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- Go to 1860 cont'd. WOMAN'S WORK
One wonders and a Woman's work is never done. It was tough even if one had good land and a good husband. Even I remember a chap saying his Mother used to push a pram roughly 3 miles or more. To do a days washing for family and then trundle back home.
posted by
C_C_T
on September 10, 2020 at 10:37 AM
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Re: That laundry duty could really stack up.
My grandparents had an outhouse at their farm in West Virginia. I was thinking if the world gets crazy at least we have our three washboards to do our clothes. Let's hope things don't get this out of hand. I'm not even sure how to use a washboard.
posted by
Goldiec
on September 10, 2020 at 9:36 AM
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That laundry duty could really stack up.
My hubby washed his clothes on a washboard when he was a kid, and they had an outhouse. It was a common way of life in the coal patches of Pennsylvania up until the early seventies. I still hang bedding & clothes out to dry in the warmer months, but I am happy to say that I have very modern machines for washing & drying.
posted by
Sherri_G
on September 10, 2020 at 7:49 AM
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Those women were tough. They didn't know anything else though.
It was expected of them to do ALL of those womanly chores. I do alright with isolation and chores, but there comes a time when sitting with another female over a hot cup of coffee is good for the mind and soul. This is a great story that I have got myself caught up in.
posted by
Sherri_G
on September 10, 2020 at 7:46 AM
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I love this series. I hope that you share more about the pioneers.
posted by
Goldiec
on September 10, 2020 at 5:54 AM
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Re: Re: A hard life
Pat_B, I have never actually seen an enamel percolator like you describe. I'm sure the coffee was very strong. My grandma had a coal-burning stove in West Virginia and she would always have a kettle on top of the stove for tea. She used to open up a door to shovel coal into the stove and it used to scare me. The red hot coals were quite a sight to see. I wonder what kind of grinder the Pioneers used? I really enjoy these posts about the pioneers. Our history museum in Cleveland has a whole section on how they lived. I find it fascinating. Thanks for sharing this.
posted by
Goldiec
on September 10, 2020 at 5:18 AM
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Re: A hard life
Goldiec, at our house we had a large 2-quart sized granite wear (enamel) percolator. It had a basket to hold the grounds and a kind of funnel tube that sent the water through and over the basket as the water boiled. As it stood on the stove after initial perk, the coffee got very strong (jokes were that it wasn't ready until a spoon could stand up in it). In the late '40s we lived in a house with a wood burning cookstove, and mom had that granite wear utensil she'd gotten from her mom I believe. The pioneers bought their coffee as beans and ground them at home using some kind of hand-held grinder.
posted by
Pat_B
on September 10, 2020 at 5:10 AM
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A hard life
Pioneer women had a very hard life. I can't even imagine how they managed. I have three of the washboards hung on the wall in our back room. I thought they were neat and I bought them for decoration but to think people used these are amazing to me. I know they used to make their own soap and candles too. There are only so many hours in a day and how they got all their work done I will never know. On a day when they didn't feel good, it must have been very hard. We are so fortunate to have wash machines, dryers, and dishwashers, not to even mention all of our kitchen appliances. I wonder how they made coffee in the morning or maybe they didn't have coffee. I wonder?
posted by
Goldiec
on September 10, 2020 at 4:43 AM
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