The University of Massachusetts Amherst
Robert S. Cox Special Collections & University Archives Research Center
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Tyler, Philemon L., b. 1812

Phileman L. Tyler Daybooks

1841-1852
2 vols. 0.25 linear feet
Call no.: MS 236 bd

The shoemaker, Philemon L. Tyler, was born in Massachusetts in 1812. He and his wife Tersilla, also a native of Massachusetts, settled in New York some time before the birth of their first child in 1838. By 1850, after at least a decade in the village of Springville in the agricultural town of Concord, New York, Tyler had three children, and real estate valued at $4,400.

Daybooks include a record of the prices of boots and shoes, and the method and form of payment (rarely cash, sometimes labor, but often apples, potatoes, chicken, wheat, mutton, pork, beef, hay, and other farm products such as cow hides and calf skins).

Biographical Note

Philemon L. Tyler was born in Massachusetts in 1812. He and his wife Tersilla, also a native of Massachusetts, settled in New York some time before the birth of their first child in 1838. By 1850, after at least a decade in the village of Springville in the agricultural town of Concord, New York, Tyler had three children, and real estate valued at $4,400.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The two daybooks span the years from 1841 to a few notations in 1852. They document the prices of boots and shoes and exchange system that typified farming communities in the northeast. Customers paid Tyler with apples, potatoes, chicken, wheat, mutton, pork, beef, and hay, among other farm products, and only rarely in cash. In some cases, labor rather than products was exchanged. Edward Rushmore built stairs for Tyler in 1842; Henry Fuller paid his bill by one day’s work with a team moving goods from Yorkshire. Of course, many farmers with livestock traded cow hides or calf skins for Tyler’s wares. At times, customers accumulated quite substantial debts for a small-shop shoemaker; when E.W. Worth settled his accounts on January 9, 1845, the total amounted to $54.70, although Tyler’s boots never cost more than $3.50 per pair.


Information on Use
Terms of Access and Use
Restrictions on access:

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Cite as: Philemon L. Tyler Daybooks (MS 236). Special Collections and University Archives, W.E.B. Du Bois Library, University of Massachusetts Amherst.

History of the Collection

Processing Information

Processed by Ken Fones-Wolf.


Additional Information

Sponsor
Encoding funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Language
English.


Subjects

Barter--New York--Erie County--History--19th centuryBoots--Prices--New York--Erie County--History--19th centuryDebtor and creditor--New York--Erie County--History--19th centuryErie County (N.Y.)--Economic conditions--19th centuryErie County (N.Y.)--Rural conditions--19th centuryHides and skins--New York--Erie County--History--19th centuryShoemakers--New York--Erie County--Economic conditions--19th centuryShoes--Prices--New York--Erie County--History--19th centurySpringville (Erie County, N.Y.)--Economic conditions--19th centurySpringville (Erie County, N.Y.)--Rural conditions--19th century

Contributors

Tyler, Phileman L., 1812-

Types of material

Daybooks