The collection contains three groups of business records from Dartmouth and New Bedford, Massachusetts. These two locations are adjacent to one another, New Bedford having been formed and enlarged from parts of Dartmouth village and town (township) beginning in 1787. New Bradford became a famous whaling port after the Revolutionary War, and much mercantile business was carried on there; some spilling over into nearby Dartmouth. Shipbuilding and associated manufacturing began in New Bedford in the 1700s, followed by other manufacturers in the 1830s and 1840s.

The collection consists of the following volumes: 1) a daybook of a New Bedford store kept by John B. Allen, listing the names of customers and items sold, cost, date credit on account, and a symbol marking the account closed -- dated May 5, 1831 - August 11, 1833; 2-7 are daybooks and volumes of a general store in Dartmouth for the period 1850-1862. The volumes, for at least part of the time were kept by Charles Tucker and include some business notes inside the covers as well as customer names, items sold, cost, date, credit on account and each account was crossed out when it was paid. In volume four the pages at the back are numbered in reverse order, 31 to 1, giving miscellaneous accounts from May 12, 1855 to April 28, 1856. Parts of pages 23 to 28 have been cut away and the first page is partially burned. In volume five, the pages at the back, numbered 373 to 401, have miscellaneous accounts from July 17, 1856 to October 1, 1857. The binding of volume six is broken and most of the pages except for 1-94 (May 10, 1858 to May 29, 1869), 349-361 (May 11, 1858 to August 27, 1858) and a page of business notes are missing. In volume seven the last pages are blank and the few pages before are mostly credits on account. There were no sales after June 1, 1860, and the credits continue until May 12, 1862. The last two volumes are ledger books from the Union Screw Company, New Bedford, apparent manufacturers of screw fasteners forerunner of the company, listing inventors by name and amount, expenses and credits. There is a glued sheet on page 47, and pages 77-78 and 141-142 are missing. The second is Ledger A of the company recording business transactions, list of sales to various customers (mills, companies and ships). Beginning on January 1, 1858, production expenses, and dividends are recorded. Page 538 is a record of personal expenses, January through May 1960, no name given.