Category Archives: Homestead House

Homestead House

Hannah’s House: Irons

November 23, 2011 – 1:00 am

The row of irons, shown here, are varying in sizes.  I’m not sure of the exact dates or eras, but I would guess they were between the 1860’s and early 1900’s.

Irons from the timeframe of my Prescott Pioneers series were typically heated on the top of a stove.  From various accounts, it seems like there was usually more than one, I imagine so that one could heat while the other was in use.

The other picture shows a few different types of irons.  In the center is a Triumph kerosene sad iron heater.    I found a picture of another one that looks similar, without the iron, and it was dated 1895.  These oil heaters were used simply to heat the iron so laundry could be pressed.

Both of these photos came from a museum I visited recently.  The stove-heated irons are more what I picture Hannah or Betty using in my book A Dream Unfolding.  I always think it is fun to see picture or real life objects.

Tags , , , , | Permalink | Comment (0)
Homestead House

Hannah’s House: Laundry

November 16, 2011 – 1:00 am

washer_2_side1

This washer machine, the 20th Century (model name), was first produced in the early 1900’s around 1910 by the Nineteen Hundred Washing Machine Company in Binghamton, NY.  Early hand cranked models eventually gave way to electric models which evolved into the large automated machines tucked in a corner of our laundry rooms or basements.  But, what was life like prior to the washer machine?

As much as I’d like to think of Hannah and Betty using one of these washer machines in A Dream Unfolding, the reality is they would have used nothing more than a wash basin, rinse basin, and a washboard, like the one shown below.

washboard

Laundry was labor intensive, so much more than by our modern standards.  Water had to be hauled and then heated on the stove or over a fire.  Women lathered up soap in the hot or warm water and plunged and scrubbed each piece one at a time against metal washboards.  After they were satisfied the clothing was clean, they would rinse the garment in the rinse basin before hand wringing it.  Clothes would go on the line to dry.  Once dry, ironing began.

A task that would take us an hour today would have eaten up an entire afternoon or even a day.  For women who worked in a laundry facility or boardinghouse, like Hannah and Betty, would have repeated the chore more than once in the week.

When I think of the amount of time and labor this simple household chore used to take, I’m grateful for living in the modern era.

Tags , , , , , , , | Permalink | Comment (0)
Homestead House

Hannah’s House: Stove

November 9, 2011 – 1:00 am

This post kicks off a new series, Hannah’s House, featuring photos and descriptions of items that we would have seen in Hannah’s house in the Prescott Pioneer Series.  Enjoy!

These two pictures show two different iron stoves.  The close up picture was most likely made in the early 1900’s and is much larger than what Hannah or Betty would have used in A Dream Unfolding.  But the smaller stove (sorry for the poor picture quality) is probably more like what they would have used.

It’s hard for me to imagine cooking on such a small stove, especially if I had the large crowds like Betty had at Lancaster’s Boardinghouse.  Assuming she and Hannah cooked for 30-50 men each meal, how did they fit all of the necessary pots and pans on such a small stove?  Yet, many pioneers, boardinghouse owners, restaurant owners, etc., cooked on such small ranges.

Both of the stoves pictured here are wood burning.  Wood seemed to be the most readily available fuel on the western frontier, so it’s not surprising.

I hope you enjoyed seeing examples of old iron ranges.

Tags , , , , , , , | Permalink | Comment (0)
Homestead House Uncategorized

Homestead House: Loom

April 30, 2011 – 10:06 am

This picture shows a loom and spinner that might have been used in the 1800’s.  In some places where fabric availability was rare, women would produce their own fabrics and textiles.

The below picture shows a bobbin winder which would have been used to wind the different colored threads onto the bobbins.  I’m no expert on weaving, so I’m not really sure where or how the bobbins were used to add the color to the textile.

bobbin_winder_loom

Even without fully understanding the process of weaving, I found both of these pictures to be interesting.  It’s so easy to forget what life was like when nothing was ready made.  Can you imagine weaving all the fabric to make the clothing on your back?  It’s not surprising they had very few clothes.

 

Tags , , , , , | Permalink | Comment (0)
Homestead House

Homestead House: Meat Juice Press

March 22, 2011 – 9:09 pm

When I moved my website to a new hosting company, I missed copying over this post.  Enjoy!

~~~~

meatjuicerOn a recent trip to a museum, I came across this fascinating little home appliance.  It’s called a meat juice press.  This particular one was made by Landers, Frary, & Clark.  Columbia was the brand name.

So, what’s a meat juice press and what was it used for?  In the late 1800’s, this cast iron press would be used to extract all of the juice from a cooked piece of meat, such as beef, mutton, turkey, etc.  The juice was extracted by placing the meat in the cup (silver looking piece) and then turning the crank.  Some sources say it was designed for a 2 oz. piece of meat.

Most often the juice was prepared for the ill or those who weren’t able to chew, including sickly infants.  Many people of the era believed that the concentrated beef juice held healing or medicinal powers.  It tasted better than some of the alternatives of the time, like beef tea.

I was pretty excited by this find—just thinking that the characters in my Prescott Pioneers Series may have owned one, though some sources show the earliest usage around 1870.

Keep an eye out for future blog posts on the Homestead House where I’ll feature other cool finds of what life was like in the mid- to late-1800’s.

 

Tags , , , , | Permalink | Comment (0)
Homestead House

Homestead House: Kitchen

March 22, 2011 – 9:04 pm

I love this picture from the Pioneer Living History Museum of a homestead kitchen.  This particular picture comes from a cabin circa 1885.  It is similar to what I pictured the kitchen in the ranch house on Colter Ranch in A Dream Unfolding and A Heart Renewed.

homestead_kitchen

To the left of the green door, is a cabinet with a basin in the top, for washing dishes or preparing meals.  The shelves are lined with various types of crockery and dishes.  Dry goods, flour, sugar, and the like would have been stored in these containers.  I’m not so sure about the piece of crockery with the spout on it.  It seems more modern to me than what they might have used in the mid to late 1800’s.

From what I understand, some of the settlers to Arizona in the 1860’s did bring china dishes, while others used tin plates and mugs.  Many of the cattle outfits tended to use the cheaper and more durable tin ware, so in my books, the first mention of china is in the second book, A Heart Renewed, when Hannah finally unpacks her mother’s china.

The table in the foreground, though a little blurry, gives a good idea of what the ranch house table might look like.  In my books, Will handcrafted the table and chairs himself—which is a likely scenario for any early settlers.

I hope you enjoyed this brief glimpse of a homestead kitchen.  My thanks to the Pioneer Living History Museum, in Phoenix, AZ, for the wonderful exhibits and for this recreation of a homestead kitchen.

 

Tags , , , | Permalink | Comment (0)

Next Page »

Next Page »

Karen Baney is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Disclosure Policy

Switch to our mobile site