Using the university as a starting point, the project will reflect the everyday (economic) life in Uppland both in urban environments and in the countryside. Through its extensive land holdings—academic farms—the university was a central actor not only in the city but also in rural areas. This allows for bridging the clear divide often made between town and country. Importantly, the university was an independent corporation with its own jurisdiction and administration, meaning that the university—and not Uppsala's town court and magistrate or any nearby district court—was the court for all matters involving anyone connected to the university and the archive keeper for all kinds of records.
As expected, the archive contains probate inventories from well-off families, such as Archbishop Steuchius, Professor Mattias Asp, and Professor's wife Johanna Hellbeck, but also from various individuals connected to the university, such as instrument makers, librarians, cursors, hop garden workers, and timbermen. In other words, it contains a socially diverse collection that is unparalleled in ordinary archives, and a systematic review of the material would significantly enrich our knowledge of the 18th century.
Probate inventories provide a snapshot of the material culture in a household, detailing the fixed and movable property owned by the household at the time of death. By listing all heirs with claims on the estate, they offer a good overview of the family's social relationships. The name and occupation of the surviving spouse are indicated, and if the children are minors, the guardian representing them is named along with their occupation. If the children are adults, the inventories reveal, in the case of daughters, who they married or, if unmarried, who represents them, and in the case of sons, their occupations.
The early modern economy was largely credit-based, and debts and claims were a natural part of household economics. The lists of debts and claims in probate inventories are often extensive, providing insight into the family's credit network. The names of debtors and creditors, as well as the amounts, are always listed. Titles are often mentioned, and for widows, the occupations of their deceased husbands. Many debts pertain to bills from various merchants, allowing for the mapping of frequently used merchants. Here, a spatial dimension is particularly central, as purchases were made even in places like Stockholm. It is clear that economic and social networks intertwine, and a central question for the project is the extent to which they overlap.
Overall, the project provides a nuanced and unique picture of everyday life for people in the 18th century.
