WILLIAM BOLSTER'S DAY BOOK

The following is not to be copied, reproduced or distributed without the express permission of the transcriber, Larry Glatz, Harrison, Maine 04040.

Customers and transactions at William Bolster's fulling mill. Transcribed from the original journal in the collection of the Shaker Library, New Gloucester, Maine.

Items in square brackets are notes by the transcriber.

Items with question marks are difficult to read.  The resulting word is a "best guess." Although every transaction in the original journal indicates the sale or purchase of a specific item, only those items which seemed unusual or interesting were noted.  In
almost all other instances, the purchased items were quantities of cloth, items of finished clothing or dyes and other materials used in the manufacturing of cloth.

Common items of trade are "nom" [also, "no," "nomo," or "nomine"], "owd," "L.B.," and a series of tally marks, such as "///" [three marks] or "////" [four marks].  The meaning of these terms remains unknown to the transcriber.

The pages of the book, itself, are not numbered.  Page numbers below indicate sequential leaves of the book as counted by the transcriber.

William Bolster was born 23 June 1804 and died 17 September 1874.  He was the son of Isaac Bolster of Paris and Buckfield, Maine.  On 5 May 1834, he married Hannah Turner, the daughter of Thaddeus Turner (1767-1852) and Lydia (Spurr) Turner (1770-1855). Further information about him may be found in Spurr's "History of Otisfield," page 334.

In his book "Early Settlers of Harrison, Maine," Gideon Ridlon states that William Bolster "came to Harrison in 1826 and commensed the milling business with his brother, Isaac, building a mill for fulling and dressing cloth the same year." (p.26)

William Bolster kept this daybook from October, 1830, through December 1835.