This weekend my wife and I spent a good bit of time at a local bookstore that has gone out of business and is now liquidating its stock at sacrificial prices. The loss of the shop is a tragedy for this city, but I like to think more about all of the people who will be enriched by the books they were able to buy and take home.
Among the many little treasures we brought home was this 1844 almanac, which we purchased for $0.50. It's not rare or valuable, but it is certainly a nice addition to our little (but growing) collection of historical ephemera, and it will perhaps make a nice teaching specimen someday. The best part is that someone wrote a couple of cryptic notes in it, perhaps practicing penmanship (but certainly not spelling): "Alnamack White hous" and "big lip piscat heffer". Or perhaps it's some sort of code?
