Tagged: Homestead Economics Series

Watercolor Geiger Family Farm 1810 Lewis Miller 1

Homestead Economics: Conclusion

This series of articles started with a question: What economic activities contributed to the success of the Hagenbuch Homestead in Albany Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania? Before beginning to write, I already had some ideas....

Eichelberger Distillery Dills Tavern Pot Still 0

Homestead Economics: Distilling Liquor

Many early American farmers distilled their own liquor, not just for their own consumption but also for additional income. According to Mount Vernon, where George Washington ran a sizable distillery, the average Virginia distiller...

Colonial Woman Farm Chickens 1

Homestead Economics: Crops, Livestock, and More

Of all the different economic activities at the Hagenbuch Homestead, agriculture was the most important and this only increased with time. After acquiring the homestead property in 1741, Andreas Hagenbuch (b. 1715, d. 1785)...

Tanner Currier 1790 Detail 6

Homestead Economics: Leather Tanning

Life at the Hagenbuch Homestead stank—quite literally! By the early 1800s, the homestead had a sizable tannery, large enough to be recorded on at least one map of the area as the “Hagenbuch Tanyard.”...

Detail of an illustration of an newly cleared American farm by Patrick Campbell, 1793. Credit: Library.yale.edu 2

Homestead Economics: Introduction

How did Andreas Hagenbuch (b. 1715, d. 1785), his immediate family, and his descendants make a living in the 18th and early 19th centuries? Today, we develop skills, find jobs, and build careers in...