|David J. Beach Collection
|Mss 871 1775-1848 (1906)
The Beach Family Collection includes the account book of Susannah Tichenor, a teacher who worked in New Jersey, between 1801 and 1805, as well as the 1890s household expenses of Mary A. Beach, and the 1897 personal expenses of Ellen O. Walkley.
Women at Work: Professional Labor > Teachers (box 35)
Susannah Tichenor married Juniah Beach at the end of the eighteenth century. They lived together in South Orange, New Jersey, where they raised their children and Susannah ran a school. Her teaching accounts from 1801 to 1805 were kept in a handmade notebook and record the names of her students and their tuition payments. Most, but not all, of her students were girls. While Susannah's students mainly paid their tuition in cash, in one instance, Widow Wade received schooling for her children in exchange for board. Susannah supplemented her teaching income by selling wood and canvas and by sewing silk.
Women, Finance, and Investment > Household Accounts (box 35)
The collection also includes the household expenses for the Beach family in South Orange, New Jersey, kept during the 1890s by Mary A. Beach. In the accounts she recorded allowance given to her daughter, Lucy, and money loaned to her son, Harlan. Most of the accounts show modest expenses for items such as food, travel, charitable contributions, and washing. On the back of each sheet, she made note of her income for that month, if any. Besides taking money from a bank account, she received income selling blackberries, quinces, old rags, and grapes. She also kept a boarder, Mrs. Meehern.
Cash accounts of Ellen O. Walkley from January to June of 1897 show her living in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and working at the Harvard College Library. Her accounts show her income from the library (between $40 and $50 per month) and her personal expenses for board, clothing, postage, carfare, bicycle repair, and books.