Letterbook, 1810-1815.

ArchivalResource

Tuckerman and Rogers (Firm). Letterbook, 1810-1815.

Letterbook, 1810-1815.

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/191259821

This letterbook, for the firm Tuckerman and Rogers, contains copies of letters, for the years 1810 to 1815, sent by the partners to their agent in England, Thomas Parkman Cushing, and to several London merchants including Samuel Williams, Lodges and Tooth, and Bainbridges and Brown. The letters appear to have been copied by various secretaries. The letters to Cushing contain highly detailed instructions concerning the purchase and shipment of large quantities and types of fabric that were most and least likely to sell; the procurement of items for sale that were fashionable in London; and the manner of payment (e.g., cash, credit, or the acceptance of British merchants of bills held against debtors in lieu of cash). The letters are highly informative in terms of the business practices of the period and the competition among Boston merchants, as well as concerning the difficulties that American merchants experienced just prior to the War of 1812. Tuckerman and Rogers bemoaned the Nonintercourse Act and anticipated its repeal. Their troubles returned when the Macon Act was enforced against England in 1811, and they had to relinquish their autumn trade. The letters written after 1810 reflect the company's determination to export as many goods as possible before the outbreak of war, or to secure their property in England in order to avoid confiscation. The partners referred Cushing to London merchant and shipper, Samuel Williams, for guidance in the purchase of goods in Williams' name or the purchase of American Stock. Tuckerman and Rogers expressed "little confidence in the disposition of their own rulers." There is no correspondence during the period 30 November 1811 to 29 March 1814. The letters to Cushing and Williams in 1814 become rather cryptic and refer to the need to "adopt any course ... for our joint interest" during the war. Attempts were made to determine how safely to renew trade (e.g., ship English goods to Amsterdam, then to America as Dutch goods) until "this most wicked war" should end. In 1815, following the signing of the Treaty of Ghent, the letters of Tuckerman and Rogers contain renewed instructions on orders of fabric types and quantities, and comment on changes in business attitudes in Boston since the war. Several letters throughout the volume contain news of family and friends whom Tuckerman and Cushing had in common.

1 v. (90 leaves), ; folio.

Gadsden Public Library