The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-11-19
Leaves From the Ledger Of
the Oldest Merchant in
Virginia City-Necessities
Made Big Holes in Pocket
books and Luxuries Were
Out Of Sight.
GOLD DuSTFOR GROCERIES

EISllCIl, Dul all nave ulSdppedTeQ, ana
Mr.. French is the oldest one left. Back
in 1866 there was started the store OF
French & Thomas, Mr. Frenchs partner
being j. D. Thomas, for many years
leading merchant of Butte. In the
year 1879 Thomas and French divided
up, and Mr.. Thomas moved to the new
town of Butte, while Mr.. French con-
tinued in business in Virginia City,
where he is still to be found doing busi-
ness at the old stand.
Mr.. French still retains the first day
book kept by the firm. In those days
books of all kinds came high and every
| page of a blank book was carefully
utilized. This first day book Of the
firm had been used previously the used
portion had been torn out, and the lat
ter half of the book is the portion in
which is contained the record OF the
first business done by the old firm.
AS showing the marked change in the
price for staples in the old Montana
days and a the present time the old
book is Of curious interest. Here are
some of the items Which appear in the
book in the month of April 1866
J. A. Browne (now of Brownies
Lake.:
TWO plugs of tobacco. so
Fifty pounds of flour. 8 50
DR.. O. B. Whitford:
One sack of flour SIS ho
Twenty pounds of bacon u 90
One drink of whiskey. ....... a5
twenty pounds potatoes. ... 60
-Four pounds apples. 40
Other sales to various customers
We're as follows:
Forty-four pounds lard ..s % 90
ole pToOiH. ................ l 80
One-half gallon whiskey ... s 90
Five pounds sugar. 3 90
One pound coffee. ............. 90
One pound butter. ............ 60
Two pounds beans .............. 30
Two dozen eggs. 9 90
Can or oysters .................. 90
Ten pounds SALT. ...... 3 90
one gallon syrup .................. 90
Five pounds nails. 2 so u
Alex Metzel:
One pound pepper. 9 25
ohe-quarter pound tea. So
$500 pounds barley $50 80
one shoFei OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. so
Shovels just before that sold for S..
The first corners to the old town We're
glad to pay $50 for a pick and shovel,
but there were few to be had.
The day book shows that 81 was paid
for pane of window glass. A ham
brought $27; 397 pounds of grapes were
sold for s277.90. The grapes were dried.
of course. The firm bought a wagon
load Of dried grapes in California. BY
starting in the spring the grapes would
just about reach Virginia City before
everything was frozen up A thous-
and pounds of oats sold for $50 One
pound of soap brought IS cents 1t is
60 cents cheaper now. Rice which now
can be had for 10 cents a pound, then
sold at 60 cents per pound. The first
potatoes brought So cents a pound. Two
A sack of sugar brought $4250.
During the flour famine in Montana,
he got a train load of flour in Salt Lake,
He paid about 50 a hundred weight for
it there. Some of it he sold in Vir-
ginia City for as high as 500 sack
In 1868 Mr. French went to New York
and Boston and bought $4,000 worth of
goods there. He took the goods by
rail to Omaha. by boat from Omaha to
Fort Benton and by team from Fort
Benton to Virginia City.
People had some delicacies even in
those early days. oysters frequently
appear in the day book. They were
canned oysters, brought from Omaha
They had honey. too. The record shows
that 331a pounds of it was sold for
$21.TS. Eggs brought good price. the
buyer taking all the risk as to whether
they were eatable or not. The eggs
came from Salt Lake. packed in oats.
They brought s1.25 a dozen readily.
pound and a half of cheese sold for
so cents. The record shows that r. o.
Hickman bought eight pounds of sugar
for $50 Other sales recorded in the
book are
Ten gallons coal s27.51
Half dozen shovels ................ 240g
Seven pounds salmon ............ $50
One pound nuts ................ LII
One pound prunes ..,............. 80
Eighty-two pounds ham .......... 41.oo
One case oysters ,................. 1000
The French and Thomas store was
originally at Nevada, a short distance
down the sulch from Virginia, but 1t
was moved to Virginia in the early
seventies.