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The John Askin Family Library: A Fur-Trading Family's Books

by
Agnes Haigh Widder


      John Askin, [1739]-1815, was a well-known eighteenth-century fur trader in Michigan and the Great Lakes region. He and his family possessed a library, the contents of which have not yet been fully studied. Works in the Askin library reveal the family's intellectual and cultural interests, attributes that we do not traditionally associate with people in the fur trade. When we picture the lives of early fur traders in the Great Lakes region, we envision Native-American women paired with Euro-American men of action, noted for their physical strength and endurance, undertaking long trips on water and through the woods, enduring a rough existence amid isolated wilderness with few possessions or creature comforts. This picture is for the most part accurate, but it is an incomplete one for the Askins. As well as being a fur trader, John was a prominent citizen, landowner and speculator, farmer, merchant, shipper, justice of the peace, commandant of militias, and supplier of goods to British army posts.1 A study of the books in their library will help us understand this prominent family more fully and enhance our understanding of cultural possibilities on the Michigan frontier in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.2 1
      Until now, only two library collections from early Michigan have drawn scholarly attention: those of Father Gabriel Richard, 1767–1832, Roman Catholic Sulpician priest at Detroit beginning in 1798, and the Reverend John Monteith, 1787–1868, Presbyterian minister and teacher of languages, who came to Detroit in 1816. Intellectual Life on the Michigan Frontier: The Libraries of Gabriel Richard and John Monteith, edited by Leonard A. Coombs and Francis X. Blouin, Jr., describes and critiques these collections. As Richard and Monteith were both clerics, their collections differed significantly from the Askins's. The present article illustrates how the books owned by the Askins, a fur-trading and business family, reflected both their leisure-time reading interests and their need for information. Furthermore, the Askins's collection existed a full quarter-century before Father Richard appeared in Detroit, pushing our knowledge of the types of books collected in Michigan back nearly twenty-five years. 2
      Though born in Northern Ireland, John Askin spent most of his adult life in the western Great Lakes region. His parents, who were Northern Irish of Scots descent, a shopkeeper and a clergyman's daughter, died when he was a child, and his maternal grandfather raised him at Dungannon, Northern Ireland. In 1758 or 1759, when he was nineteen or twenty years old, he immigrated to British North America. The firm Kennedy and Lyle employed John to sell supplies to the British army during the Seven Years' War. When Askin came to Detroit in 1763 he was the commissary in charge of supplying the British army during Pontiac's War. After the war he moved to the Straits of Mackinac, where he farmed at the old Jesuit mission at L'Arbre Croche. In addition, he was a trader and supplied the British army post at Fort Michilimackinac. At some point, Askin formed a relationship with a woman, although we do not know who she was; she may have been an Indian and possibly a slave. No record of a marriage has been found, but we do know that they had three children, John Jr., Catherine, and Madelaine, while they were at Mackinac. In 1770 Askin married Marie-Archange Barthe, who was of the prominent French Detroit families of Barthe and Campau. They had nine children: Therese, Archange, John (died young), Alexander David, twins John (died young) and Adelaide (Alice), Charles, James, and Eleanor (Ellen Phillis). Askin built what archaeologists refer to as "a wealthy British planter's" home for his family at Three Mile Pond near Michilimackinac, on the site of an old Odawa farm, where the land was already cleared.3 3
      The family moved to Detroit in 1780 during the American Revolutionary War, and then across the Detroit River to Sandwich, now part of Windsor, in 1802. During his years in Detroit Askin owned many properties, including a retail store. The family lived on a farm not far from the intersection of Atwater and Randolph streets in an area occupied by the well-to-do that was near the boundary of the city when it incorporated in 1800. In 1796 the United States assumed responsibility for the Great Lakes area; John Askin wished to remain a British citizen and so moved to Upper Canada. He died there, at his estate Strabane, in 1815, at the age of seventy-five. Archange lived on until 1820, passing away at the age of seventy-one.4 4
      The Dictionary of Canadian Biography entry for John Askin refers to his "well-stocked library." But what did it contain? His annual inventories for the years 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779, and 1787, which enumerate his assets and assign monetary values to each item, are the primary sources for the titles of the works found in the library. These lists, plus the 1821 "Inventory of Property Real and Personal Belonging to the Estate of the Late John and Archange Askin, Sandwich" and an undated list from around 1808 (or perhaps later), are this article's main sources. The National Archives of Canada has the 1776, 1777, and 1779 inventories. The 1778 inventory is in the Archives of Ontario. The 1787 inventory, the undated list, and the 1821 estate inventory are in the Burton Historical Collection.5 Each inventory has several sections, each with its own title. The section titles are fairly consistent from one inventory to the next: "Shipping and etc."; "Houses, Lands, etc."; "Slaves"; "Cattle"; "Carriages and Harness"; "Tools and etc."; "My Own Necessaries and etc."; "Writing Implements, Books, and etc."; "House Furniture and Utensils"; and "Merchandize and etc." Merchandise for the trade is always a separate section, so we know the books in the library were not part of Askin's trade goods.6 5
      The "Writing Implements, Books, and etc." section of each inventory contains the author's name and/or short title and monetary value of each book. Some titles are in English, and some are in French. Sometimes the inventories note whether the works are in French or in English. I have assumed that the French titles and those by French authors are in French unless the inventories specify otherwise, and I made the same assumption for the English titles and authors. Entries in OCLC (Online College Library Center) and ESTC (English Short-Title Catalogue) for all titles confirmed this assumption. This section of each inventory concludes with notes such as, "70 odd vols: of other books, mostly broken setts, say worth each 2/," "About 70 odd ditto, suppose @2," "About 120 odd vols.," and "Old books dift. sorts worth about 6-." At its highest point, the total book collection contained 58 titles (in many more physical volumes) that could be identified sufficiently to study, plus as many as 120 more "odd" volumes, to use Askin's terminology, the titles of which are not specified. The Askins's collection grew over the course of their lives, and some books disappeared over time. 6
      The inventories are handwritten and not always easy to read. Determining the actual titles and authors from the short titles and surnames that appear in the manuscripts required the use of standard university library reference works as well as ESTC and OCLC.7 In addition, I relied upon "aural interpretation": How do the author's name or the work's title sound when pronounced? What variant spellings may be used? It seems likely that the Askins originally made the "Writing Implements, Books, and etc." sections of the inventories by having one person stand by the bookshelves and read off the titles to another person who wrote them down. This may explain how John Mair's work on bookkeeping became "Mayer's Book-keeping" on the inventories. Mair and Mayer sound the same; there is no book on bookkeeping by a Mayer, but there is one by Mair. There is no "Nail's Husbandry" either, but there is a book by Thomas Hale called A Compleat Body of Husbandry. 7
      Monetary values of the books varied but were substantial. The values assigned to the books on the 1776 inventory range from a low of 12 shillings for the aforementioned "Mayer's Book-keeping 1 Vol" to a high of 6 pounds 16 shillings for the "Dictionary of the Arts and Sciences 2 Vols." In 1776 the total collection (13 titles plus "70 odd") was valued at 34 pounds 2 shillings in New York currency. Relative to the value of Askin's other material goods at the time, his library was worth about the same as a quarter-cask of port wine, 32 pounds 6 shillings, one of the items in Askin's "merchandize." Worth as much as the "Dictionary of the Arts and Sciences" were a "neat armchair," valued at 6 pounds 12 pence, or a "large copper washing kettle," valued at 6 pounds 10 shillings.8 By 1787 the Askins's collection had grown to twenty-five (plus "odd books") items and was worth 126 pounds 12 shillings overall, just a little more than Askin's eight cows, which were valued at 120 pounds. The most valuable works then were a four-volume "Chambers Dictionary of Arts and Sciences," listed at 30 pounds, and a forty-volume set of Voltaire's works in French, also worth 30 pounds. Least valuable that year was a 10-shilling gazetteer. Items that were comparable in value in 1787 were a "pair of oxen," worth 36 pounds, and "12 new silver table spoons," also worth 30 pounds.9 In 1787, books had greater worth relative to other household and farm objects than they do today. At the close of the eighteenth century, books were indeed luxury items.10 8
      The inventories and research described above reveal many things about the Askins's collection: authors, titles, publishers, places of publication, imprint dates, estimated values of the books in John's and Archange's lifetimes, and the contents of each known book. In addition, we know that the family both borrowed and lent books. From the books' contents, we can deduce why John or Archange might have found a particular work interesting or useful. From the Askin correspondence we know that they lent Molière's works to Jean Baptiste Barthe, Archange's brother. They borrowed a country-dance book from Sampson Fleming of Detroit. They lent their Bible to "my brother" in 1778.11 From research in OCLC and ESTC using the numbers of volumes in the multivolume sets, and from the works' imprint places, we know that the Askins imported all of their books from Europe. With one possible exception, none was printed in what is today the United States or Canada.12 9
      Unanswered questions remain, however. For one, how did the Askins actually obtain their books? Was there a middleman or agent, in the colonies or abroad, or both? How actively did the Askins read? There is scant mention of books or reading in the Askin family correspondence. It is only in passing that John mentions borrowing the country-dance book from Sampson Fleming; Fleming was John's superior when John was the commissary for Fort Michilimackinac. What happened to their book collection after John and Archange died? When someone died, book collections were often parceled out to friends and relatives, or sold as a whole or in parts at auction. The latter options were common ways of obtaining a ready-made library at that time.13 Did the Askins write their names in their books? Have any of their books found their way into any public or private library collections? Unfortunately, library catalog records do not record provenance, even for rare books. 10
      An appendix to this article (beginning on p. 53) lists all the books the Askins possessed in their lifetimes that I was able to study. This list is in alphabetical order by author's surname, followed by the title, the place and date of first publication, the probable language, and the genre. When there is no author given, books are arranged by title or by topic if there is no title. The other dates listed indicate which Askin inventories list which books. Note that the unidentifiable titles appear at the end of the list. In these cases the information in the inventories is either too scanty or too general to allow for identification. The genres in the Askins's collection encompass literature and fiction, the sciences, reference works, geography, history, politics, religion, commerce, conduct, and mathematics. Eleven of the forty-nine titles in the main lists are in French, not including the French-English dictionary. All the books were published abroad, in England (London and Salisbury), Scotland (Edinburgh), France (Paris), the Netherlands (The Hague, Amsterdam, Gouda), and Switzerland (Geneva). In addition, there are about 120 odd volumes (presumed to be incomplete sets), magazines, and books whose values were viewed as being so low that they were not worth enumerating on the inventories. 11
      The Askins would probably have used a number of the books in their library to educate their children, including the Bible and works on arithmetic, algebra, chemistry, drawing, music, conduct, and natural history. Histories of Michigan and Detroit tell us that there were no public or municipally organized schools either at Michilimackinac or in Detroit when the Askins lived there.14 Parents like the Askins, who wanted their children educated, banded together to hire and pay a teacher, found a room for a school, paid tuition according to the number of children enrolled, and supplied books, firewood, and candles. A single teacher covered all subjects and taught the children, whatever their ages, in one room; seldom did Detroit schools then have more than thirty pupils at a time. In addition, children in the same "grade" did not all use the same textbooks. Parents sent their children to school with the books they had at home or had been able to procure. Roman Catholic parents usually preferred to have priests educate their children. Father Richard set up schools in Detroit for both whites and Native Americans, but the Askins's children did not attend them. Askin hired tutors and teachers both for his own and for his neighbors' children.15 One of John's daughters, Madelaine, went to Montreal where Charlotte Trottier Desrivières, who was the wife of the prominent fur trader James McGill, undertook her education. Catherine, another of John's daughters from his first relationship, went to school at a convent in eastern Canada.16 As adults, the Askin children were fluent in both English and French, and they usually wrote their letters to their father in English but to their mother in French. Books, reading, and education are not always assumed to have played important roles in family life in the Great Lakes region in the late eighteenth century, but literacy was crucial to the Askins. At a time when literacy was often secondary to survival, education for children often depended on the parents' willingness and ability to make the necessary sacrifices.17 The Askin children were fortunate in this regard. 12
      Reference works had a prominent place in the Askin library, for the practical reason that there was no public library or bookstore where they lived. The first library and the first bookstore opened in Detroit in 1817, two years after John died.18 Among the Askins's resources were an English-French, French-English dictionary; a couple of English-language dictionaries (different ones at different times); a couple of multivolume encyclopedia sets (also changing over time); a gazetteer; a medical book; a law dictionary; a law code; an almanac; and a manual of defense. Their world, and indeed the household itself, was a bilingual one, which made the language dictionaries particularly important. Askin took care to acquire the best works, too. Le Dictionnaire Royal François-Anglois, et Anglois-François, by Abel Boyer, was superior to similar dictionaries and was the basis for subsequent works. It is one of just three books that are listed on each inventory studied over the forty-five-year period. Thomas Sheridan's A Complete Dictionary of the English Language was noted for its diacritical marks, separation of syllables, and phonetic respellings.19 This information about pronunciation would have been particularly useful to Archange, whose first language was French. The Askins's world was one whose geography was still in the process of being explored by Europeans and Euro-Americans. Newly visited places were receiving European names for the first time—having long been known to Native Americans by other names. The Askins owned a gazetteer, a dictionary of place names, which indicates that they were probably interested in other peoples and places. John was a large landowner, repeatedly claiming, buying, and selling land. As time went on, his legal affairs grew increasingly complex and land and title disputes were frequent, which would have made a law dictionary helpful.20 Askin became a justice of the peace and county-level militia commandant for Essex County in Upper Canada. Thus, he would have found the military code and manual of defense, as well as the law dictionary, useful. Askin was appointed a trustee of Detroit upon its incorporation in 1800, but he did not serve and the Askins moved across the Detroit River in 1802. To help manage the family's health care, the Askins owned a medical book; their "family doctor" likely lived miles away, and it was important to know how to handle basic care in case of accidents or illness. 13
      For pleasure both John and Archange read literature: novels, plays, poetry, and periodicals, in both English and French. Although we do not know whether Archange had sufficient command of English for pleasure reading, we know that John learned French after coming to Detroit, attaining written and conversational fluency to the point that he corresponded with and kept English traders' accounts in English and French traders' correspondence and accounts in French. The Askin children were educated in both languages.21 John and Archange favored what became canonical English and French authors: Joseph Addison, Samuel Johnson, Oliver Goldsmith, Tobias Smollett, and Molière. They also read serial publications such as The Spectator and The Rambler, and enjoyed lighter works like The Wild Irish Boy and Épreuves du Sentiment. Addison and Johnson were notable essayists, Goldsmith and Smollett fine novelists, and Molière a superb playwright. Archange probably enjoyed the French novels. John Askin also read fiction; we know this because the undated list found in the Askin Papers at the Burton Historical Collection lists three books, two of which are fiction, among his personal effects: The Wild Irish Boy and The Vicar of Wakefield.22 14
      The Askins's religious books included a large family Bible "with cutts," meaning that it was illustrated with woodcuts or engravings, a fine prayer book, similarly illustrated, and at least one book by August Spangenberg. It is probable that they owned either An Account of the Manner in Which the Protestant Church of the Unitas Fratrum, or United Brethren, Preach the Gospel and Carry on Their Missions among the Heathen, or [Idea Fidei Fratrum]: An Exposition of Christian Doctrine as Taught in the Protestant Church of the United Brethren or Unitas Fratrum. Both books were available in English and German editions, and the Askins might have owned the first work or one of the two editions of the second. According to the estate inventory in 1821, there were four additional prayer books among the personal effects of a lady, presumably Archange, a "picture of Our Saviour on the Cross," and a "Picture of Innocence." On the inventories the prayer books are always listed in English; therefore, we assume the texts were in English, although if they belonged to Archange we might have expected them to be in French. The 1778 inventory listing for the Askins's Bible notes, "My brother has this book." Askin lost touch with his own siblings when he emigrated, and he did not belong to any church. He employed Archange's brothers; Jean Baptiste worked for him at St. Mary's (Sault Ste. Marie). It is probable that John and Archange lent their Bible to Jean Baptiste, as he had also borrowed their works by Molière. In 1779 the Askins's Bible was home again. The Bible was the book most frequently owned and read on the North American frontier, where people who owned no other books often read it daily. 15
      When they lived at Michilimackinac, the Askins also possessed Richard Allestree's Practice of Christian Graces, or, the Whole Duty of Man, which was a popular conduct book, comparable in insight and usage to Thomas à Kempis's The Imitation of Christ. Except for the Bible, The Whole Duty of Man was more frequently owned on the frontier than any other book.23 Allestree's work has a section that is useful for family devotions. Prayer books in English contain the psalms and references to specific passages of scripture that should be read each day; they are intended to be used in conjunction with the Bible. In the absence of the family Bible for at least part of 1778, did John or Archange have private devotions, or did the family have a regular worship time? We do not know. Teaching the Christian faith to one's children and demonstrating its importance by having personal and family devotions was important for believers on the frontier, especially at Michilimackinac, which was often without any resident clergy. Father Pierre Gibaut visited Michilimackinac in 1768 and 1775 to offer the sacraments and to minister to the congregation of St. Anne's Church. There is a baptismal record in the St. Anne's register for one of the Askin children, Archange, on October 2, 1775. This is the last entry in the register before the church was taken apart, moved over the ice to Mackinac Island, and reconstructed in 1779–1780. The Askins moved to Detroit in the summer of 1780, where they could attend church regularly. It is likely that John was a religious skeptic, particularly if Voltaire (whose works he and Archange owned for some years) appealed to him because of the author's attacks on religion and his documentation of the evils caused by superstition and religious bigotry. It is possible, however, that someone in the family "became more religious" later in life if owning more prayer books can be said to be an indicator of spiritual practice.24 We must remember that the absence of formal or informal worship and prayer does not necessarily mean the absence of, or opposition to, Christian beliefs. Voltaire wrote on many other topics that John might have found of interest. 16
      It seems probable that the Askins owned a book or (possibly) books by August Spangenberg that would have been used by the Moravians, but we do not know why. Perhaps John received or bought it (or them) from the German-speaking Moravian missionaries (United Brethren in Christ) who moved to the Detroit area in 1782 following the massacre at their settlement, Gnadenhuetten, in Ohio. They settled along the Clinton River near today's Mt. Clemens, which was farther away from town than the Askin's house. John had land dealings with the Moravians, and he bought corn from them for use in his trading operations. Spangenberg's Exposition of Christian Doctrine was available at settlements and chapels of the congregations of the Brethren in Europe, and immigrants to North America would have brought copies with them to their New World mission sites.25 17
      The Askins's library contained works of history, geography, and political science. The Askins probably owned these books because they were curious about European and ancient history, about new geographical discoveries, and about Canadian, French, and English political ideas of that time. They owned three maps of Lower Canada, five maps of the "Western District," and four world maps.26 Their books about geography included James Cook's Voyages and a geographical grammar. The word "grammar" used in this sense in the title means a work presenting fundamental principles or rules of an art or a science in methodical form. Cook's Voyages survived thirty-three years in the Askins's collection, and they took it with them when they moved to Upper Canada. Works about Cook's three voyages were published between 1773 and 1784.27 18
      In history, the Askins owned books about the ancient world, France, and Cornwall, as well as works about the United Brethren and the Knights of Malta, The Memoirs of the Duke of Sully, and a forty-volume set of Voltaire's works. Some of these books were in French and some were in English. Admittedly, Voltaire wrote on many subjects; the decision to consider his work as history here stems from his writings on the Enlightenment. Charles Rollin's Histoire Ancienne des Égyptiens, des Carthaginois, des Assyriens, des Babyloniens, des Medes et des Perses, des Macedoniens, des Grecs and the Voltaire set were in French. It is possible but not likely that Sully's Memoirs was in French as well. Three volumes of Histoire Ancienne were on the undated list among John Askin's personal effects.28 A forty-volume edition of Voltaire's works called Oeuvres de M. de Voltaire was published in Geneva in 1775. It contained his poetry, plays, histories, his philosophy of the Enlightenment, his articles for Diderot's Encyclopédie, literary criticism, romans (tales), dialogues, articles about popular science, and his letters. The Askins's set was in French, so we assume that Archange read Voltaire. As many editions were available in fewer than forty volumes, either the Askins wanted to show off this set, or it was a gift, or they bought it at a local sale, or they thought so highly of the author that they wanted a large collection of his works.29 Interestingly, the Voltaire set is not on the 1821 estate inventory, which may indicate that showing off books was not an Askin value. Otherwise, they would surely have kept the Voltaire set for their new house in Upper Canada. 19
      The English-language works about history in the Askins's collection were about France, Cornwall, the Knights of Malta, and may have included Sully's Memoirs. From the way the inventories cite the latter, however, it seems likely that the Askins's copy of Sully's Memoirs was in English. That the Askins should have a history of France in English is not surprising. It is probable that all the family would have enjoyed reading about a country that figured so prominently in their lives and was the country of Archange's ancestors. In addition, of course, France had been the enemy in the war that had helped create John's first job in the colonies.30 Histories of Cornwall and the Knights of Malta are on the 1821 estate inventory but not on the other inventories. The Catholic order of the Knights Hospitallers had run a hospital in Jerusalem to care for pilgrims visiting the Holy Land in the Middle Ages. Also known as the Knights of Malta, the order had its headquarters on the island of Malta from 1530 onward.31 The Askins's history of Cornwall would have been by either William Borlaise or Richard Polwhele, who were both Cornish clergymen. It is possible that the Askins chose which book to purchase by reading reviews of each volume. Samuel Johnson praised the Borlaise book, and Borlaise had helped Alexander Pope create his grotto at Twickenham.32 Sully's Memoirs is an autobiographical history of France covering the duke's life from 1560 to 1640. Sully was King Henry IV's finance minister, and he wrote about the desirability of ensuring permanent peace in Europe by means of a confederation of European states. Wars between these states often led to battles in colonial North America. Such wars disrupted the fur trade and thus affected Askin's livelihood, so Sully's memoirs may have had a practical as well as an intellectual appeal.33 20
      Besides the Voltaire set, the Askins possessed two works in the genre we today call political science, Collection of Cato's Political Letters (called Cato's Letters in the Askin inventories) and The Canadian Freeholder. Askin was a Loyalist who was sufficiently firm in his sympathies to leave the United States for British Upper Canada in 1802. His sons fought on the British side in the War of 1812. Elijah Brush, his daughter Adelaide's husband, the Attorney General of the Northwest Territory, served on the American side and was the Colonel of the Legionary Corps. Cato was the pseudonym of John Trenchard, an Irish lawyer and pamphleteer who lived in London and wrote on politics. Cato's Letters came out first in British periodicals in 1720 and 1722, many years before the Askins's library had this material. These letters examined and discussed political events, issues, and philosophies, especially those concerning natural law and natural rights, and presented opinions about the Whig Party. Cato's Letters also examined the concepts of liberty, treason, freedom of speech, and good government, as well as discussing the nature of tyranny.34 21
      The Canadian Freeholder is another matter. Its author, Francis Maseres, was the Attorney General of Quebec from 1766 to 1769. In 1774, the Quebec Act was passed, and Maseres became a spokesman (in London, England) for the interests of British colonial merchants who lived in Canada—like John Askin. The act, which took effect in 1775, ended military rule of the lands in North America that the British had won from the French in 1760. Passage of the Quebec Act was the most significant political event to affect the Askins's lives after the conquest, until the effects of the American Revolution reached them. The Quebec Act incorporated French settlements south of the Great Lakes as far as the Illinois country into the Province of Quebec; set up British civil government for the enlarged province; established a British provincial governor in Quebec City and lieutenant governors at Detroit, Michilimackinac, Vincennes, and in the Illinois country; and guaranteed religious freedom for Catholics. It did not establish an elected assembly, which some had desired. Most importantly for the Askins, the act reinforced the Quebec economy's traditional links with fisheries and the fur trade. Naturally, Maseres's views and lobbying work would have been of great interest to Askin.35 22
      The Askins's books in the sciences included works on agriculture, astronomy, gardening and forestry, human medicine, natural history, navigation, lightning (electricity), surveying, and chemistry. Information in these books enabled the Askins to apply scientific discoveries to their daily lives. Conditions in North America were not exactly the same as those in Europe, of course, but as few books had yet been published on the climate, soil, and plants of the New World, colonists had to rely on European works. 23
      Navigation by water was very important to the Askins. Thus, it is not surprising that during the period from 1778 to 1821 they had two books on this topic, the first by John Robertson and the second by James Atkinson. Askin traveled to Michilimackinac by water. The family moved three times, always by water. And water carried the foodstuffs, trade goods, alcohol, and furs that constituted John Askin's business life as a middleman or supplier to fur traders, Native Americans, British army personnel, and civilians. Over time Askin built, owned, and operated seven sizable sailing vessels for shipping goods, foodstuffs, forest products, and furs: Archange, Welcome, Weasel, Annette, Surprise, Mackinac, and DePeyster, in addition to owning numerous smaller sailing boats, canoes, a skiff, and a fishing boat.36 Some of Archange's brothers, two or three African slaves, some unnamed French Canadians, Timothy Grummet, a Mr. MacDonald, and others captained and crewed for him, including Samuel Robertson, his daughter Catherine's husband.37 24
      Askin was a farmer himself, first at L'Arbre Croche, then at French Farm Lake, two miles south of Michilimackinac, then in the Detroit area, and finally at Sandwich. At Michilimackinac, Askin's garden supplied both his household and the other inhabitants of the fort with fresh produce in season. Here, no doubt, the family's books on husbandry by Thomas Hale and on gardening and forestry by William Hanbury were useful. Askin had not grown up on a farm; his father had been a shopkeeper and the grandfather who raised him was a clergyman. Consequently, he learned how to farm by reading about it, observing other people's activities, and getting advice from friends. Hale's book covered every conceivable topic on farming, including treating accidents and illnesses of farm animals.38 Hanbury was a specialist on North-American trees that grew in waste areas.39 Askin shipped forest products used by Native Americans to make canoes and containers, including gum, bark, and watap, the stringy roots of coniferous trees used in sewing. 25
      The appearance of a book called "Observations on Lightning" on the Askin inventories of 1778 and 1779 raises the possibility that they may have owned a work published in America and by an American author, Benjamin Franklin. Franklin wrote a book called Experiments and Observations on Electricity that was printed and published in revised and updated editions from 1751 to 1774 in England, Boston, and Philadelphia. Ownership of this book indicates that one (or both) of the Askins was interested in keeping up with new scientific discoveries.40 26
      Noël Antoine Pluche's Le Spectacle de la Nature, which was published in London and Paris, went through fifty-seven French and seventeen English editions plus numerous abridgments, adaptations, and printings in other countries from 1732 to 1776. Private library owners liked this work because it could be used as a natural-history textbook for children.41 It appears in the Askins's inventories too late for them to have used it for this purpose, however. It is likely that their copy, an abridged edition, was in French. 27
      Some conduct books, such as Richard Allestree's The Whole Duty of Man, contained important advice on religion and directions for Christian devotional practices. Others, such as the Earl of Chesterfield's Letters Written ... to His Son, Philip, which also appears to have been widely owned, concentrated on offering practical suggestions for correct behavior in social settings. People on their way up economically needed this information in order to rise socially to "gentleperson" status. The Askins owned a copy of Chesterfield's book. Letters was first published in 1774, and the Askins owned a copy a mere four years later. This illustrates how a new book could be issued one year, become popular and be reviewed throughout the next year, be ordered by the Askins the third year, and be received into their home library in the fourth year. The family could not have obtained any book from abroad much more quickly than this. Chesterfield's work does not include the private prayers or devotional material predominant in The Whole Duty of Man. In Letters the Earl of Chesterfield, 1694–1773, who was often absent from home, wrote to his son Philip nearly every day from the time the boy was seven until he was a young adult and himself engaged in work abroad, instructing him in matters of deportment and etiquette. Never intended for publication, this book made Chesterfield's reputation as an author.42 About the time the Askins received this book, John's eldest children from his first relationship would have been in their teens and in need of the information this notable work provided. 28
      The Askins's library had two books on mathematics: Thomas Simpson's A Treatise of Algebra, and Edmund Wingate's Mr. Wingate's Arithmetick.43 Both books appear on the first one or two inventories studied and were still present in the collection in 1821, forty-five years later. It is possible that Askin was sentimentally attached to Wingate's book, having perhaps brought it from Northern Ireland, but Simpson's volume was published after Askin moved to British North America. Were they so little used that they survived, unnoticed, and in good condition? Were they used in the children's educations? Did they perhaps own several different editions over the years? Wingate's was a notable and much reprinted work; its author lived from 1596 to 1656, and his book was still being reprinted with additions and corrections in the eighteenth century. Thomas Simpson, 1710–1761, was a noted mathematics teacher, editor, and textbook writer. His Treatise of Algebra went through ten editions from 1745 to 1826; it was one of three bestselling mathematics textbooks by Simpson. The other two were on geometry and trigonometry. All of his books sold well, partly because of their scope and partly because of the author's reputation as a fine teacher.44 Once again, we see that the Askins collected notable works. 29
      John Askin kept records of almost every item that he bought or sold, and his business transactions reveal that the complexity of his dealings required him to know the best methods of bookkeeping and business management. Even before 1780, when he moved his family to Detroit, Askin's boats carried corn, grease, alcohol (whiskey, rum, and brandy), vegetables, animal feed, meats, sugar, gum, bark, and watap. He grew crops for trade and bought grain, particularly corn, from farmers and Native Americans at Saginaw, L'Arbre Croche, and the Moravian mission on the Clinton River. He rented out stills on a seasonal basis so farmers could produce alcohol for the trade.45 He obtained his trade goods, including finished manufactured items such as guns, knives, blankets, household implements and furnishings, and jewelry, from Isaac Todd and James McGill in Montreal. These men were Askin's long-time personal friends as well as business associates.46 Over the years, Askin supplied individual traders and fur-trading companies with the merchandise they exchanged for furs trapped and prepared by Native Peoples living throughout the Great Lakes region. Detroit residents bought items directly from Askin at his retail store. The 1787 inventory Askin took of the merchandise in his store shows that he carried all manner of goods: iron bars; various varieties of tea; many kinds, sizes, and colors of thread and buttons; locks; horsewhips; and barrels of shot. But he did not sell books; there are no books on this inventory.47 30
      The Askins owned three books that helped John manage his commercial affairs—John Wright's The American Negotiator, William Gordon's The Universal Accountant, and Complete Merchant, and John Mair's Book-keeping Methodiz'd. Askin's correspondence and record books show that he needed to account for a wide range of business concerns, including the quality and quantity of furs taken in, the lack of furs in poor hunting seasons, trade goods wanted and obtained, shipments, damaged or spoiled goods, and so forth. The books by Wright, Gordon, and Mair explained how to keep records of transactions and advocated taking an annual inventory of one's assets, which practice provided the primary sources for this article. These authors also explained how and why to keep memoranda and day books of the types that survive in Askin's papers. The American Negotiator was written by an accountant who was involved with the American trade for fifteen years. It was a work for "planters, merchants, factors, brokers, [and] British subjects in Europe and North America" engaged in transatlantic trade, and its purpose was to assist them in establishing the values of materials shipped to and from Europe and North America. It also supplied currency-exchange information. Mair's volume was a standard bookkeeping work of the period. From it Askin learned how to keep track of his assets, debts, orders, payments, receipts, and sales. Gordon's Universal Accountant was printed from 1763 to 1765 in Edinburgh and as late as 1796 in Dublin. This work was also a standard guide to keeping business records.48 Once again, we may say that while Askin did not own many titles pertaining to commerce, the ones he did have were classics and addressed his particular needs well. 31
      Final questions remain. How did the Askins's library compare to those of others in their time and place? Can we discover anything else about their collection by comparing it to those of Father Gabriel Richard, the Reverend John Monteith, the Reverend Robert Addison, and others who either lived in the Great Lakes area or had similar lives? 32
      The personal library that was closest to the Askins's physically belonged to Father Gabriel Richard of Detroit. It was the largest library in the Old Northwest. When Richard died he owned 1,200 titles in 4,600 volumes. Eight hundred of these were items he himself had printed, of which 750 were children's books and miscellaneous works. Father Richard brought a printing press to Detroit in 1809, and he used it to print children's books, textbooks, religious books, and the town's first newspaper. He obtained 329 items after he came to Detroit in 1798; he also imported books for other people. Most of his books were in French. Naturally, they included many works of theology, Bibles (in many languages), hymnals, catechisms, liturgies, works on doctrine and doctrinal disputes, church council and conference papers, seminary textbooks, devotional works, books on pastoral theology, and preaching manuals. Father Richard also owned histories and biographies (on both religious and secular topics and persons), literature, and books on geography and travel, grammars, works on rhetoric, poetry, moral philosophy, language, education, economics, the sciences, and arts and crafts.49 The collection remained with the Diocese of Detroit after Richard died in a cholera epidemic, passing from the diocese to Detroit's Sacred Heart Seminary, and from there to a host of other institutions.50 Father Richard and Askin owned a number of the same books: Allestree's The Whole Duty of Man, Buffon's Natural History, Cook's Voyages, Johnson's Dictionary, and Pluche's Le Spectacle de la Nature. Both men owned books on navigation, drawing, trees, chemistry, electricity, surveying, and bookkeeping, but by different authors.51 There is no evidence in the published Askin Papers that Father Richard obtained books for the Askins. The priest's library was enormous compared to the Askins's collection, and its major focus was quite different from theirs—concentrating on theology and religion. 33
      Reverend John Monteith, 1787–1868, a Princeton Seminary graduate and a Presbyterian minister, did not come to Detroit until 1816, the year after Askin died, but his collection was notable. His books are now in the Bentley Historical Library at the University of Michigan. When Monteith died, the catalog of his collection contained 275 entries for 481 volumes. When he first arrived in Michigan, he owned only a few books. Monteith built up his collection by buying books in New York and Princeton when he traveled east, by receiving books from friends and mentors, and by purchasing the library of one of his cousins, who was also a minister. Like Father Richard's, Monteith's library was mostly a religious and theological collection, although he owned history (especially church history), biography, poetry, essays, a few titles that would be considered belles lettres, works in Greek and Latin, and textbooks in Spanish, French, and Italian. He had a flair for languages, enjoyed learning and teaching them, and compiled a manuscript vocabulary of the Ojibwe language. Like Askin, science and practical arts interested him, and he owned books on natural philosophy, botany, and astronomy. Unlike either Askin or Richard, though, Monteith acquired many of his books in North America and traveled to obtain them. This indicates how things changed as the nineteenth century progressed. Fifty-four percent of Monteith's titles were printed in America, 25 percent in the British Isles, and 21 percent on the Continent. Many of his American imprints were actually reprints of books originally published abroad.52 In common with Askin, Monteith had Bibles, prayer books, and, perhaps, Abel Boyer's Le Dictionnaire Royal François-Anglois, et Anglois-François (in English). He and Askin owned books on arithmetic, geography, and music, as well as multivolume dictionaries of the arts and sciences, although these works were by different authors.53 The libraries of highly educated clergymen like Monteith and Richard were much larger than the Askins's library, and it is natural that they had a different focus that reflected their owners' occupations. 34
      Robert Addison's library is a personal collection that also merits our attention. Addison, 1754–1829, emigrated from Britain to what is today Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, in 1792, as a missionary for the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel and remained there for the rest of his life. He was one of the best-educated men in Canada, and he brought with him to North America a magnificent library of about fifteen hundred imprints from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Addison added a mere fifty titles at Niagara. His books were mostly on religion, philosophy, and the classics. He had no mathematics, science, natural-history, or practical works. Active in community life, Addison was a member of the board of the superintendent of education and the local library board (his community did have a library). In addition, he was closely involved with the Niagara grammar school. He helped draft the legislation that became the Common Schools Act of 1816. He was instrumental in the building of churches at Grimsby, Chippawa, Queenston, Fort Erie, and St. Catharine's. Perhaps having a local library made it less necessary for him to buy his own books. In common with Askin he owned a Bible, a prayer book, Cato's Letters, issues of The Spectator, Marmontel's Contes Moraux, as well as an English version of Boyer's The Royal Dictionary, Abridged.54 Again, we see how one's work can affect the size and content of one's personal library. 35
      Fiona Black's article on the books owned by Hudson's Bay Company employees reveals that they were able to obtain reading material while in North America by using the company's ordering and transportation systems. The Askins might have obtained their books in the same way, by working through Todd and McGill of Montreal. McGill had a great interest in education; he left a bequest that led to the founding of McGill University in Montreal in 1821. Hudson's Bay Company fur traders, according to Black, were more interested in scientific and technical reading than in books in the humanities. They requested fewer religious titles and sermons, also fewer pamphlets and political texts. They had an unusually high interest in dictionaries and grammars in English and other languages. Nautical almanacs, surveying information, astronomical tables, books on shipbuilding, travel accounts, and British general and literary periodicals were popular among them. They knew little about what was published in the thirteen colonies or the United States.55 Actually, the Askins's book collection fits the reader-interest profile of the Hudson's Bay fur traders closely, except for the interest in French literature. It is unlikely that many Hudson's Bay Company employees had French-speaking wives. Although the Askins's collection seems quite small in comparison to those of the clergymen described here, it is certainly substantial compared to the books of George Nelson, 1786–1859, a fur trader from Montreal. He first went "into the woods" in 1802–1803 at the age of fifteen. In his first winter as a trader, George had a Bible, a prayer book, and a copy of Allestree's The Whole Duty of Man.56 His choice attests to the popularity of this devotional work, which the Askins also owned. Nelson borrowed books from others, lent his own and lost them, and wrote about books and reading a bit in his journal. 36
      In conclusion, the members of the Askin family seem to have relied upon their books to enrich their lives, and they appear to have read for pleasure as well as information. From their correspondence we know that the whole family was literate. In the absence of public schools, John and Archange sent some of their children to Montreal to be educated and they joined with friends and relatives to hire teachers or tutors to educate their other children. Without doubt, the Askins believed that it was essential for the children of their bilingual family to be able to read and write. Archange wrote her letters to her children in French; they answered her in French. Although John communicated with French-speaking people in French, both orally and in writing, he acquired books in English that were helpful to him as a businessman, farmer, and navigator. A number of the family's books were in French. Ideas from the Enlightenment and information about practical politics, scientific discoveries, and new geographical knowledge found their way into the Askins's home through the same books and magazines read by others living in eastern North America and Europe. At this time, French was the language of the upper classes in Europe. A sign that the Askins read the volumes in their library is that they both lent and borrowed books. Their library was neither a collection of ornaments nor a status symbol to impress others. Like Gabriel Richard, John Monteith, and Robert Addison, the Askins's valued the information in books because it could be applied to inform and solve their own and others' real-life problems. It is virtually certain that on long winter nights they appreciated some books for their entertainment value. This close look at the Askin family's library sheds some light onto a different side of the fur-trade milieu, illuminating the intellectual life of this early Michigan family and enriching our own understanding of book ownership and reading interests in early Michigan.

Appendix

Books in the Askins's Library

This list is in alphabetical order by author's surname, followed by the title, the place and date of first publication, the probable language, and the genre. Finally, the year(s) of the Askin inventories listing the item are given, as well as the number of volumes, if known. When there is no author given, books are arranged by title or by topic if there is no title.

  • Addison, Joseph. The Works of the Right Honourable Joseph Addison. London, 1721. English, literature. 1787 (4 vols.); 1821 (1 vol.).
  • Allestree, Richard. Practice of Christian Graces, or, the Whole Duty of Man. London, 1658. English, conduct literature. 1778, 1779.
  • Arnaud, François-Thomas-Marie de Baculard d'. Épreuves du Sentiment. Paris, 1772. French, literature. 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779.
  • The Art of Manual Defence; or, System of Boxing. London, [1789]. English, sports. 1821.
  • Atkinson, James. Epitome of the Whole Art of Navigation. London, 1701. English, naval science. 1821.
  • Bible. Too many to list. English, religion. 1778, 1779, 1821.
  • Boyer, Abel. Le Dictionnaire Royal François-Anglois, et Anglois-François. The Hague, 1702. English/French, reference. 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779, 1821.
  • Chambers, Ephraim. Cyclopaedia, or, an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences. London, 1728. English, reference. 1777, 1778, 1779 (all 2 vols.); London, 1778–1786. English, reference. 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779 (all 5 vols.).
  • [Chemistry]. Insufficient information. English, science. 1787 (2 vols.).
  • Chesterfield, Philip Dormer Stanhope. Letters Written ... to His Son, Philip. London, 1774. English, conduct literature. 1778, 1779.
  • Code Militaire. Paris, 1708. French, military science. 1821 (3 vols.).
  • Cook, James. Voyages. London, 1773. English, geography. 1787 (1 vol.); 1821 (2 vols.).
  • Franklin, Benjamin. Experiments and Observations on Electricity. London, 1751. English, science. 1778, 1779.
  • [Gazetteer]. Insufficient information. English, geography. 1787.
  • [Geographical grammar]. Insufficient information. English or French, geography. 1787, 1821.
  • Goldsmith, Oliver. The Vicar of Wakefield. Salisbury, 1766. English, literature. Undated list, 1808 or later.
  • Gordon, William. The Universal Accountant, and Complete Merchant. Edinburgh, 1763–1765. English, commerce. 1787, 1821 (both 2 vols.).
  • Hale, Thomas. A Compleat Body of Husbandry. London, 1756. English, agriculture. 1787, 1821 (both 4 vols.).
  • Hanbury, William. A Complete Body of Planting and Gardening. London, 1770. English, agriculture. 1787 (2 vols.).
  • [History of Cornwall]. Possibly Oxford, 1758; or Falmouth, 1803–1816. English, history. 1821.
  • [History of France]. Insufficient information. English, history. 1821 (3 vols.).
  • [History of the Brethren]. London, 1775. English, history. 1821 (1 vol.).
  • Jacob, Giles. A New Law-Dictionary. London, 1729. English, reference. 1787.
  • Johnson, Samuel. A Dictionary of the English Language. London, 1755. English, reference. 1787 (2 vols.); 1821.
  • Mair, John. Book-keeping Methodiz'd. Edinburgh, 1741. English, commerce. 1776, 1778, 1779.
  • Marmontel, Jean François. Bélisaire. Paris, 1765. French, literature. 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779.
  • ______. Contes Moraux. Paris, 1763. French, literature. 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779.
  • Maseres, Francis. The Canadian Freeholder. London, 1776. English, political science. 1821.
  • Maturin, Charles Robert. The Wild Irish Boy. London, 1808. English, literature. Undated list, 1808 or later (2 vols.).
  • Molière. Oeuvres Complètes. Paris. French, literature. 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779 (all 10 vols.).
  • Pluche, Nöel Antoine. Le Spectacle de la Nature. Paris, 1732–1733. French, natural history. 1821 (2 vols.).
  • [Prayer book]. Insufficient information. English, religion. 1778, 1779, 1821, 5 copies.
  • The Rambler. London, 1750–1752. English, literature. 1821 (2 vols.).
  • Robertson, John. The Elements of Navigation. London, 1754. English, naval science. 1778, 1779 (both 1 vol.); 1787.
  • Rollin, Charles. Histoire Ancienne des Égyptiens, des Carthaginois ... Paris, 1730–1738. French, history. Undated list, 1808 or later (3 vols.); 1821 (14 vols.).
  • Sheridan, Thomas. A Complete Dictionary of the English Language. London, 1780. English, reference. 1821.
  • Simpson, Thomas. A Treatise of Algebra. London, 1745. English, mathematics. 1777, 1778, 1779, 1787, 1821.
  • Smollett, Tobias. The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle. London, 1751. English, literature. 1787 (4 vols.).
  • Spangenberg, August Gottlieb. An Account of the Manner in Which the Protestant Church of the Unitas Fratrum, or United Brethren, Preach the Gospel and Carry on Their Missions among the Heathen. London, 1788. English, religion. 1821.
  • ______. [Idea Fidei Fratrum. English] An Exposition of Christian Doctrine as Taught in the Protestant Church of the United Brethren, or Unitas Fratrum. Utrecht, 1782 (German editions). London, 1784 or 1796. English (or possibly German), religion. 1821. [It is not clear which Spangenberg volume the Askins owned, but probably they did not own both.]
  • The Spectator/Le Spectateur. London, 1711–1712. English, literature. 1778 (8 vols.); Amsterdam, 1766. French, literature. 1779 (8 vols.).
  • Sully, Maximilien de Béthune. The Memoirs of the Duke of Sully. [London], possibly Paris, 1745. English, possibly French, history. 1778, 1779.

Askin Library Books as Yet Unidentified, with Inventory Dates

  • "An Almanack." Undated list, 1808 or later.
  • "Bolen in French (10 vols.)." 1787.
  • "A book of surveying." Undated list, 1808 or later.
  • "2 Catalogues of books." Undated list, 1808 or later.
  • "Drawing book." Undated list, 1808 or later.
  • "Fergusons? Sutmus?" 1787.
  • "Hommes de Quality." 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779.
  • "Madam Bon." 1777, 1778, 1779, 1787.
  • "2 Music books." Undated list, 1808 or later.
  • "16 New(s) Plays." 1778, 1779.
  • "Real? Teal? French (8 vols.)." 1787.
  • "Rodris Landon?" (2 vols.)." 1787.
  • "Work on astronomy." 1821.

Miscellaneous Entries

  • "About 12 odd volumes." 1778.
  • "146 N: of magazines [issues]." 1778, 1779.
  • "70 Odd vols: of other books, mostly broken setts." 1777.
  • "70 odd ditto (about)." 1777.
  • "Old books dift. Sorts." 1779.

Agnes Haigh Widder is a humanities bibliographer at Michigan State University Libraries.

 37


NOTES

1 John Clarke, Land, Power, and Economics on the Frontier of Upper Canada (Montreal: McGill-Queens University Press, 2001); David R. Farrell, "Askin (Erskine), John," Dictionary of Canadian Biography (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1983), 5: 37–39; John Gram, "John Askin at Michilimackinac," unpublished manuscript, June 1995, Mackinac State Historic Parks Library, Mackinaw City, Mich. The last source is the most detailed biographical study of Askin to date.

2 Joan Shelly Rubin, "What Is the History of the History of Books?" Journal of American History 90(September2003):555–56.Bookhistoryexaminestherangeofwrittencommunication in books, newspapers, periodicals, manuscripts, and ephemera, as well as the social, cultural, and economic history of authorship, publishing, libraries, literacy, literary criticism, reading habits, and reader response. It is a flourishing specialty; multivolume works on the history of the book in America, Canada, Great Britain, Wales, India, and Australia have appeared in the past few years. See Patricia Lockhart Fleming, Gilles Gallichan, and Yvan Lamonde, eds., History of the Book in Canada, vol. 1, Beginnings to 1840 (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2004); and Hugh Amory and David D. Hall, eds., The Colonial Book in the Atlantic World (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2000), which are particularly pertinent to this article.

3 Donald P. Heldman, Archaeological Investigations at French Farm Lake in Northern Michigan, 1981–1982: A British Colonial Farm Site, Mackinac Island Completion Report Series, no. 6 (Mackinac Island, Mich.: Mackinac Island State Park Commission, 1983), 72.

4 Farrell, "Askin," 5: 37–39; Gram, "Askin at Michilimackinac," 1–2, 5, 13–15. Askin freed a slave at Detroit in 1766 who may have been the mother of his first three children. Ernest J. Lajeuness, ed., The Windsor Border Region, Canada's Southernmost Frontier: A Collection of Documents (Toronto: Champlain Society, 1960), 202; George S. May, The Askin Inventory: A Mackinac Business Man's Property in 1778, Mackinac History, vol. 1, leaflet no. 2 (Mackinac Island, Mich.: Mackinac Island State Park Commission, 1963); George N. Fuller, ed., Historic Michigan, Land of the Great Lakes ([Dayton, Ohio]: National History Association, 1924), 216; Friend Palmer, Early Days in Detroit (Detroit: Hunt & June, 1906), 910. John Askin declined an invitation to a public dinner and ball to celebrate the end of the War of 1812, to be held March 29, 1815, citing his advanced age (seventy-five) and "weak state of health." He died the following month and was buried at Sandwich. The Askins's son Charles inherited the Strabane estate. Milo M. Quaife, ed., The John Askin Papers (Detroit: Detroit Library Commission, 1928), 1: 12. Quaife pulled together a significant portion of John Askin's correspondence from the Askin Papers in the Burton Historical Collection at the Detroit Public Library and the Askin family papers held at the National Archives of Canada (80 percent or more according to John Gibson, manuscript curator and librarian at the Burton at the time I did my research there, per a telephone conversation, November 28, 2006). These two collections hold a vast amount of material generated by the extended Askin family. I have relied heavily on the published correspondence to illuminate the Askins's lives. Research in the Askin Papers held in the Burton Historical Collection turned up several important documents for this article that are not included in Quaife's work: John Askin, "Inventory of John Askin's Property Taken at Detroit the 1st of January, 1787," Askin Papers (John 1739–1815), I6: 1787; Untitled list of articles belonging to John Askin, n.d., LMA/Askin, (J.), (large mss.); "Inventory of Property Real and Personal belonging to the Estate of the Late John and Archange Askin, Sandwich," July 1821, LMS/Askin, (J.), all in the Burton Historical Collection (hereafter Askin Papers, BHC), Detroit Public Library. Likewise, the Askin inventories from 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779, or 1787, cited in n. 5, and the Askin retail-shop inventory, cited in n. 45, are not in the Quaife edition.

5 John Askin, "1776 Inventory of My Estate, Viz," Askin Family Papers, MG 19, A3, vol. 68, National Archives of Canada, Ottawa (hereafter Askin Papers, NAC); idem, "1777, Inventory of John Askin's Estate," MG 19, A3, vol. 68, in ibid.; idem, "1778, Inventory of John Askin his Estate Taken the 31 of December 1778," John Askin Papers, Archives of Ontario, Toronto; idem, "1779, Inventory of Jno Askin his Estate," MG 19, A3, vol. 68, Askin Papers, NAC; idem, "Inventory of John Askin's Property Taken at Detroit the 1st of January, 1787." We know that the undated list is from 1808 or later because it includes a book by Charles Robert Maturin called The Wild Irish Boy, and the earliest listed date of publication for this work is 1808. "Inventory of Property Real and Personal Belonging to the Estate of the Late John and Archange Askin," 1821. The 1776 and 1778 inventories have been transcribed and published in David A. Armour and Keith R. Widder, At the Crossroads: Michilimackinac during the American Revolution (Mackinac Island, Mich.: Mackinac Island State Park Commission, 1986), 207–36.

6 Askin, "1776 Inventory of My Estate"; idem, "1777, Inventory of John Askin's Estate"; idem, "1778, Inventory of John Askin"; idem, "1779, Inventory of Jno Askin"; idem, "Inventory of John Askin's Property Taken at Detroit the 1st of January, 1787"; Untitled list of articles belonging to John Askin; "Inventory of Property Real and Personal Belonging to the Estate of the Late John and Archange Askin," 1821.

7 Standard reference works included bibliographical and word dictionaries; dictionaries of literature, history, pseudonyms, and librarianship; and encyclopedias with eighteenth-century imprints. The Online College Library Center (OCLC) is a shared cataloging database used by libraries throughout the United States and the world. The English Short-Title Catalogue (ESTC) is a developing catalogue of imprints from England and other English-speaking places from the beginning of printing to 1800. Both OCLC and ESTC are useful for bibliographic verification, finding unknown bibliographic details, and correcting bibliographic citations. OCLC is updated daily. I used ESTC on CD ROM, 3d ed., 2000, for this article. At that time the database contained only eighteenth-century imprints. Whenever places of publication or imprint dates of works in the Askin library are cited in this paper, the information comes from either OCLC or ESTC or both.

8 Askin, "1776 Inventory of My Estate, Viz."

9ÖAskin, "Inventory of John Askin's Property Taken at Detroit the 1st of January, 1787."

10 Yvan Lamonde and Andrea Rotundo, "The Book Trade and Bookstores," in History of the Book in Canada, ed. Fleming, Gallichan, and Lamonde, 1: 137.

11 John Askin to Sampson Fleming, April 28, 1778; John Askin to Jean Baptiste Barthe, June 13, 1778; John Askin to Jean Baptiste Barthe, June 26, 1778, all in Askin Papers, ed. Quaife, 1: 79, 124, 148–49; Askin, "1778, Inventory of John Askin."

12 The History of the Book in Canada database contains comprehensive bibliographic, geographic, and biographic data about Canada's print culture from its beginnings in the sixteenth century to the twenty-first century. See http://acsweb2.ucis.dal.ca/HBICDB/maintext.html, site visited February 28, 2007. Marie Tremaine, A Bibliography of Canadian Imprints, 1751–1800 (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1952); Patricia Fleming and Sandra Alston, Early Canadian Printing: A Supplement to Marie Tremaine's A Bibliography of Canadian Imprints, 1751–1800 (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1999); Patricia Fleming, Upper Canadian Imprints, 1801–1841: A Bibliography (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1988).

13 John Hare and Jean-Pierre Wallot, "The Business of Printing and Publishing"; Lamonde and Rotundo, "The Book Trade," both in History of the Book in Canada, ed. Fleming, Gallichan, and Lamonde, 1: 73, 125–26.

14 Leonard A. Coombs and Francis X. Blouin, Jr., eds., Intellectual Life on the Michigan Frontier: The Libraries of Gabriel Richard and John Monteith (Ann Arbor, Mich.: Bentley Historical Library, 1985), 2–3; Local History of Detroit and Wayne County (Dayton, Ohio: National Historical Association, [1928]), 121; Clarence M. Burton, The City of Detroit, Michigan, 1701–1922 (Detroit: S. J. Clarke, 1922), 706–7. The first Territorial Code, 1805, says nothing about schools. A school law passed in 1809 was probably never implemented. In 1827 the law stated that each township of fifty families was to have a schoolmaster six months of the year to teach reading, writing, and arithmetic in English or French, as well as spelling and decent behavior. Townships with one hundred families were to have school the entire year. But by then John and Archange Askin were dead and their children grown up. Lucy M. Salmon, "Education in Michigan during the Territorial Period," Pioneer Collections: Report of the Pioneer Society of the State of Michigan together with Reports of County, Town, and District Pioneer Societies (Lansing: Thorp and Godfrey, 1886), 7: 36–51.

15 John Askin to Thomas McMurray April 28, 1778, Askin Papers, ed. Quaife, 1: 68–69, n. 6. The letter refers to Askin's son John Jr., being in school in Detroit while the family lived near Michilimackinac, and note 6 explains that John Jr., went to school in Montreal as well. Askin records the cost of having Matthew Donovan teach his son Charles from January to September, 1798, and sons James and Alick, and Alick Grant (a son of one of Archange's sisters) from January through November, 1798. John Askin to Matthew Donovan, Askin Papers, ed. Quaife, 2: 155. Askin notes the costs of instruction for his sons Alexander, Charles, and James (and Alexander Grant and John Richardson) in various subjects and for teaching his daughter Eleanor as well. John Askin to David Bacon, August 29, 1801, in ibid., 357. Askin, George Meldrum, and Matthew Ernest went together to hire Peter Joseph Dillon for a year to teach their children (and others up to twenty-two in number) for five hundred dollars. The three men were to provide a schoolhouse and firewood, "as the season requires it." A schoolmaster's contract, May 19, 1800, in ibid., 294–95.

16 Stanley Brice Frost, James McGill of Montreal (Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 1995), 114–17; John Askin to John Hay, April 27, 1778, Askin Papers, ed. Quaife, 1: 68.

17 In 1801 Detroit teacher David Bacon told Askin that his sons needed to pay more attention to their English grammar or they would lose what they had. If Askin were willing and could provide fuel and candles, Bacon and Mr. Beaumont would give them extra help in the evenings with both English grammar and geography. "Perhaps several others would join them and be [do] their part in the fire-wood." David Bacon to John Askin, November 28, 1801, Askin Papers, ed. Quaife, 2: 361–62; Burton, City of Detroit, 706–9, 713, 718; Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970 (White Plains, N.Y.: Kraus International Publications, 1989), 365; Mary Lu MacDonald, Cherchez L'Imprimeur: Printers and the Development of Print Culture in Lower Canada before 1860 (Quebec: GRÉLQ, 1995), 5–8; Robert J. Constantine, The Role of Libraries in the Cultural History of Indiana (Bloomington: Indiana Library Studies, 1970), 18–19; Haynes McMullen, "Use of Books in the Ohio Valley before 1850," Journal of Library History 1(January 1966): 47; Tremaine, Bibliography of Canadian Imprints, xvii-xviii; Local History of Detroit and Wayne County, 121–22.

18 Wallace John Bonk, Michigan's First Bookstore: A Study of the Books Sold in the Detroit Bookstore, 1817–1828 (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, 1957), 1. The Detroit Public Library's website says it opened in 1865. The 1817 Detroit Library was a different entity. See http://www.detroit.lib.mi.us/About_DPL/About_DPL.htm, accessed January 4, 2007.

19 "Boyer, Abel," in The Dictionary of National Biography, ed. Leslie Stephen and Sidney Lee (London: Oxford University Press, [1886]), 2: 1015–16; "Boyer, Abel," in British Authors before 1800: A Biographical Dictionary, ed. Stanley J. Kunitz and Howard Haycroft (New York: Wilson, 1952), 53–54; H. Rocke Robertson and J. Wesley Robertson, A Collection of Dictionaries and Related Works Illustrating the Development of the English Dictionary (Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 1989), 63–64; Mary Rose Callaghan, "Sheridan, Thomas (the Younger)," in The Macmillan Dictionary of Irish Literature, ed. Robert Hogan et al. (London: Macmillan, 1985), 609–10; James R. Hulbert, Dictionaries: British and American (London: A. Deutsch, 1955), 24.

20 Askin was a land speculator. He accepted land in payment for fur-trade goods, often obtaining Indians' land this way. He often sold lands he acquired as payment owed to him very quickly. His economy was one based on lands and goods, not cash. Askin was among the largest landowners in the Great Lakes region, although estimates of his holdings vary widely. When he died, all but three hundred acres (his Strabane estate) was sold to pay his debts to his suppliers Isaac Todd and James McGill. "Walkerville," Sunday News Tribune, June 2, 1894, in Scrapbook on Detroit History, Biography, etc., vol. 4, 54, Burton Historical Collection; R. Alan Douglas, Uppermost Canada: The Western District and the Detroit Frontier, 1800–1850 (Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 2001), 17–18; Clarke, Land, Power, and Economics, 395–401; John Clarke, "Activity of an Early Canadian Land Speculator in Essex County, Ontario: Would the Real John Askin Please Stand Up?" in Canadian Papers in Rural History, ed. Donald H. Akenson (Gananoque, Ont.: Langdale, 1982), 3: 105.

21 Burton, City of Detroit, 707–8.

22 "Addison, Joseph," The Oxford Companion to English Literature, ed. Paul Harvey (New York: Oxford University Press, 1967), 7; "Addison, Joseph," British Authors before 1800, 1–3; William Rose Benét, "Spectator," The Reader's Encyclopedia (New York: Crowell, 1965), 952; "Rambler, The" and "Johnson, Samuel," The Oxford Companion to English Literature, ed. Margaret Drabble (New York: Oxford University Press, 1995), 819, 520; "Goldsmith, Oliver," The Oxford Companion to English Literature, ed. Margaret Drabble (New York: Oxford University Press, 2000), 416–17; "Peregrine Pickle" and "Smollett, Tobias," The Oxford Companion to English Literature, ed. Paul Harvey (New York: Oxford University Press, 1962), 607, 733; "Molière," The New Oxford Companion to Literature in French, ed. Peter France (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1995), 534–36; "Maturin, Charles Robert," Oxford Companion to English Literature (2000), ed. Drabble, 654; "Maturin," in S. Austin Allibone, A Critical Dictionary of English Literature and British and American Authors, Living and Deceased (Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1871), 2: 1246; "Arnaud, François-Thomas de Baculard d'," The Oxford Companion to French Literature, ed. Paul Harvey and Janet E. Heseltine (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1959), 29.

23 Joseph Towne Wheeler, "Books Owned by Marylanders, 1700–1776," Maryland Historical Magazine 35 (December 1940): 342–43.

24 "The Whole Duty of Man," Oxford Companion to English Literature (2000), ed. Drabble, 1096; Askin Papers, ed. Quaife, 1: 7; Reuben Gold Thwaites, ed., "Mackinac Register of Baptisms and Interments," in Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin (Madison: The Society, 1910), 19: 77. John Askin's ambivalence about religion is illustrated in Askin Papers, ed. Quaife, 2: 549, 563–64.

25 John Heckenwelder to John Askin, January 7; contract between John Askin and John Cornwall, April 11, 1786; John Heckenwelder to John Askin, April 17, 1786, all in Askin Papers, ed. Quaife, 1: 217–26, 234–35, 239–40; John E. Day, "Moravians in Michigan," and Clarence M. Burton, "Moravians at Detroit," Historical Collections: Collections and Researches Made by the Michigan Pioneer and Historical Society (Lansing: The Society, 1906), 30: 44–51, 51–63; Mark M. Boatner, Encyclopedia of the American Revolution (New York: D. McKay, 1974), 439, 475, 1251; M. A. Leeson, History of Macomb County, Michigan (Chicago: M. A. Leeson, 1882), 522; Clarke, Land, Power, and Economics, 398, n. 108, 629.

26 "Inventory of Property Real and Personal belonging to the Estate of the Late John and Archange Askin," 1821.

27 "Grammar," Oxford English Dictionary (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1989), 6: 459–60; "Cook, James," Oxford Companion to English Literature (1995), ed. Drabble, 230; "Cook, James," British Authors before 1800, 255. Cook's first voyage, 1768 to 1771, was around the Horn of Africa and the Cape of Good Hope. John Hawkesworth wrote an account of this voyage using Cook's journals and those of his botanist, Joseph Banks. Editions came out in 1773, 1774, 1777, 1779, and 1784. Cook's second voyage, 1772 to 1775, was toward the South Pole and around the world. The account of this voyage was published in 1777. On the third voyage, 1776 to 1780, Cook went to the Pacific Ocean, and an account of this voyage appeared in 1784. A two-volume edition was available that covered all three voyages; Hodges and Pain published it in London in 1784. It is likely that the Askins owned this edition.

28 Untitled list of articles belonging to John Askin; "Rollin, Charles," Oxford Companion to French Literature, ed. Harvey and Heseltine, 627.

29 "Voltaire, Francois-Marie Arouet," Oxford Companion to French Literature, ed. Harvey and Heseltine, 752–55.

30 We do not know which history of France the Askins owned. Possible choices include works by John Gifford, Charles John Ann Hereford, or Nathaniel William Wraxall. "Gifford, John" and "Hereford, Charles John Ann," Critical Dictionary, 1: 666, 832; Thomas Seccombe, "Wraxall, Sir Nathaniel William," Dictionary of National Biography, ed. Stephen and Lee, 21: 986.

31 John J. Delaney and James Edward Tobin, "Vertot," Dictionary of Catholic Biography (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1961), 1162; The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, ed. F. L. Cross (New York: Oxford University Press, 1958), 658.

32 "Borlase, William" and "Polwhele, Richard," Critical Dictionary, 1: 220; 2: 1619.

33 William Rose Benét, "Sully, Duc de Maximilien de Bethune," Benét's Reader's Encyclopedia, 3d ed. (New York: Crowell, 1987), 924.

34 Cato's Letters was originally published anonymously as a series of articles in periodicals. These letters cover a variety of concerns from the viewpoint of John Locke and the radical Whigs. The name Cato probably came from the popular blank-verse tragedy Cato by Joseph Addison, which appeared in 1713. The original Catos were Roman statesmen. OCLC lists an edition of Cato's Letters that includes two volumes in one. William Cushing, Initials and Pseudonyms: A Dictionary of Literary Disguises (New York: Crowell, 1885), 52; T. J. Carty, A Dictionary of Literary Pseudonyms in the English Language (London: Mansell, 1995), 27, 346, 579; John Trenchard and Thomas Gordon, Cato's Letters, or Essays on Liberty, Civil and Religious, and Other Important Subjects (Indianapolis, Ind.: Liberty Fund, 1995), xxiv-xxvi; "Trenchard, John," Critical Dictionary, 3: 2451; Pseudonyms and Nicknames Dictionary, 3d ed., ed. Jennifer Mossman (Detroit: Gale Research, 1987), 1: 813, 2: 2007. See William Rose Benét, "Addison, Joseph" and "Cato, Marcus Portius (the Elder and Younger)," Reader's Encyclopedia (1965), 9, 176.

35 After he returned to England, Maseres was a witness in 1774 before a House of Commons committee considering the Quebec Bill. He supported the creation of a legislative council that would be more independent of the provincial governor, but that would have no power to tax. Once the bill became law, Maseres was the conduit through which the British merchants in Canada lobbied for its abolition or amendment. The Canadian Freeholder is about these issues. Elizabeth Arthur, "Maseres, Arthur," Dictionary of Canadian Biography, 6: 491–96; K. David Milobar, "Quebec Act, 1774," The Oxford Companion to Canadian History, ed. Gerald Hallowell (Don Mills, Ont.: Oxford University Press, 2004), 523; Nancy Brown Foulds, "Quebec Act," The Canadian Encyclopedia: Year 2000 Edition, ed. James H. Marsh (Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1999), 1949.

36 Gram, "Askin at Michilimackinac," 31–33; Fred C. Hamil, The Valley of the Lower Thames, 1640–1850 (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1951), 67.

37 Gram, "Askin at Michilimackinac," 31–34, 42, 67; Askin to Hay, April 27, 1778, 1: 68, n. 4.

38 Topics covered included soil, manure, fences, trees, planting, livestock, grain seeds, grass, root vegetables, farm products, accidents to animals, animal cures, and crop diseases and their prevention/alleviation. Thomas Hale, A Compleat Body of Husbandry (London: T. Osborne, [1758]).

39 Henrey Blanche, British Botanical and Horticulture Literature before 1800 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1975), 3: 51, 559–63; William Dunn MacRay, "Hanbury, William," Dictionary of National Biography, 8: 1155–56. The inventories cite "Namburg" as the author of the Askins's book on planting and gardening. Possibly this is a transcription error, as I can find no book by this author and Hanbury and Namburg could look alike when written. As it is used here, waste means uncultivated or poor land.

40 J. A. Leo LeMay, "Franklin, Benjamin," in American National Biography, ed. John A. Garrity and Mark C. Carnes (New York: Oxford University Press, 2004), 8: 382–96.

41 Le Spectacle was one of the most significant works by Pluche, who was a Jansenist and a private tutor to upper-class French children. Camille Limoges, "Pluche, Noël Antoine," in Dictionary of Scientific Biography, ed. Charles C. Gillispie (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1981), 11–12: 42–46.

42 "Chesterfield, Philip Dormer Stanhope," in Oxford Companion to English Literature (1995), ed. Drabble, 192–93.

43 Thomas Simpson, A Treatise of Algebra (London: John Nourse, 1745); Edmund Wingate, Mr. Wingate's Arithmetick: Containing a Plain and Familiar Method for Attaining the Knowledge and Practice of Common Arithmetick (London: J. Philips, 1699), 543.

44 P. J. Wallis, "Simpson, Thomas," Dictionary of Scientific Biography, ed. Gillispie, 11–12: 443–44.

45 John Askin, "Inventory of All the Goods for My Retail Shop Belong[ing] to Me, John Askin, This 1st Jany, 1787," Askin Papers, NAC; Farrell, "Askin," 5: 37–39; Hamil, Valley of the Lower Thames, 62–67.

46 Isaac Todd to John Askin, February 3, 1814, in Askin Papers, ed. Quaife, 2: 776–77, relating the death of James McGill.

47 Askin, "Inventory of All the Goods for My Retail Shop."

48 The following accounting library catalogs and histories explain the names, purposes, and contents of different kinds of accounting record books kept during this period. The works by Gordon and Mair are noted. "Gordon, William," Critical Dictionary, 1: 708; The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales Library Catalogue, 1913 (New York: Arno, 1980), 530, 675; Herbert James Eldridge, The Evolution of the Science of Book-keeping (London: Institute of Book-keepers, 1931), 41–42; The Herwood Library of Accountancy: A Catalog of Books Printed between 1494 and 1900 (1938; repr., New York: Arno, 1980), 39, 63.

49 Coombs and Blouin, eds., Intellectual Life, 4–9; Leslie Teutler Woodcock, "Richard, Gabriel," American National Biography, 18: 433–34.

50ÖCoombs and Blouin, eds., Intellectual Life, 22–23.

51 Ibid., 31–210.

52 Ibid., 211–27.

53 Ibid., 238–95.

54 William James Cameron, George McKnight, and Michaele Sue Goldblatt, Robert Addison's Library (Hamilton, Ont.: McMaster University, 1967), vii-86; H. E. Turner, "Addison, Robert," Dictionary of Canadian Biography, 6: 3–6.

55 Fiona Black, "Beyond Boundaries: Books in the Canadian Northwest," in Across Boundaries: The Book in Culture and Commerce, ed. Bill Bell, Philip Bennet, and Jonquil Bevan (New Castle, Del.: Oak Knoll, 2000), 91–115; Michael Payne and Gregory Thomas, "Literacy, Literature, and Libraries in the Fur Trade," The Beaver 313 (April 1983): 44–53. See also Judith Hudson Beattie, "My Best Friend: Evidence of the Fur Trade Libraries Located in the Hudson's Bay Company Archives," Epilogue 8, nos. 1–2 (1993): 1–32; Michael H. Harris, "Books on the Frontier: The Extent and Nature of Book Ownership in Southern Indiana, 1800–1850," Library Quarterly 42 (October 1972): 416–30; John Francis McDermott, Private Libraries in Creole Saint Louis (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1938); Roger P. McCutcheon, "Libraries in New Orleans, 1771–1833," The Louisiana Historical Quarterly 20, no. 1 (1937): 152–58; idem, "Books and Bookselling in New Orleans, 1730–1830," The Louisiana Historical Quarterly 20, no. 3 (1937): 606–18; John Milfred Goudreau, "Early Libraries in Louisiana, a Study of Creole Influence [with] Volume II Source Materials" (PhD diss., Western Reserve University, 1965).

56 George Nelson, My First Years in the Fur Trade: The Journals of 1802–1804, ed. Laura L. Peers and Theresa M. Schenck (St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2002), 43, 54, 197–98.

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