- Title
- Hopestill Foster ledger, 1759-1773 (inclusive)
- Foster, Hopestill., creator
- Massachusetts
- Ledger of Boston lumber dealer Hopestill Foster (circa 1701-1772), recording charges for lumber and woodworking, as well as rent of his properties, dated from 1759 to 1773. An incomplete index in the front of the volume includes several African American men, Scipio Gunney, Abraham, and Morocol, who were likely renting houses from Foster, Massachusetts Governor Thomas Hutchinson (1711-1780; Harvard AB 1727), former governor William Dummer (1677-1761), and various Boston merchants, manufacturers, tradespeople, and civil servants, among them Robert Love, Stephen Minot, Stephen Greenleaf, carpenter Samuel Fenno, Peter Johonnot, Jane Williams, Joseph How, Samuel Ruggles, Ebenezer Storer, and John Rowe. There are also entries for extended and immediate family such as his brother James Foster, children Hopestill Foster, Jr., and Sarah Hanners, and orphans Anne and Zabiah Foster. Pages for a number of the individuals referenced in the index have been cut out. Included are an account against the boat Four Friends for outfitting the ship and labor, which was balanced in part by shoes for Cato, possibly enslaved by Foster, and Anne; and an account against the town of Boston to pay Foster’s bill to the Overseers of the Poor. In at least one case, Foster accepted as payment the hire of an enslaved person; although the page containing the name of the debtor has been removed, the index indicates the account might belong to either John Fuller or Henderson Inches (1726-1780), a Boston merchant and ropewalk owner.
- .25 linear feet (1 volume)
- English
- Ledgers (account books)
- Books and documents
- Foster, Hopestill
Boats and boating--Maintenance and repair--Massachusetts
Barter accounting
Local building materials--Massachusetts
Lumber--Massachusetts
Lumber trade--Massachusetts
African Americans--Massachusetts--History--18th century
Landlord and tenant--Massachusetts--Boston
Boston (Mass.)--History--Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775 - Collections and items have been digitized with the generous support of The Polonsky Foundation.
See also: Manuscripts in Baker Library (4th ed., 1978), Entry 242.
Electronic finding aid available: http://id.lib.harvard.edu/ead/bak00840/catalog - Hopestill Foster (circa 1701-1772) was a lumber dealer and landlord in Boston. He sold processed lumber in the form of planks, boards, and shingles, and unprocessed lumber, and provided his services as a carpenter. Foster also owned a number of properties he rented as residential housing.
- Hopestill Foster Ledger. Baker Library, Harvard Business School.
- Colonial North American Project at Harvard University
- Baker Library, Harvard Business School, Harvard University
- 990146396890203941
- Title
- Hopestill Foster ledger, 1759-1773 (inclusive)
- Creator / Contributor
- Foster, Hopestill., creator
- Place of Origin
- Massachusetts
- Description
- Ledger of Boston lumber dealer Hopestill Foster (circa 1701-1772), recording charges for lumber and woodworking, as well as rent of his properties, dated from 1759 to 1773. An incomplete index in the front of the volume includes several African American men, Scipio Gunney, Abraham, and Morocol, who were likely renting houses from Foster, Massachusetts Governor Thomas Hutchinson (1711-1780; Harvard AB 1727), former governor William Dummer (1677-1761), and various Boston merchants, manufacturers, tradespeople, and civil servants, among them Robert Love, Stephen Minot, Stephen Greenleaf, carpenter Samuel Fenno, Peter Johonnot, Jane Williams, Joseph How, Samuel Ruggles, Ebenezer Storer, and John Rowe. There are also entries for extended and immediate family such as his brother James Foster, children Hopestill Foster, Jr., and Sarah Hanners, and orphans Anne and Zabiah Foster. Pages for a number of the individuals referenced in the index have been cut out. Included are an account against the boat Four Friends for outfitting the ship and labor, which was balanced in part by shoes for Cato, possibly enslaved by Foster, and Anne; and an account against the town of Boston to pay Foster’s bill to the Overseers of the Poor. In at least one case, Foster accepted as payment the hire of an enslaved person; although the page containing the name of the debtor has been removed, the index indicates the account might belong to either John Fuller or Henderson Inches (1726-1780), a Boston merchant and ropewalk owner.
- Extent
- .25 linear feet (1 volume)
- Language
- English
- Genre
- Ledgers (account books)
- Digital Format
- Books and documents
- Subjects
- Foster, Hopestill
Boats and boating--Maintenance and repair--Massachusetts
Barter accounting
Local building materials--Massachusetts
Lumber--Massachusetts
Lumber trade--Massachusetts
African Americans--Massachusetts--History--18th century
Landlord and tenant--Massachusetts--Boston
Boston (Mass.)--History--Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775 - Notes
- Collections and items have been digitized with the generous support of The Polonsky Foundation.
See also: Manuscripts in Baker Library (4th ed., 1978), Entry 242.
Electronic finding aid available: http://id.lib.harvard.edu/ead/bak00840/catalog - Biographical / Historical Note
- Hopestill Foster (circa 1701-1772) was a lumber dealer and landlord in Boston. He sold processed lumber in the form of planks, boards, and shingles, and unprocessed lumber, and provided his services as a carpenter. Foster also owned a number of properties he rented as residential housing.
- Cite As
- Hopestill Foster Ledger. Baker Library, Harvard Business School.
- Series
- Colonial North American Project at Harvard University
- Repository
- Baker Library, Harvard Business School, Harvard University
- Record ID
- 990146396890203941
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