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Online Finding Aids Ichabod Cook, Diary, 1827-1848 Contents List About this collection Folio Volume Cook's # Contents 1 1 23 May - 27 June 1827 2 2 28 June 1827 - 22 February 1828 3 3 23 February - 9 September 1828 4 4 9 September 1828 - 4 May 1829 5 5 5 May 1829 - 14 January 1830 6 6 15 January - 2 December 1830 7 7 3 December 1830 - 16 August 1831 8 8 17 August 1831 - 20 June 1832 9 9 21 June 1832 - 16 June 1833 10 10 17 June 1833 - 12 April 1834 11 11 13 April 1834 - 29 July 1835 12 12 30 July 1835 - 14 August 1836 13 13 15 August 1836 - 31 October 1837 14 14 1 November 1837 - 23 September 1838 15 15 24 September 1838 - 19 October 1839 16 16 20 October 1839 - 30 November 1840 17 17 1 December 1840 - 29 July 1841   18 (30 July 1841 - 21 March 1842) not in this collection 18 19 22 March - 7 September 1842 19 20 12 September 1842 - 20 January 1843 20 21 21 January - 4 October 1843 21 22 5 October 1843 - 10 June 1844   23 (11 June 1844 - 12 April 1845) not in this collection 22 24 13 April 1845 - 4 February 1846 23 25 5 February 1846 - 15 June 1847 24 26 6 June 1847 - 4 November 1848 About this collection Ichabod Cook (1779-1851) was born in Mendon, Mass., on 20 February 1779, the son of Ichabod Cook (1749-1838) and Elisabeth (Smith) Cook (1753-1838). In 1802, Cook married Hannah King (1782-1808); they had five children, only one, John King (1806-1877), who survived infancy. In 1809, he married Louisa Cooke (1788-1839) and they had three children: James Sullivan (1810- ), Louis (1812-1849), and William (1819- ). Ichabod Cook died in Mendon on 18 June 1851. Much of Ichabod Cook's diary is in rhyming verse, although prose becomes more frequent in the later volumes. He identifies himself as the author in the entry for 13 November 1843. Cook frequently comments on the weather and his agricultural activities, including the sale of butter, eggs and cranberries and haying. There is much description of visits to and from friends and relatives. In 1837 he was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives, and the diaries for 1838 include much about his time to Boston. There is also a great deal of information about Cook's religious activities. He was a Quaker and regularly recorded attending meetings and which of the men and women present preached. In time, he became dissatisfied with Quaker doctrines and in 1843 he was involved in the creation of a "Community of Friends," which split from the Quaker meeting and had its first worship in Bellingham, Mass. on 20 August 1843. In the 1840s Cook began to record many dreams--his own, those of people he knew, and some he read about in books or periodicals. In his 1847 book A Brief Examination of Some of the Most Prevalent False Doctrines and Ceremonials of the Christian Sects, Compared with Apostolic Doctrines Cook wrote "Dreams having been occasionally used to confirm me in revelations; these have been also used more than any thing else to confirm me in this. Fortunately for my present purpose, I began six or seven years ago to note down in my memorandums dreams of other people, as well as some of my own, that appeared most remarkable; so that I have hundreds to turn to, as occasion requires. Almost daily do I see something transpiring, which was pointed to by these dreams" (p. 147). In 1847 diary entries describe writing A Brief Examination and proofreading sheets as they came from the printer. After its publication late in July, 1847 Cook records several months of traveling to "peddle" his books through towns in eastern and central Massachusetts. Two volumes are missing: Cook's #18 [July 30, 1841-March 21, 1842] and his #23 [June 11, 1844-April 12, 1845].

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