Memoranda and Accounts

of John S. HARADON (1815-1875)

Deane W. Merrill, Jr.
10 November 1998
revised 8/12/2008

In October 1998, Edward E. HARADON III (1939-) and his father Edward E. HARADON Jr. (1914-) visited their fifth cousin Deane Whitney MERRILL Jr. (1938-) in Shelburne Falls. They lent to Deane a manuscript notebook entitled:

Valley Falls, Cumberland, R.I.
Apr. 28th 1845.
Memoranda Accounts
The Property of John S. Haradon

John S. HARADON (1815 -1875) was the husband of Caroline Hannah MERRILL Haradon (1822-1853). Caroline is buried in Arms Cemetery, Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts, beside her parents Thaddeus MERRILL (1777-1855) and Achsah SEVERANCE Merrill (1784-1872). Births, deaths, and marriages of many friends and relatives are recorded. John was a school teacher, and the volume lists his many pupils beginning in 1833. For many months at a time he lived apart from his wife and children while teaching school. He was deeply religious and an advocate of temperance. One page contains locks of hair from himself and his wife and his three children. He was deeply affected by the loss of his wife, when she was 31.

Deane photcopied the volume, including about 30 loose papers within the pages. Purely for convenience in indexing and handling, the photocopies are divided into stapled groups of pages, labeled 1-39. The loose papers (marked *) were left in the book where they were found, and occur in the photocopies in the same location. Oversize pages, and pages with information partly obscured, were photocopied in duplicate as necessary. The contents of the 39 sections are as follows.

  1. Cover. 4/28/1845-12/6/1845 in Valley Falls R.I., where John's parents lived.
  2. 12/6/1845-4/23/1845 in Mansfield, Mass., where John taught school. 4/25/1846-6/30/1846 in Shelburne Falls, Mass., where Caroline's parents lived.
  3. *12-page booklet dated 9/20/1849, with names of pupils.
  4. 7/4/1846-9/4/1846 in Shelburne Falls.
  5. 9/7/1846-11/26/1846 in Shelburne Falls. 11/28/1846-1/1/1847 in Mansfield.
  6. 1/1/1847-1/26/1847 in Mansfield. *Newspaper article about Edward E. HARADON, probably about 1920-1930. *1847 calendar from James French, Boston. *Receipt 1/5/1847 for books from James French, Boston. *Receipt for school supplies from Robinson & Shaw. 1/29/1847-2/27/1847 in Mansfield.
  7. *Receipt 3/3/1847 from Robinson & Shaw.
  8. *8-page pamphlet "The Greatest Blessing That Can Come To A Man," from the Immanuel Baptist Church, Cambridge, Mass.
  9. *Temperance song "Sing for the Maine law."
  10. 3/8/1847-4/24/1847 In Mansfield. 4/26/1847-7/19/1847 in Valley Falls.
  11. *2-page religious pamphlet "A Shelter You Need."
  12. 7/19/1847-7/27/1847 in Shelburne Falls. Receipts dated 1846 and 1847 to John's wife Caroline, during John's absence from his wife. 8/1/1847-4/1/1849 in Valley Falls. 11/9/1847 Caroline arrived in Valley Falls from Shelburne Falls. 10/1/1847 birth of Emory Schuyler HARADON. Names of pupils in John.'s Writing Classes in 1849.
  13. *Receipt for 8 copies of Anatomy and Physiology, to John S. HARADON.
  14. 4/2/1849-7/23/1849 in Valley Falls. 4/26/1849-5/23/1849 Caroline visited Shelburne Falls.
  15. 8/1/1849-10/29/1849 in Valley Falls. 10/15/1849 John began a school in Smithfield.
  16. 1/1/1850-4/3/1850 in Valley Falls. 3/19/1850 funeral of Experience DUNHAM's (Grandmother's) funeral. 4/3/1850-1/1/1851 in Central Falls, R.I. * Receipt 7/18/1850 from Central Falls Baptist Society for pew rent. *Letter 7/13/1850 from John's younger brother Erastus Gay HARADON (b.1817). *Letter from Wm. T. Adams requesting that John endorse an order for $15. *Receipt 11/1/1850 from L.J. Blanchard for 24 quarts of milk.
  17. 1/1/1851-6/6/1851 at Central Falls. 5/1/1851-6/24/1851 Caroline and the children visited Shelburne Falls. *3/26/1851 receipt from J.F. Crocker (for measuring firewood?). 6/16/1851-7/30/1851 in Manville, R.I., where John began a Public School with 54 pupils.
  18. 7/31/1851-7/22/1852 in Manville. 7/22/1852-7/31/1852 visited Shelburne Falls due to John's poor health. 7/31/1852-2/1/1853 in Manville.
  19. 2/23/1853-7/14/1853 in Manville. 7/15/1853-7/21/1853 in Shelburne Falls. On 9/7/1853 John wrote that Caroline's health failed in October 1852, during the sickness of Mr. Burt in their house. Caroline apparently contracted tuberculosis, and she died in Shelburne Falls on 7/21/1853, during a last visit to see her family. John's account of Caroline's death, in great detail, was written four months later, on 11/24/1853, apparently in Manville. There is an isolated entry on 5/31/1854, John's 14th wedding annniversary. The next entry was on 5/31/1856, his 16th wedding anniversary, in Fitchburg, Mass.
  20. 6/27/1857-7/23/1857 in Fitchburg, Mass. On 7/4/1857 John recalled that four years earlier, 7/4/1853 was the day the whole family gave up any hope of Caroline's recovery.
  21. *Article about Hornby, New York, from the 1891 Historical Gazetteer of Steuben County. *Article about Amos JEWETT (1833-), the first cousin of John S. HARADON (1815-1875), from Landmarks of Steuben County. *Article about Col. Parnach D. HARADON (b.1828), another of John's first cousins, from History of Steuben Co.
  22. *List of pupils, 4/16/1849, in John's private school in Valley Falls.
  23. *Temperance song "The Rumseller's Rejoicing."
  24. *Temperance pledge.
  25. *List of scholars, date and place unknown.
  26. *List of scholars, date and place unknown, in Arithmetic, Geography, and Spelling.
  27. *List of scholars, 1/15/1840.
  28. *List of scholars, 1845, in Primary Geography and Spelling.
  29. *List of scholars, Mansfield, 3/15/1847.
  30. *Half of a poster for a Temperance Meeting at the Baptist Vestry, 6/5/1844, Valley Falls.
  31. *List of scholars attending from 10/30/1843 to 2/28/1844. On reverse is a list of accounts, Cumberland, R.I., September 1844.
  32. *List of pupils in John's School in Ashfield (Cape Street), Franklin Co., Mass. during the winter of 1836-1837. Dated Central Falls, R.I., 5/9/1850.
  33. *Sheet of absorbent paper apparently used to clean quill pens. Highly decorative doodles.
  34. At back of Memorandum book, dated Central Falls, R.I., December 1850. "I commence a record of my schools from my first beginning, so far as my Memoranda can now be found. J.S. HARADON." Colerain, Franklin Co., Mass., 12/9/1833 to 2/20/1834. Adams Notch, 12/9/1834 to 3/6/1835. District South of Adam's North Village, 1835. Ashfield, 1836 (see #32 above). Florida, 1837. Berlin, Rensselaer Co., N.Y., beginning10/16/1838 for five months. Select School at Berlin, N.Y., 1839. Berlin, N.Y. South Village, beginning 9/10/1840. Private School opposite Mr. Willcox's House, summer 1841, second quarter. Berlin, N.Y., November 1841 to Spring 1842. Hancock Mass., 1842-1843; Nov. 1842 to 3/28/1842 (sic).
  35. Instruction for Sponge Painting, with instructions for making the Board, painting Clouds, Mountains, and Water; and setting Varnish. Instructions for painting Shades, Carpets, etc.
  36. *Receipt dated 9/20/1848, to Mrs. John S. HARADON, from Lamson, Goodnow, and Bardwell.
  37. *Receipt dated 7/23/1852 from Lamson & Co.
  38. *List of pupils in school near North Adams Village, winter of 1835-1836. Dated Central Falls, R.I., 5/9/1850.
  39. *Private School Record Commencing 7/16/1849, location unknown.

related file: Haradon Family Register, 1856, by Rev. John Schuyler Haradon

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