Two account books of merchant and shipowner Humphrey Howland (1759-1812), of New Bedford, Massachusetts. Volume one is a daybook recording credits and debits related to trade of commodities and shipping; wages paid to employees of a spermaceti works and workers on vessels he owned, including sloop Betsey and ship Hope; and charges for docking ships in a wharf owned by Humphrey Howland, from 1785 to 1806. Vessels that docked at his wharf included the Surprise, Industry, William, Triton, and Nancy. Volume two is a ledger with accounts dating from 1783 to 1806. Records are for personal transactions, such as payment to a man who painted Humphrey Howland's house, and accounts related to his shipping and trading activities, and wharfage and dockage fees he charged. There is an index to accounts at the end of the volume.

Humphrey Howland (1759-1812) was a merchant and ship owner in New Bedford, Massachusetts. He owned shares in the sloop Betsey and ship Hope, and he also owned a wharf and was partner in a spermaceti works. As a merchant, he traded dry goods, feathers, hoop iron, bar iron, tea, and commodities from the West Indies.