[Text taken from Virgo catalog entry] The volume contains records of "Brookhill," the Albemarle County, VA farm of the Minor family. Entries are in the hands of Charles Minor and John B. Minor.
Charles Minor's entries (Mar. 5, 1860 through Nov. 15, 1861) include notations on the weather; activities associated with the cultivation of tobacco, wheat, corn and other minor crops; the raising of cattle, hogs and sheep; horse breeding; drainage ditches, the use of farm machinery and the application of various fertilizers (guano, Ruffin's mixture, plaster, etc.)
The entries by John B. Minor (Nov. 16, 1861 through May 1862) are generally more detailed narrative accounts and include summaries of daily activities provided by the farm overseer. There is a five page account (Dec. 14, 1861) of Charles Minor's death. The Civil War and its effect on agriculture is mentioned sporadically.
There are occasional lists of enslaved people, with costs, and of the enslaved people whose bondage the Minor family owned, with ages and values.
Digitized copy created by JUEL. Original farm book held at UVA Small Special Collections Library: https://search.lib.virginia.edu/sources/uva_library/items/u4604181