Diary of John Osborne

Scott Farb had a short piece in a late January issue of the Union County Weekly. He apparently came into possession of a copy of a young man's diary from the early 1800's, compliments of Mark Hernig of Kick n' Stitch Broom Shop fame. Scott's description:

The Diary of John Osborne is a record of daily life in the Waxhaws from 1800 to 1803. Osborne was a young man who recorded many daily events, some of them quite mundane and others quite amazing. Yet there are four things young John seems to engage in on a regular basis: distilling whiskey for his uncle, traveling to Lancaster and Charleston to buy stills and distilling equipment, visiting with many young women, and listening to sermons. This was quite an adventurous life for a young man on the outskirts of Charlotte, and one where his activities are probably not what would normally come to mind when we think of the post-Revolutionary South.

Read the whole thing as it's rather interesting. Apparently there was lots of whiskey distilling going on, making a small part of me yearn for those simpler times.

And Scott will be sharing more tidbits from the journal in his monthly column in the Union County Weekly, so keep your eyes peeled for them.

His next article was rather interesting as well regarding a notice for the sale of dental equipment in the old Charlotte Journal. Scott garnered quite a bit of information from a little sales notice. Definitely worth reading.