Administrative Information

Access

There are no restrictions.

Publication Rights/ Restrictions on Use

Before publishing quotations or excerpts from any materials, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Librarian/ Associate Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts, and the holder of the copyright, if not the Rockefeller Library at Colonial Williamsburg.

Preferred Citation

John S. Major Arithmetic Book, Manuscript MS 92.2, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation

Acquisition Information

Purchase, 1992.

Biographical/Historical Information

John Sleet Major was a resident of Culpeper County, Virginia.

Scope and Content Information

Arithmetic exercise book. Includes questions and answers, exercises, examples, case or story questions, and a multiplication table. Major's tutors were Gilbert Christian and Edward Wall. Includes several personal comments or signatures. Lessons worked on range from elementary addition to more complex banking and mercantile concepts. Lessons include addition and subtraction of dry measure, wine measure, cloth measure, time, motion and apothecaries weight; compound multiplication; short, simple, long and compound division; reduction in money; tare and tret, rule of three; simple and compound interest; brokerage; rebate or discount; equation of payments; barter; loss & gain; simple and compound fellowship; exchange (with some examples of bill of exchange with European firms); comparison of weights and measures; media and alternate alligation; comparative arithmetic; arithmetical progression; geometrical progression; vulgar fractions; decimal fractions; square roots; the cube; biquadrate; sursolid; annuities or pensions in arrears and other subjects.

Index Terms

Persons:

• Christian, Gilbert.
• Major, John S., b. 1787.
• Wall, Edward.

Subjects:

• Education--Virginia--History--19th century.
• Arithmetic--Early works to 1900.
• Arithmetic--Study and teaching--Virginia--History--19th century.