CLOSURE! July 6, 1768 at the Colden Store, Coldengham, New York

Wednesday, July 6, 1768
Coldengham, New York
Store of Cadwallader Colden, Jr.

Four-Day Closure, 250 years-ago

The Colden Store appears to have been closed Wednesday, July 6 through Saturday, July 9.

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This article is one in a series of a daily accountings of Colden Store transactions. Be sure you read the first installment for an introduction to the store. You should also read this article which appeared in the Journal of the Orange County Historical Society.

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Even during the coldest days of the Winter of 1768, the store was never closed for more than two days in a row. Was this mid-summer closure planned? If so, it had not caused a rush to the store on Tuesday the 5th to conduct business before the closure. Only nine accounts had transactions on Tuesday and all but three were represented by persons other than the account owner. Twenty-four items were sold.

If the closure was unplanned, what might have triggered it? A storm would not last that long. If Colden was ill, he had clerks who could tend the store in his absence. An epidemic might close the store, but there is no history of epidemics at this date.

When the store reopened for four customers on Sunday, July 10, there were ten entries in the DayBook.  Sunday openings were rarely recorded in the DayBook. None of the customers bought items that could not have waited until Monday (with maybe the exception of the half-gallon of West Indian Rum purchased by Abraham Hennion.)

The main reopening of the Store was Monday, July 11th, on which date Colden had one of his busiest days in the history of the store. Thirty-six people made the journey to the store and bought almost one hundred items.

Perhaps Colden had made a major procurement trip to New York City and had taken his clerks with him? If he had hoped to take in the concert and fireworks on Thursday evening in Ranelagh Gardens, July 7th, he would have been disappointed.  The festivities were cancelled as the preparations for the fireworks could not be completed in time. [July 7, 1768 edition of the N-Y Journal, p. 3]

It can only be speculated what was going on with Colden and his Store during this period, but what is known is that the DayBook had no entries for the next four days, 250 years-ago.

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