caldwell was a founder of the agriculture society (1791), serving as its chairman, to improve the breeding of livestock and the production of hemp in quebec. in 1801 he purchased all the property that had belonged to governor murray, establishing himself as an important landowner, and he bought further considerable tracts of land throughout quebec. from the mills he built he supplied the troops stationed in north america and bought boats, wharves and warehouses to produce, store and export his goods. in 1810 alone he sold more than 1,775,000 pounds of flour to the government for just under £22,000.