Abstract The diaries of Jacob R. Elfreth Jr., a Quaker merchant, elder, and minister. Early diaries, from 1861 to 1867, focus on military movement and battles during the Civil War, reactions to President Lincoln's assassination, and the political tensions during the aftermath of the war. The majority of entries detail day-to-day activities, family news, news of Elfreth's carpet business, attendance at Quaker meetings, social calls, accounts of weather, and births, deaths, and marriages within the...

Abstract

Jacob R. Elfreth Sr. was a teacher and a bookkeeper for the Leigh Navigation Company. The majority of entries detail family news, Quaker meetings, Elfreth's work with the Leigh Navigation Company, and births, deaths, and marriages within the Quaker community,