1804 Norwich CT Merchant Order Bohea Tea Indigo Avery & Tracy Bushnell... For Sale

The order asks that the goods be sent “by Capt. Wheeler” and includes:

• 1/2 lb. Bohea tea
• 1/4 lb. snuff
• 2 ounces of “your best indigo”
• 1 lb. tobacco

The account is charged to Jonathan Martin Bushnell, with the reverse docket abbreviated as:

“Jon. Bushnells
Ord. for Sunds
Nov. 10th 1804”

“Sunds” is shorthand for “sundries,” the common merchant term for assorted goods.

The firm of Avery & Tracy consisted of Samuel Avery and Major Thomas Tracy, two established Norwich merchants whose partnership is documented in surviving local records and merchant account books.

Samuel Avery (1752–1844) was born in Groton, Connecticut, and later settled in Norwich. He married Candace Charlton in 1781, served during the Revolutionary era, became active in Norwich civic affairs, and was chosen as a town selectman in 1805. He lived to the age of 92 and is buried in Old Norwichtown Cemetery.

Major Thomas Tracy (1769–1806) belonged to one of Norwich’s oldest families and descended from the Tracy line associated with the town’s early settlement. He was a merchant and militia officer and was long associated with Avery in the firm of Avery & Tracy.

The family connection between the partners is especially interesting. On October 10, 1804, only one month before this order was written, Thomas Tracy married Elizabeth Avery, daughter of Samuel Avery. Thus, at the exact moment this document was created, Avery & Tracy had become both a business partnership and a father-in-law/son-in-law relationship.

Thomas Tracy died only two years later, in December 1806, at the age of 37.

The customer named in the order appears as Jonathan Martin Bushnell, while the filing docket simply calls him “Jon. Bushnell.”

The strongest genealogical connection places him within the old Bushnell family of Norwich and Franklin, Connecticut.

A likely candidate is Martin Bushnell, born January 3, 1780, son of Jonathan Bushnell and Jerusha Hyde. He would have been 24 years old when this order was written. He later appears in local military and land records and belonged to the long-established Bushnell family of the Norwich West Farms / Franklin area.

The exact identification of the customer should still be considered probable rather than absolutely proven, but the Norwich Bushnell connection is strong.

The letter requests that the goods be sent:

“by Capt Wheeler”

Capt. Wheeler was most likely a coastal or Thames River vessel captain, perhaps operating a sloop, schooner, or packet between Norwich, New London, and other ports.

In the early 19th century, captains routinely carried small merchant parcels and household consignments for customers along their regular routes. Without a first name or vessel name, Wheeler cannot yet be identified with certainty.

The commodity list gives this small document broader historical interest.

Bohea tea was an inexpensive Chinese black tea and one of the most commonly consumed teas in early America. Its presence reflects the continued importance of the China trade to American households after the Revolution.

Indigo was a valuable dyestuff used in textile production and clothing manufacture. The phrase “your best indigo” suggests the customer specifically requested a higher-grade product.

Snuff and tobacco were also common early American consumer goods and part of the wider Atlantic commodity trade.

Together, the order offers a compact glimpse into the international commercial networks supplying an ordinary Connecticut household in 1804.

An especially interesting research angle is that business records of Avery & Tracy survive in institutional collections, including merchant account books covering the period of this order.

That raises the possibility that the Bushnell account, and perhaps even this exact November 10, 1804 transaction, may still be traceable in surviving ledgers.

Original handwritten document on period laid paper.

The piece was folded for filing, with the merchant docket written on the reverse. A small remnant of green thread or binding material survives at one edge, likely associated with an old merchant file or bundle.

Expected age-related toning, folds, light staining, edge wear, and minor handling marks are present. Please review photographs carefully for exact condition.

Front:

Messrs Avery & Tracy
Norwich Novr. 10th 1804

we wish by Capt Wheeler
1/2 a lb Bohea Tea
1/4 of Snuff
2 ounces of Your Best Indigo
1 lb Tobacco. & Charge to
Jonathan Martin Bushnell

Reverse:

Jon. Bushnells
Ord. for Sunds
Nov 10th 1804

An appealing original piece of Federal-era Connecticut commercial history, combining an identifiable Norwich merchant firm, an old local family, coastal transportation, and goods tied directly to the early American China and Atlantic trades.

A particularly nice item for collectors of early American manuscripts, Connecticut history, Norwich history, merchant ephemera, China trade material, tea history, tobacco history, genealogy, or early 19th-century commerce.