Letter from Philadelphia to Omagh, County Tyrone
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Letter from Jacob Rodgers, Philadelphia to Ross Huston, Omagh, County Tyrone, dated 19th March 1821. Jacob writes home with information on the wellbeing of family and friends encountered on his travels on horseback, and describes the economic climate of the time:
‘The promise I made you at parting to let you know how your sister and family is, I now take the opportunity of fulfilling. We stopped with her three days, she and the family were all well; Margret still lives on with Mr. Willing, as formerly she has $6 per month; John was about setting out to Troy 100 miles beyond New York, as he could get no employment about home, as Rosanna's time had been up at May, she was then living at home. Nancy is bound out until the age of 18. Hennery was learning the carpenter trade and James was at school.’
‘The appearance of the times here is truly distressing as it is next to impossible to get any money, consequently those who are in debt have no means of discharging it and property sells very low; but it is expected by all that there will be an alteration shortly, as such a scarcity of money was never experienced before but after the revolutionary war; horses, cows, and steers sells very well for foreign exportation. Wheat sells at ½ dollar per bushel, wry and corn at 33 cents and whiskey 25 cents per gallon, but it is very dull sale even at these low prices, which is very much in favour of people coming into this country as they get what they want at such a low rate.’
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