A Colonial Merchant: The Ledger of William Ramsay

Alexandria, VA 1753-1756

Artifact: Drawing of salesman with brooms and brushes

Broom

Materials: Pen, ink & watercolor over graphite

Dimensions: OH: 12 1/2" x OW: 9 3/8"

Date: 1759

Origin: London, England

Collection: Image Courtesy of The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation

License: All rights reserved

Ledger Entry: Broom

Broom

Department: Household

Customer: Jane North

Ledger Page: 322

Imported From:

Product Description

Brooms still hold the same function today as they did in the eighteenth century: to sweep floors. In many houses, sweeping was the only practical way of cleaning the floor as mopping with water would simply turn the dirt floors to mud. Besoms, or brooms of birch or heather twigs lashed to a handle, were ideal for sweeping dirt floors because of the rigidity of their bristles, but softer brooms of hogs hair were better suited for wood floors.

Citation: Seymour, John. Forgotten Household Crafts. (New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 1987.;

Historical Price: 4 shillings, 12 pence; Modern USD: $56

Product Variations

The databases record only two purchases of brooms. One of these was qualified as a hair broom. The prices range from one shilling eight pence for a hair broom to four shillings twelve pence for an unspecified broom.