FIRST CHARGING LEDGER
(1789-1792)

The Library's earliest surviving charging ledger, which records borrowing activity during the period between July 1789 and April 1792, is a window into the reading habits of over five hundred members of the Society Library, many of whom were prominent New Yorkers during these early years of our nation. During the time when the Library shared a roof with the early government in Federal Hall, borrowing privileges were also extended to the President, Vice President, and Congress. For a brief time, their borrowing activity was also recorded in this volume. Other early borrowers also included many lawyers, judges, physicians, clergymen, publishers, and merchants.

The 1789-1792 ledger is a large leather-bound volume, containing approximately three hundred pages, and measuring about 20 inches (51 cm) and 18 pounds (8 kg). Misplaced for years and then found in 1934 in a trash pile in the basement of the Library's former location at 109 University Place, the ledger was intact but in extremely fragile condition. In 2007 the ledger underwent extensive preservation and digitization at the Northeast Document Conservation Center to ensure the survival of this historical treasure. Since 2008 the Library has developed this online resource to make the valuable contents of the ledger available to the public.

Many other ledgers from the following years have also survived (1799-1909), many in as dire need of preservation as the first, but all as rich with information.

We are proud to present the first charging ledger!

About   •   Articles   •   Conservation   •   Citations   •   Credits

Books   •   Pages   •   People

Some Notable Borrowers: George Washington John Adams Alexander Hamilton Aaron Burr Baron Steuben John Jay DeWitt Clinton Anthony L. Bleeker William Livingston   A: Abeel, Garret Abeel, Garret B. Aborne, Henry Ackley, Anthony Adams, John Alden, Roger Allen, C. V. Allen, Thomas Anthon, George Armstrong, William Arnold, George Atkinson, John Attwood, Thomas B. Aulden, W. B: Bache, Abraham Bache, Theophylact Bancker, Gerard Bard, Samuel Bard, William Barnewall, George Barrow, Thomas Bassett, Richard Bayard, William Jr. Beach, R. D. Beekman, Gerard W. Beekman, James Beekman, William Sr. Benson, Egbert Benson, Robert Blagge, Jasper D. Blagge, John Blakely, Henry T. Blakely, Josiah Bleecker, Anthony L. Bleecker, James Bogart, Cornelius I. Bogart, John G. Bond, George Bowne, Robert Bowne, Robert L. Bowne, Samuel L. Bowne, Walter Bowne, William Boyd, Robert Bradford, Catharine * Bradhurst, Samuel Brasher, Gasherie Bridgen, Charles Brinckerhoff, Abraham Broome, Samuel P. Brown, John Bruce, Robert Brunson, Laban Buchanan, Thomas Burke, Aedanus Burling, Thomas Burling, William Burr, Aaron Burr, Isaac Burwell, Joseph Bussing, Abraham Butler, Pierce C: Cadle, Thomas Caldwell, John E. Campbell, Malcolm Campbell, Samuel Carmer, Nicholas G. Cation, David Champlin, John T. Charlton, John Childs, Francis Clarke, John Jr. Clarkson, David M. Clarkson, Matthew Clarkson, Matthew M. Clarkson, Thomas Streatfield Clinton, DeWitt Clinton, George Cochran, John Cock, William Cockcroft, James Cockle, Frederick Cogswell, James Colden, Henrietta Maria * Coles, Isaac Coles, John B. Coles, Willett Constable, William Cooper, Thomas Cornell, Gillian Corp, Samuel Cowley, William Cozine, John Crommelin, Robert Crosby, John Cross, John Jr. Cruger, John Cruger, Nicholas Currie, Archibald Curtenius, Peter T. Cutting, Leonard M. Cutting, William D: Dalton, Tristram Davidson, James Davis, Cornelius Davis, Richard De Haert, James Delafield, John Delaplaine, Samuel DePeyster, Elizabeth * Dewint, John Douglas, George Jr. Duane, James Dunlap, Alexander Dunlap, William Dunscomb, Samuel E: Ebert, Philip Eddy, Thomas Edgar, William Ellis, John Ellison, Thomas Elmer, Jonathan Embree, Effingham Evans, Charles John Evertsen, Nicholas F: Fairlie, James Few, William Fish, Nicholas Fitzsimons, Thomas Fleming, Sampson Forbes, John Fowler, Theodosius Franklin, Abraham Franklin, Maria * Franklin, Samuel Franklin, Sarah * Freneau, Philip Frost, John Fullam, John Fullam, Michael G: Gaine, Hugh Gardiner, Nathaniel Gelston, David Gilchrist, Robert Glover, John G. Gomez, Isaac M. Goold, Charles David Goold, Edward Gouverneur, Nicholas Graham, Isabella * Graham, John Graham, John Jr. Green, William Greenwood, John Greswold, Edward Griffin, Samuel Gross, John Daniel H: Hallett, Jacob Hallett, Joseph Hamersley, Thomas Hamilton, Alexander Hammersley, William Hammond, Abijah Harison, Richard Hart, Bernard Hart, Ephraim Hawxhurst, Nathaniel Haydock, Henry Jr. Hazard, Nathaniel Heaton, Robert Henderson, Hugh Henderson, William Hendricks, Uriah Henry, John Herring, Abraham Heyer, Walter W. Hicks, Elias Hill, William Hobart, John Sloss Hoffman, Josiah Ogden Hoffman, Martin Hone, John Hosack, Alexander Houston, William Houstoun, Patrick Howe, Bezaleel Hughes, James Miles Hunt, Alsop Hunter, Robert I: Inglis, James Ireland, John Irving, William Jr. Ivers, Hezekiah Izard, Ralph J: Jay, James Jay, John Johnson, Jeremiah Johnson, John Johnson, Robert Charles Johnson, Seth Johnson, William Samuel Johnston, John Jones, David Samuel Jones, Samuel Jones, Samuel Jr. Jones, Thomas Judah, Benjamin S. Judah, Bernard K: Keese, John Keese, William B. Kemp, John Kenyon, William Keteltas, Gerrit Keteltas, Peter Kimble, Peter King, Rufus Kingsland, Burnet R. Kip, Isaac L. Kip, Leonard Kipp, Richard Jr. Kissam, Adrian Kortright, Lawrence Kunze, John Christopher L: Laight, Edward William Laight, William Lamb, John Lansing, John Jr. Lasher, Matthew Laurance, Jonathan Lawrence, John Lawrence, Nathaniel Leake, John G. Lee, Richard Henry Lefferts, Jacobus L. Lefferts, Leffert Lenox, Robert LePine, Joseph Lewis, Francis Lewis, George Lewis, Morgan Linn, William Lispenard, Leonard Livesay, Isaac Livingston, Brockholst Livingston, Edward Livingston, John Henry Livingston, John R. Livingston, Peter R. Livingston, Robert R. Livingston, Sarah * Livingston, William Livingston, William S. Lorillard, George Loudon, Samuel Low, Nicholas Ludlow, Abraham Ludlow, Cary Ludlow, Daniel Ludlow, Gulian Ludlow, Henry Ludlow, Thomas Lupton, William Jr. Lynch, Dominick M: Macomb, Alexander Mark, Philip Masterton, Henry Masterton, Peter Matlack, White Maule, Thomas Maverick, Peter R. Maxwell, William McCormick, Daniel McEvers, Charles McEvers, James McIntosh, John McLaren, John McLean, Archibald McQueen, John McVickar, John Mercier, John D. Meyer, John Miller, Andrew Miller, Captain Miller, Christopher Miller, Eleazer Miller, John Milligan, Gilbert Mitchell, Henry Mitchell, Samuel Latham Moore, Abraham Moore, Benjamin Moore, William Morewood, George Morgan, John Jordan Morris, Robert Morton, George Clark Morton, Jacob Mott, Robert Mowatt, Alexander Mumford, David Mumford, John P. Munro, Peter Jay Murdoch, Patrick Murray, Beulah * Murray, John Murray, John Jr. Murry, John N: Nicholl, Samuel Noble, Arthur Norton, John L. O: O'Connor, John Ogden, Lewis Ogilvie, Peter Onderdonck, John Oothoudt, John Oudenarde, Henry Oudenarde, Marinus P: Parker, Elizabeth * Parker, James Jr. Parsons, John Pearsall, Thomas Pearss, John P. Pell, Elijah Pell, Joshua Jr. Penfield, Daniel Peters, Valentine H. Phoenix, Alexander Phoenix, Daniel Phoenix, Sidney Pierce, Ann * Pierson, Joseph Pigot, George Pintard, John Pintard, John M. Platt, Jeremiah Platt, Richard Pollock, Carlisle Pollock, George Popham, William Post, Wright Price, John Prince, William Prince, William Jr. Proctor, William Provoost, John B. R: Rainteaux, Anthony Randall, Robert R. Ray, Cornelius Read, George Reed, Jacob Jr. Remsen, Henry Renwick, James Rhinelander, Frederick Rhinelander, Philip Jr. Rhinelander, William Rhodes, William Ricketts, Jacob Rivington, James Robertson, Alexander Robins, Ezekiel Robinson, A. Robinson, James Rodgers, John Richardson Bayard Rogers, Moses Romaine, Benjamin Romayne, Nicholas Roorbach, John Frederick Roosevelt, Cornelius Roosevelt, Cornelius C. Roosevelt, James Roosevelt, Nicholas J. Rutherfurd, Walter S: Saidler, James Salter, Thomas Saltonstale, Gilbert Saltus, Solomon Sands, Comfort Schenk, Lambert Schermerhorn, John S. Schermerhorn, Peter Schuyler, Philip John Scott, James Scott, Lewis Allaire Scriba, George Seaman, Edmund Seaman, Henry Seaman, Jacob Jr. Seaman, John Sebor, James F. Sedgwick, Theodore Seixas, Benjamin Service, Thomas Seton, William Shaw, Charles Simond, Louis Slidell, John Smith, Catharine L. * Smith, Charles Smith, Gilbert Smith, Hugh Smith, Melancthon Smith, Pascal N. Smith, Richard Smith, Thomas Smyth, Andrew Smyth, Robert Snow, Robert Speyer, John Stagg, John Jr. Stark, Henry Bethune Startin, Charles Sterlitz, Joseph Steuben, Friedrich Wilhelm von Stevens, Ebenezer Stevens, John Stevens, John Jr. Stevenson, Cornelius Stewart, Robert Stoughton, Thomas Stoutenburgh, Isaac Stretch, Joseph Stringham, Joseph Strong, Selah Stuart, James Stuart, William Suydam, John Suydam, Samuel Swaine, John Swanston, John T: Templeman, John Ten Brook, Henry Ten Eyck, John Ten Eyck, Thomas Thatcher, George Thomas, William Tillary, James Tillinghast, Charles Townsend, John Treat, Malachi Tronson, Jeremiah Turk, Ahasuerus Jr. Turnbull, George Turnbull, George (Lieutenant Colonel) Turnbull, William Turner, John Jr. U: Underhill, Townsend Ustick, William Sr. V: Van Allan, Cornelius Van Antwerp, Simon Van Cortlandt, Augustus Van Cortlandt, Philip Van Horne, Augustus Van Horne, Augustus V. Van Horne, Frederick Van Horne, Garret Van Rensselaer, Stephen Van Solingen, Henry M. Van Tuyl, Andrew Van Tuyl, Peter Van Vleeck, Isaac Van Wagenen, William Van Wyck, Theodorus Vandervoort, Peter Varick, Abraham Varick, Richard Vernon, John Verplanck, Daniel Crommelin Verplanck, Gulian Verplanck, William Beekman W: Waddington, Joshua Walker, Benjamin Walton, Abraham Walton, Gerard Walton, Henry Walton, Mary * Walton, William Ward, Richard Ward, Samuel Washington, George Watson, James Jr. Watts, John Watts, Robert Wells, George Wells, John Wells, Samuel Wetmore, Prosper Whippo, Isaac White, Alexander Wilkes, Charles Wilkes, Israel Willett, Gilbert Colden Willett, Marinus Wilson, Peter Wingate, Paine Winter, Joseph Wisner, Polydore B. Wood, John Woods, John Jr. Wool, Jeremiah Woolsey, William W. Wortman, Tunis Y: Youle, John Youle, Joseph Z: Zuntz, Alexander   *   women library members

Front Cover   Front Page   List of the Members of the New York Society Library May 1, 1790 Page 1   List of the Members of the New York Society Library May 1, 1790 Page 2   1789 July 24-29   1789 July 29 - August 3   1789 August 3-10   1789 August 10-14   1789 August 14-19   1789 August 19-24   1789 August 24-28   1789 August 28-31   1789 August 31 - September 4   1789 September 4-7   1789 September 7-11   1789 September 11-14   1789 September 14-16   1789 September 16-21   1789 September 21-25   1789 September 25-30   1789 September 30 - October 5   1789 October 7-9   1789 October 9-12   1789 October 12-16   1789 October 16-21   1789 October 21-23   1789 October 26-28   1789 October 28-30   1789 October 30 - November 4   1789 November 4-9   1789 November 9-11   1789 November 13   1789 November 16-18   1789 November 18-20   Scraps:

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