Supplementing coins with history books: Any recommendations for 1860's-1870's books?

Prethen

One very good book I've read that covers this era is "The Expansion of Everyday Life, 1860-1876". I've taken a few other books from the library that have memoirs of the 1860's to 1880's.

Does anyone have any recommendations for good resources that cover life in the 1850's-1880's? Memoirs, letters, diaries, history books, and websites are all good resources.

I'm most interested in day-to-day living, especially the costs of daily life. For instance, one book I checked out had a memoir of the 1860's where a girl helped her mother sell pies to to miners at 40-50 pies (plus a quart of milk each) for 30-40 dollars. They rented a 4-bedroom house in Denver in 1860 for $85 per month.

DaveG

If you're interested in the later period, Victorian America: Transformations in Everyday Life, 1876-1915 by Thomas J. Schlereth is the next book in the "Everyday Life" series.

You might like Forty Years a Gambler on the Mississippi by George H. Devol; it's the memoir of a riverboat gambler from about 1840-1880. Some of Mark Twain's books (Life on the Mississippi or Roughing It give some good period details, also.

Money of the Mind by James Grant refers to various period novels that mention daily (and commercial) life, like early consumer finance companies (basically, loan sharks), but most of the references are for the post-1880 period.

I'm primarily interested in 19th century commercial history. Let me know if you have any suggestions that mention how commerce was conducted (homeowners paying their monthly bills, etc.)

Prethen

Great suggestions, Dave. I've already read through part of the first one you mentioned...the Victorian book. I'm definitely intrigued by your other suggestions.

Longacre

DaveG is the master with things like this request...