W.A. Currier Daybooks, 1865-1869

The collection is open for research.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

W.A. Currier's daybooks document the activities of a hardware store merchant in mid-19th-century Haverhill, Massachusetts. A significant portion of his business appears to be with contractors of some sort, based on the volume and frequency of purchases. On September 16, 1865, for instance, Peter Gildea purchased $152 worth of brushes, brooms, lamps, trowels, baskets, and door stoppers. Three days later he charged another $178 worth of paint, trays, brushes, and other goods. George Adams, Samuel Griffin, W.P. Stacy, and J.W. O'Brine (of Newburyport) in addition to Gildea are all regular customers making large purchases. There is also a steady stream of customers making more limited purchases.

Another part of Currier's trade, however, involved the repair of and trade in stoves. In the 1867 Massachusetts Business Directory, Currier is listed as a stove dealer and tinsmith. He routinely bought old stoves, repaired them, and then resold them. Currier also did a fairly substantial trade in old rags. On July 9, 1866, for example, he purchased some 1400 pounds of rags from J.W. O'Brine. A month earlier he bought over 2800 pounds from another customer. He also made much smaller purchases of rags from local customers. The rags, in turn, he sold to O. Kimball and W.F. Daniels in large shipments, although it is not known for what purpose.

Currier's store was on Main Street in Haverhill, apparently in the section that used to be called Bradford but was later annexed to Haverhill.

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