I've been researching my direct ancestor line in the Agricultural Schedules of 1850-1880, but I've also kept an eye out for my branch lines. Below are entries for Jesse Geiger/Gieger and Z. Geiger/Gieger in the 1860 schedule. I thought the list would find these entries of interest. Since I have not cross-checked this with the population schedule, I'm assuming that Jesse is Jesse Geiger, b. March 20, 1793 and d. October 20, 1871, and that Z. is Zachariah Geiger, b. May 01, 1814 and d. 1898. Here are the agricultural entries: 1860 Agricultural Schedule County of Covington, State of Mississippi Name of Owner, Agent, or Manager of the Farm:Jesse Gieger (spelled Jessee Gigger on the schedule) ACRES OF LAND Improved, 50 Unimproved, 230 Cash value of Farm, $1,000 Value of Farming Implements and Machinery, $150 LIVE STOCK, JUNE 1ST, 1860 Horses, 5 Milch Cows, 1 Working Oxen, 6 Other Cattle, 12 Value of Live Stock, $800 PRODUCE DURING THE YEAR ENDING JUNE 1, 1860 Indian Corn, bushels of., 350 Ginned Cotton, bales of 400 lbs. each., 6 Wool, lbs. of. 50 Peas and Beans, bush.. of., 50 Irish Potatoes, bush. of., 5 Sweet Potatoes, bush. of., 100 Wine, gallons of., 20 Butter, lbs. of., 50 Hay, tons of., 1 Beeswax, lbs. of., 10 Honey, lbs. of., 60 Value of Home-made Manufactures, $50 Value of Animals slaughtered., $200 ******************************************************************* 1860 Agricultural Schedule County of Covington, State of Mississippi Name of Owner, Agent, or Manager of the Farm: Z. Gigger ACRES OF LAND Improved, 27 Unimproved, 133 Cash value of Farm, $400 Value of Farming Implements and Machinery, $75 LIVE STOCK, JUNE 1ST, 1860 Horses, 3 Milch Cows, 5 Working Oxen, 2 Other Cattle, 7 Sheep, 20 Swine, 15 Value of Live Stock, $700 PRODUCE DURING THE YEAR ENDING JUNE 1, 1860 Indian Corn, bushels of., 200 Ginned Cotton, bales of 400 lbs. each., 30 Wool, lbs. of., 40 Peas and Beans, bush.. of., 100 Sweet Potatoes, bush. of., 75 Value of Orchard Products in dollars., $10 Butter, lbs. of., 20 Hay, tons of., 1 Value of Home-made Manufactures., $200 Value of Animals slaughtered., $150 Some complex calculations are needed, which I haven't made yet, to determine if they were self-sufficient in grain (peas, beans, potatoes, rice, etc. have to be converted to equivalent corn units). The price of cotton varied but was about 10 cents a pound in 1860. Thus, Jesse would have grossed $240 from his 6 bales, while Zachariah would have grossed $1,200. By 1860 Piney Woods standards they were quite well off, even without knowing their costs or debts. The cotton production suggests they owned slaves, but I haven't checked the slave schedules. Homemade manufactures were largely consumed on the farm but some may have been sold or traded. Cattle may have been sold and brought about $10 a head, depending on their size. I find the ag schedules of interest because they tell us a great deal about our ancestors lives and finances. By making decade-to-decade comparisons, we can determine how well they were doing. Ralph Poore 3440 S. Brookshore Place Boise, ID 83706 poorehouse1@msn.com http://www.familytreemaker.com/users/p/o/o/Ralph-E-Poore/ The families my wife and I researching are divided into four surname categories: Poore, Pierce, Johnson, and Fladeland. Those in the Poore category are linked to my father’s family. Those in the Pierce category are linked to my mother’s family. Those in the Johnson family are linked to my wife’s father’s family. Those in the Fladeland family are linked to my wife’ s mother’s family. POORE Calloway, Gandy, Gieger, Hearne, Jay, Lowe, Poore, Widden PIERCE Crawley, Moody, Pierce, Stringfellow, JOHNSON Edwards, Johnson FLADELAND Bowman, Buskirk, Fladeland, Nygaard