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OSCAR McCULLOUGH : 1891 - 1900 ORIGINAL HANDWRITTEN LEDGER OF THE COMPREHENSIVE AND FASCINATING FINANCES AND ACCOUNTING OF A SUCCESSFUL GENERAL STORE IN RURAL MANITOBA, THAT GROWS LARGER AND MORE SUCCESSFUL THROUGH THE YEARS

Folio - over 12" - 15" tall. On offer is an in depth and fascinating leger of the finances of a General Store located in Miami, Manitoba over the course of almost a decade. This ledger contains an absolutely impressive amount of financial and economic information to read, regarding the full operating costs of a merchant store in rural town Manitoba as it grows larger and more complex, hiring more workers and buying and selling more. The first page begins: “An agreament entered into on the twenty fourth day of August 1891 between Oscar McCullough of Section 20 Township 6 Range 6 West in the province of Manitoba and Robert McQueen of Section fifteen Township 6 Range 6 west in the province of Manitoba To own and operate a threshing machine outfit. Each of the above parties to own equal share of said threshing machine outfit. Each of the above parties agree not to draw any of the proceeds of work done for any personal benefit whatsoever until such time as the season work is done and looks balanced and all liabilities of threshing machine outfit and experience expense of running same has been fully settled and any balance or liability that may be left over to be met in equal shares by both of the said parties.” (The 'Section-Township-Range' grid system of the Dominion Land Survey is what is being used to describe where the two men live). The cost of the engine and belt for the machine is $800 and the operating cost is $625, both of which are written to be paid in two installments equally by the two men. With this threshing machine, it seems the two men reap the grains (wheat, oats, barley) and sell it. The book seems to have been written by Oscar McCullough, as there are periodic entries which show money being given to R. McQueen (“To R. McQueen check in full $72.00). The leger is the book of finances for the threshing business, and later a General Store. Beginning in September or October (harvest season) of almost every year from 1891-1900 , the two men do a steady business. Each entry into the leger has the date of the transaction, the person buying, what they bought, and how much they paid. For example: “October 9, 1892: John Kennedy. What 604 bags @ 10’ - $60.40, Oats 299 bags @ 8’ - 23.92, Barley 60 bags @ 8’ - 4.80.” The total is then tallied: $89.12 is owed. By 1895, the book becomes much more detailed. It seems at this point that the two men have expanded their company, now selling much more than just grains. The account book expands now to encompass all finances for the company, both bought and sold. The date is written, then a short line or two describing the transaction, and then the price paid. For November 21st, the lines “To raffle + shooting match - 2.25, To S. M. Cole sugar cash - 5.50, By cash S.M. Cole - 2.00.” It seems the company leger uses ‘To’ to indicate giving money and ‘By’ to indicate money taken in. In addition, as opposed to the last few years, there are financial accounts throughout the year not just at harvest time. The company runs year round now. Summer expenses also include wages for workers: “William Murray starts to work for me today at $18 per month till I have finished harvest till labor till after harvest is the essence of the bargain.” They also sell on credit and charge interest: “McKerlie to pay $186.80 1st Nov each year for three years and interest on $1500.60 Fifteen Hundred + sixty first year an interest on the bal not paid for three years which will leave one thousand dollars to be paid in one hundred dollar yearly payments with interest at 7 per cent till paid for.” The year 1899 marks the end of the first part of the leger. After a blank space of roughly 30 pages, the entries begin again, this time as the financial transactions of lumber in the years 1899 and 1900. Like the section before, this part includes the date of the transaction, the name of the buyer of lumber, what and how much was sold and at what price, and the total of the transaction. “June 9, 1899 - Mr. Greenway - 9 Pes. 2/8 -16 @ 19.00 - 3.61”; “June 10 - Andrew Biddell - 4 Boards @ 10.00 - $5.69, 4 pes. 2/6-14 @ 18.00 - $1.15.” The company obviously does a stiff business in lumber, as there are transactions for almost every single day of the 1899 and 1900. This section lasts over 100 pages and ends with transactions on December 5th, 1900. After this, there are no more entries for the book (over 200 blank pages) until the very last few pages of the book. These last pages are reserved for accounting the payment to the men who helped run the store, beginning in 1891 and 1892. For example: “October 6, 1891 - Mathew McQueen @ $25 per month - Time three months - $75.00.” There are also pages devoted to those who bought on credit, and the personal assets and liabilities of Oscar McCullough. In 1895, his assets include: “1 Farm - $4500; Implements + Harness - $345; livestock - $925; “sale wheat - $575; Mother - $550” and numerous others totally $8890. Minus liabilities of $1204, he is left with a balance of $7,686 (~$200,000 in 2017 dollars) making Oscar McCullough a rather successful and wealthy man. The very last two pages contain recipes for making various different substances including “writing ink, black,” “paint,” “volatile soap for removing paint,” “grease extractor” and almost a dozen other types of liquids and compounds. The book is 500 pages long, with over 300 pages of it blank. The writing is in ink and easily readable throughout all the sections and years. The spine shows a good bit of wear, and the leather covering it is slowly peeling off. The book is very sturdy structurally.. Manuscript. Book Condition: Good

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