, wood, labor, and other goods and services in and around Norwich, Vermont, throughout the early 19th century.

The Elisha Burton ledger (444 pages) records financial transactions for liquor, wood, labor, and other goods and services in and around Norwich, Vermont, and Upper Alton, Illinois, throughout the early 19th century. The volume, entitled "Elisha Burton Ledger No. 2nd," begins on November 21, 1811, and contains entries for a number of Burton family members and for prominent residents in Norwich and in nearby Hanover. On the first page is a list of subscribers for a new meetinghouse on "Norwich plan," and this is followed by early accounts of figures carried over from the previous ledger. Commodities include whiskey, gin, cider, foodstuffs, bricks, and wood, though many of the later entries pertain to labor, renting carts and draft animals, and room and board. More specific mentions of labor often refer to chopping wood and other work with lumber; on one occasion, a grave was dug for Mary Burton, a widow (p. 134). After the first 337 pages of accounts, a few entries at the back of the volume relate to property held by the Burton family, including an inventory of Julia Ann Burton's possessions (p. 434), and deposits made by John B. C. Burton's siblings Edward and Eliza toward their respective shares of his estate. A late account records Joseph Burton's finances before he left for Illinois on September 24, 1834 (p. 440). Several additional items, primarily recording financial records, are laid into the volume, along with a set of directions for making shoe soles.

This collection consists of 35 copies of government records kept between 1820 to 1833 by Vermont "selectmen and civil authority" figures regarding the nomination and approval of individuals for tavern keepers, inn keepers, and keepers of houses of public entertainment, predominantly in Rutland County, likely as a precursor to secure licenses. Many of the documents include the names of individuals approved to run the establishments, details about the government officials and bodies who granted permission, and various fees. Predominantly administrative in nature, they do include occasional statements reflecting on social norms and expectations, like reflections on nominees who "will Keep orderly Houses and accommodate the Public" (March 1, 1824) or that the individual is allowed to "Retail Spirits" (April 23, 1833). Named places include Pawlet, Castleton, Shrewsbury, Tinmouth, Rutland, Clarendon, Orwell, Benson, Sudbury, Pittsfield, Sherburne, Parkerstown, Pittsford, Brandon, Benson, Poultney, Ira, and Danby.

This collection consists of 35 copies of government records kept between 1820 to 1833 by Vermont "selectmen and civil authority" figures regarding the nomination and approval of individuals for tavern keepers, inn keepers, and keepers of houses of public entertainment, predominantly in Rutland County, likely as a precursor to secure licenses. Many of the documents include the names of individuals approved to run the establishments, details about the government officials and bodies who granted permission, and various fees. Predominantly administrative in nature, they do include occasional statements reflecting on social norms and expectations, like reflections on nominees who "will Keep orderly Houses and accommodate the Public" (March 1, 1824) or that the individual is allowed to "Retail Spirits" (April 23, 1833). Named places include Pawlet, Castleton, Shrewsbury, Tinmouth, Rutland, Clarendon, Orwell, Benson, Sudbury, Pittsfield, Sherburne, Parkerstown, Pittsford, Brandon, Benson, Poultney, Ira, and Danby.

This collection consists of 35 copies of government records kept between 1820 to 1833 by Vermont "selectmen and civil authority" figures regarding the nomination and approval of individuals for tavern keepers, inn keepers, and keepers of houses of public entertainment, predominantly in Rutland County, likely as a precursor to secure licenses. Many of the documents include the names of individuals approved to run the establishments, details about the government officials and bodies who granted permission, and various fees. Predominantly administrative in nature, they do include occasional statements reflecting on social norms and expectations, like reflections on nominees who "will Keep orderly Houses and accommodate the Public" (March 1, 1824) or that the individual is allowed to "Retail Spirits" (April 23, 1833). Named places include Pawlet, Castleton, Shrewsbury, Tinmouth, Rutland, Clarendon, Orwell, Benson, Sudbury, Pittsfield, Sherburne, Parkerstown, Pittsford, Brandon, Benson, Poultney, Ira, and Danby.

This collection consists of 35 copies of government records kept between 1820 to 1833 by Vermont "selectmen and civil authority" figures regarding the nomination and approval of individuals for tavern keepers, inn keepers, and keepers of houses of public entertainment, predominantly in Rutland County, likely as a precursor to secure licenses. Many of the documents include the names of individuals approved to run the establishments, details about the government officials and bodies who granted permission, and various fees. Predominantly administrative in nature, they do include occasional statements reflecting on social norms and expectations, like reflections on nominees who "will Keep orderly Houses and accommodate the Public" (March 1, 1824) or that the individual is allowed to "Retail Spirits" (April 23, 1833). Named places include Pawlet, Castleton, Shrewsbury, Tinmouth, Rutland, Clarendon, Orwell, Benson, Sudbury, Pittsfield, Sherburne, Parkerstown, Pittsford, Brandon, Benson, Poultney, Ira, and Danby.