This book relates to that quaint Nantucket which existed for two hundred
years before the island was discovered by the summer boarder. The
materials from which it has been written comprise the original town and
court records, various letters, account books, sea-journals, and other
private manuscripts, including the record books of the Quaker Society of
Nantucket. None of these valuable materials have been used heretofore
for such a purpose. For assistance in procuring them, I am indebted to
Mr. Henry B. Worth and to Captain Thomas R. Rodman, of New Bedford; to
many friends in Nantucket, and especially to Miss Helen Barnard Winslow
Worth, whose kind services have been invaluable.