Name/Title
Diary, Volume 4, 1788-1790Entry/Object ID
1874.150.1Scope and Content
Fourth volume of the diary of Benjamin Simpson of Saco, 1781-1849. This volume covers the period October 12, 1788 through August 5, 1790. It is handwritten in ink on rag paper with a handsewn binding; it is now housed in a modern paper cover. Most of the entries are a single line. The date is listed at the top of each page, with individual entries (without dates) listed below. Simpson noted his major task of the day and the weather. His entries reflect the seasonal nature of the work of a man who owned a farm but also was a skilled mason. There is an overlap of dates in volume 3 (1874.150.31) and volume 4. Volume 4 begins with October 12, 1788. Volume 3 ends with March 31, 1789. The overlapping entries in each book are the same. Simpson may have continued this practice of using small notebooks to record daily events before transcribing them into large volumes, or he may have discontinued the practice at some point later in his life.
On Saturday, October 25, 1788, Simpson "fetched women to my wife. Had a son born." This was his son Joshua Simpson (1788-1872). He occasionally noted who had completed work for, including Colonel Thomas Cutts, Nicolas Dennett, John Cleaves, John Tucker, and George Hight. On the last page of this volume, Simpson made a parenthetical note that "Capt. Coke [or Cole] was killd by his son-in-law."Dimensions
Height
5-1/2 inWidth
3-1/2 in