1850–51 antique GENERAL STORE LEDGER willow street pa 624pp HISTORY pa german For Sale

1850–51 antique GENERAL STORE LEDGER willow street pa 624pp HISTORY pa german
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Offered here is a substantial mid-19th-century general store daybook / charge ledger, documenting daily commercial transactions in Willow Street, Pequea Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, spanning approximately March 1850 through January 1852.

This working ledger contains 624 handwritten pages and records the everyday economic life of a Pennsylvania German village, including dozens of named local residents making purchases on account, settling balances, and paying in cash. Entries are dated and headed “Willow Street” throughout, confirming a single fixed location rather than a traveling or personal account book.

Goods recorded include dry goods and textiles (calico, muslin, linen, thread, buttons), groceries and staples (sugar, coffee, molasses, flour, eggs, butter), hardware and household items (nails, tools, candles), alcohol (whiskey, brandy), postage, and occasional services. The ledger reflects year-round activity and seasonal buying patterns, making it a rich resource for genealogy, local history, and early American mercantile studies.

The proprietor is not identified by name in the ledger, which is typical for store daybooks of this period. The book represents the accounts of an unidentified Willow Street general store, not a personal ledger.

Physical details:

Original mid-19th-century ledger format

Approximately 15¾ × 6½ inches (tall narrow folio)

Leather-covered boards, heavily worn from use

Interior pages complete, legible, and densely written

Expected age wear, staining, and handling marks consistent with daily commercial use

A rare, long-run example of a Lancaster County general store ledger, substantially more extensive than the typical single-year volume.

PARTIAL LIST OF SURNAMES:

A–C

• Andrews

• Bachman

• Barr

• Beyer

• Bird

• Bickel

• Brubaker

• Charles

• Clinton

• Cook

• Condy

• Donovan

• Duffy

• Erb

• Fisher

• Garman

• Goss

• Harman

• Heist

• Heiser

• Herr

• Hess

• Jacoby

• Kendig

• Kreider

• Kurtz

• Lehman

• Long

• Martin

• Miller

• Mylin

• Reed

• Ressler

• Rineer

• Roth

• Shenk

• Smith

• Steer

• Stoner

• Urban

• Weaver

• Weidman

• Wenger

• Witmer

• Woods

Authentic period piece related to family, historyor local heritage - well-suited for historical collections, genealogical /genealogy research, or museum acquisition.Vintage or Antique.

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