Research: Flax and the Daybook of Josiah Brown

The Day Book of Josiah Brown, 1790 - 1833

by Kay Morgan, University of New Hampshire

 

Josiah Brown’s Day Book (1790 - 1833) demonstrates the multi-faceted life of a rural New Hampshire man as he marries and builds a life for himself. [1]  In the beginning of the day book he resides in Hampton Falls, New Hampshire, with his parents, but tends lands and livestock in Stratham.  He also makes and repairs shoes, slippers and “Mogisons,” and in 1791 “measures Land for two men.”  He continues these activities for most of his life, though in later years does not record making shoes any longer.

 

In 1792, he builds a house in Stratham at what is now 17 Jackrabbit Lane, and marries Sarah Clark in Greenland, New Hampshire. They move to their new home in June. Their lives revolve around the weather and the necessity to clothe and feed the family, as well as to have some marketable crops. Over the years, he grows and shells corn, cuts hay and salt marsh hay, makes gallons of apple cider, hauls logs, raises and slaughters cattle, oxen and hogs, and buys and sells horses.

 

While he still lives with his parents, he reports “I broke flax,” on January 20, 1791 and “dresses” flax on March 23rd. The next reference to flax occurs in 1794 when he notes “I sow’d flax where the worms ate it.” In 1799, he goes to Hampton Falls “after flax seed.” Even though he continues to note planting flax, usually when he plants oats and barley in late April and before he plants corn, there are no further notations regarding harvesting or working with the flax to produce thread for linen or seeds to sell.

 

Given that he is quite specific regarding taking his corn, hay, cider, potatoes and animals to market, and often specifies the price he gets, it seems that flax did not factor into his cash flow or potential bartering for other goods. This may not be surprising, in that usually men were involved in planting and harvesting flax, but women typically “skutched, hackled, carded, combed, spun and wove the fiber.” [2] The linen thus produced may have been entirely used by the family or shared with their extended family.  

A contemporaneous diary (1785 - 1812) of Martha Ballard, a Maine midwife, illuminates the distaff side of a family economy, the comings and goings of young women and the work they do to help with the massive undertaking of processing flax into thread and woven cloth. In the Ballard household, the fabric produced might be sold, bartered for other goods, or used by the family. The Pulitzer prize winning author of A Midwife’s Tale, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, develops the idea that in that era, young women living outside their own family was a form of education as well as a way to earn money. [3]

 

Each year Josiah records the names of the young women who come to work in the Brown household. This practice begins in May 1793 when he writes, “Lidia Tarlton began to work here.” At that point, his wife, Sarah, is one month from delivering their first child, a son named Nathan. In August, Lidia goes home and Betsy Clark comes to work. These girls provide household help for Sarah, which could include working with flax. Betsy stays on into November of 1795, when she “was took sick of the Billious fever.” She goes  home and Eunice Bachelor takes her place later in the month. From Josiah’s day book, it appears that Josiah and Sarah had a daughter born in 1796, who did not survive more than a day, so until 1810 and 1812, when Sarah and Mary Ann were born and then old enough to participate in household linen production, hired girls would have been a necessity.  It is interesting that Josiah didn’t mention these births in his daybook, though he reports the birth of every one of his eight sons.

 

A 1995 donation to the Stratham Historical Society included several homespun items made by various members of the extended Brown family.  Women often identified their work by embroidering their initials on a corner of the completed piece. Two pillowcases made by Sarah Clark Brown bear the initials SB in cross-stitch, and a sheet initialed AB in pink embroidery floss, was made by Abigail Brown, who married Greenleaf Clark Brown, Sarah and Josiah’s fourth son, March 6, 1828. She is also the maker of two hand towels which are stamped in ink with her initials and two pillowcases stamped with her name. [4] At present, we speculate they wove the cloth for these items, as specific items were passed down by family members and given the longstanding family connection with flax and linen as seen in Brown's daybook and extended family network; however, it is possible that the textiles were purchased or bartered from someone else who was the weaver.

 

Josiah Brown continues to plant flax according to his daybook, with the last notation three years before his death at age 68. His last years appear similar to his early years:  He surveys land, plants his fields, cuts hay and cornstalks, tends his livestock and notes the coming and going of his sons, their marriages and the weather. On October 14th and 15th, 1833, he writes: “I was unwell.”  On December 12, 1833, someone else notes “Josiah Brown Died and this Journal discontinued.

 

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[1] Josiah Brown Day Book is housed at the Stratham Historical Society, Stratham, New Hampshire, Accession #1989.3.11. More information may be found at  http://www.strathamnh.gov/historical-society .

 

Many thanks to Andra Copeland and the Stratham Historical Society for the use of their collections and their help with research.

 

[2] Sofi Thanhauser, Worn: A People’s History of Clothing (New York: Vintage Books, 2023), 12.

 

[3] Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, A Midwife’s Tale:  The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on Her Diary, 1785 - 1812 (New York:  Vintage Books, 1991), 81.

 

[4] Stratham Historical Society, Stratham, NH, Sewall/Brown Box:  Item marked SB. Accession #1995.30.2; Items marked AB, Accession #1995.30.1; Items stamped Abigail Brown, Accession#1995.30.5. 

Research: Flax and the Diary of Matthew Patten, Bedford, New Hampshire

By Beth Gallucci, History and Museum Studies MA Program

            Born in 1719 in Ulster, Ireland, Matthew Patten emigrated to America with his family in 1728. The Patten’s were among the many Scotch-Irish Presbyterian families who came to America to escape religious persecution in Northern Ireland.[1] Matthew and his brother Samuel moved to Souhegan-East in 1738 which is now known as Bedford, New Hampshire. Patten was a jack-of-all-trades like many New Hampshire settlers of the 18^th century. He worked as a carpenter, joiner, farmer, surveyor, justice of the peace, and a probate judge in the town of Bedford. His diary was recorded from 1754 to 1788, written on individual, unbound pages, in the form of a daily account, documenting life in the second half of the 18^thcentury. Though Patten’s narrative may not appear to be a colorful one, he certainly provides the reader a glimpse into the life of a farmer on the colonial frontier and enables historians like us to engage with his world of planting flax.

Patten intermittently records the planting and harvesting of flax by himself, his family members and a mixture of men and women who were hired as help. Though his accounts are more detailed regarding the planting of rye, corn and barley, Patten duly notes (most years) the seasonal process of sowing flax in May and harvesting and “swingling” flax in the fall. The crop seems to be a staple in his household, and he records the annual hiring of women (and it is always women) to come and live in his home for six to eight weeks “to spin.” He does not discern whether it is flax or wool that they are spinning but flax was usually spun in late fall or early winter, and this is when Patten usually notes that women came to spin. A diary entry dated September 27, 1760, notes that Matthew paid Hannah Chamberlin 12 pounds for 6 weeks of spinning work, and on February 5^th of 1766 he mentions that he “finished” 100 pounds of flax that year, giving the reader an idea of how much he harvested per year. He mentions taking linen and tow cloth to various people to make “britches” and dresses. This work is completed by men or women depending on who he was able to hire at that moment in time. Of particular interest, he mentions a man by the name of McCleary who weaves striped linen for him. Patten often uses flax seed to barter for payment of goods and services and he also receives flax seed as payment for services rendered.

There is a communal feel to how Patten and his surrounding neighbors work in harmony with one another to survive living in rural New Hamsphire. They barter and trade for many of their items and credit is also used quite often. They seem to know who they can trust to make good on payments, and Patten and his neighbors seem diligent about paying their debts. His entries revolve around documenting his agricultural practices along with his financial and contractual obligations, however Patten does note weather conditions, illnesses, and various social issues such as births, deaths and marriages.

He provides only small glimpses of the political issues brewing throughout the colonies, such as the Pine Tree Riots of 1772 and the shots fired at Concord in1775, but never goes into great detail about his political views. He does mention that his son John joins the Continental Army, but never mentions the fact that he was shot in the arm at Bunker Hill in June of 1775. A diary entry from May 21, 1776, reveals John’s battle injury but also demonstrates Patten’s heartfelt emotions of loss and anger when he describes John’s death while he was stationed in Canada with the Continental Army.[2]

John contracted smallpox, and while severely sick his regiment had to relocate further south, and John had to relocate with them. Matthew attributes his son’s death to being moved “in a weakened state” and to being shot in the arm while fighting at Bunker Hill the year before. This account is the only entry where Matthew vehemently shows anger towards the British by calling King George III a “Tyrannical Brute” (p. 361).[3]

 Matthew Patten Homestead - Demolished in the early 20^th century.[4]

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[1]     Kenneth Scott, “Matthew Patten of Bedford, New Hampshire,” Journal of the Presbyterian Historical Society (1941-1965) 28 (September 1950): 3, 129-145.

 

[2]     Matthew Patten, The Diary of Matthew Patten of Bedford, N.H: From Seventeen Hundred Fifty-Four to Seventeen Hundred Eighty-Eight, Rumford Printing Company, 1903. Scholar Select, Franklin Classics.

 

 

[3]     Matthew and his wife Elizabeth had 11 children and his papers were preserved by his daughters, Sarah and Polly. Written on plain white paper that was folded together and bound with linen thread these papers made their way into the hands of the townspeople of Bedford, New Hampshire. The townspeople felt they were of great importance and had them published in 1903. Patten’s original papers have been preserved and can be found in the New Hampshire State Library in Concord. Matthew’s son James moved to Ohio in 1789 and was captured by the Delaware Indians in 1791. He was held captive for four years until he was released in 1795 in a prisoner exchange. The University of Michigan has a collection of 16 letters written by James, Matthew and Elizabeth along with other members of the Patten family.

 

[4]     Photo of the Matthew Patten Homestead – early 20^th century: https://theclio.com/entry/170979