An account of the capture of St. Johns by the French : manuscript, 1709 May 14

Manuscript narrative, signed by John Campion and Joseph Knills; dated at Carbonnear Is., Newfoundland, 14 May 1709.

Writ for the attachment of goods or estate: action brought by Edward Hutchinson, Treasurer of Harvard College, 1731 June 5

Writ of attachment authorizing the Suffolk County Sheriff to seize £150 in money or property from John Orme, George Lawrence, and Samuel Pearce, all of Watertown, in response to action brought by Harvard College Treasurer Edward Hutchinson regarding the bond of John White. The case-specific information is handwritten onto a printed form.

Deed of feoffment for property in Cambridge, Massachusetts: from Thomas Sweetman to Michael Spencer, 1677 December 10

In this deed of feoffment, written on Dec. 10, 1677, Thomas Sweetman agreed to sell his dwelling house, barn, and orchard to his son-in-law, Michael Spencer, for the cost of eighty pounds sterling. The property was located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on what was then the northwest corner of the grounds of Harvard College, and was sold "together with the wood lot upon the rocks and cow commons belonging to it." The deed specifies that both Sweetman and his wife Isabel were to be allowed to occupy the property until their deaths, and further explains that Spencer and his family were already living in the dwelling house, occupying three rooms. The document was signed, sealed, and delivered in the presence of Daniel Gookin, Jr. and John Bridgham. It was also signed by Thomas Sweetman.

Notification from William Cutler to the selectmen of Cambridge, Massachusetts, that Dr. Philip Brukowitz and wife were inhabiting his father's house in Cambridge, 1758 April 25

Single page notification addressed to the selectmen of Cambridge, Massachusetts, dated 25 April 1758, in which William Cutler writes that he took into his father’s Cambridge house as tenants Dr. George Philip Brukowitz and his wife, from Woburn, Massachusetts. After the Boston smallpox epidemic of 1721, the town of Cambridge enacted a requirement in 1723 that no resident would receive or admit any non-resident family into their homes for the space of a month without informing the town selectmen. The penalty for failing to do so was twenty shillings.

Account books of William Aspinwall, 1776-1812 (inclusive)

Two account books containing entries noting patients visited, fees charged, and small accounts of Dr. William Aspinwall (1743-1823) in Boston and Brookline, Massachusetts, from 1776 to 1812. He includes sections for "Women's Accounts" with charges generally rendered to their husbands or other male relatives. There is also an entry charging the town of Cambridge, Massachusetts, four dollars and fifty cents for medicines and attendance to a boy who contracted smallpox.

Account book of Job Godfrey, 1787-1809 (inclusive)

Ledger kept by Dr. Job Godfrey (1742-1813) of Taunton, Massachusetts, containing records of patients, medical services rendered, and fees charged between 1791 and 1797, which were updated with payment transactions through 1809. There are also notes on Godfrey's medical practice dated from 1787, including an entry on a nine-year-old girl he dissected after her death. There are additionally credits or debits listed for household transactions.

Account book of Daniel Brigham, 1781-1798 (inclusive)

Account book maintained by Dr. Daniel Brigham (1760-1830) for services provided to approximately 180 patients, treated primarily in Northborough, Westborough, and Marlborough, Massachusetts, and surrounding towns between 1781 and 1798. The ledger details the charges for his visits to patients and medicines he prescribed. Common charges included one shilling, four pence for Brigham to visit and administer an emetic or cathartic to a patient. A visit and bloodletting by Brigham cost one patient two shillings, eight pence. He charged six shillings to amputate a toe, and eight pence to extract a tooth. Includes an index to patient names. The ledger also records household and miscellaneous expenses of Brigham.

Extraits des Registres concernans les Affaires de Canada : manuscript, [not before 1708]

Concern French administration and government of Canada, 1663-1708.

Account books of Sylvester Woodbridge, 1792-1826 (inclusive)

Consists of seven account books kept by Dr. Sylvester Woodbridge (1754-1824) from 1792 until his death containing entries that record charges for medical visits and administration of medicines, and sales of sundry and grocery items, as well as occasional personal notes and the names of Woodbridge's apprentices and their participation in his Southampton, Massachusetts, medical practice. Woodbridge's methods of treatment were typical for the era: he most commonly prescribed vomits and purgatives for patients. Volume 6 contains loose pages and letterbooks tucked in related to accounting and to the amount and type of wood Woodbridge was buying for his house, and papers dated after his death.

Doctor Daniel Brigham's Book, 1789-1810 (inclusive)

Ledger maintained by Dr. Daniel Brigham (1760-1837) containing financial accounts for medical patients treated primarily in Northborough, Westborough, and Marlborough, Massachusetts from 1789 to 1837. The ledger details the charges for medical services and the corresponding payments, often made by payment-in-kind. Common charges included a shilling for a visit and administration of cathartics, emetics, or anodynes. Extraction of a tooth cost eight pence, and Brigham charged one woman nine shillings for delivering her son. A number of entries are obscured by pasted-in newspaper articles.

Copy of Gov[erno]r Philips's additional instructions about settling some Palatine families in Nova Scotia: Copy Col. Dunbar's additional instruction about settling some Irish families in Nova Scotia : manuscript, [1730]

Copies of two documents, approved 20 Apr. 1730; instructions to Richard Philips state that a number of Protestant Irish and Palatine families have been granted land in Nova Scotia, to be surveyed by David Dunbar; and instructions to Dunbar to survey and lay out land for the families.

Receipt book of Francis Kittredge, 1780

Contains instructions for preparing and administering medicine for adults and children, and generalized uses for certain ingredients, written by Dr. Francis Kittredge. Preparations include ointment for scurvy, bone ointment, nerve ointments, procedures to soothe a sore mouth and to stop excessive bleeding, and treatment to kill worms. The materials used to prepare bone ointment include fresh butter, hog fat, chamomile, garlic, and night shade, among other ingredients. The recipe for “simple nerve ointment” instructs the preparer to simmer half a pint of neet foot oil, a pint of rum, and one jell of oil of turpentine over a “gentle fire.” Kittredge writes that oil of St. John’s Wort is effective in treating swelling of the legs, for cold and aches, and for burning and scalds, while oil of Elderflower is indicated for belly aches. The manuscript is housed in a binding created by the Harvard Medical School library. Tipped into the binding is one letter from Frederick O. West, M.D., Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, that accompanied his donation of the Kittredge receipt book to the library in 1919. There is also one letter of unknown provenance enclosed with the receipt book, which contains an inventory of the estate of Antipas Brigham, of Grafton, Massachusetts, signed by Worcester County Judge Joseph Wilder on 7 November 1749. It is unclear if this letter has any connection to Frederick O. West or Francis Kittredge.

Memoranda Medica of John Perkins, 1750-1773 (inclusive)

Contains notes written by Dr. John Perkins (1698-1781) from 1750 to 1773 on physiology, materia medica, and illness, including symptoms, causes, and treatment of conditions like mumps, dysentery, dropsy, and rheumatism. Also includes observations on children and on various bodily functions. There is an index at the end of the volume.

Observations Medical & Chirurgical by John Perkins, 1724-1774 (inclusive)

Volume kept by Dr. John Perkins (1698-1781) from 1724 to 1774 recording observations on various diseases and medical conditions illustrated with cases from Perkins's practice in Boston, Massachusetts. The cases ranged from epileptic fits, various fevers, and rheumatism to melancholy. His treament methods were standard for the era, mainly prescribing vomits, purges, and spirits, and bleeding patients. Also includes a section listing contradictory opinions among prominent medical writers such as Dutch physician Herman Boerhaave and English physician Thomas Sydenham. An index is located at the end of the volume. Perkins likely began compiling the book in 1765. It contains cases dating from 1724 to 1774.

Cases copied by James Lloyd from Mr. Steed, apothecary in Guy's Hospital, London, 1751-1787 (inclusive)

Contains medical cases copied by James Lloyd (1728-1810), primarily between 1751 and 1754, from Mr. Steed, an apothecary at Guy's Hospital in London, England. The volume has additional medical cases dating from 1780 to 1787. Lloyd transcribed the names, ages, and symptoms of the patients, as well as the medicines and medical care delivered to them. The volume is divided into chapters based on the type of case, which included vision loss; fluor albus, or leucorrhoea; diabetes; and dysentery. There is also a letter pasted into the volume addressed to Dr. Brigham of the Boston Medical Library Association from Lloyd's great-grandson, dated 4 November 1887.