History Hits at Home: Roaring 20s

Let's skip ahead to the 1920s for today's History Hit.  Here are some pictures and posters that were around 100 years ago.  Why not try out exercises with the Jell-O Girl and use some 20s slang?

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You may not know that all our events, admission and programming income goes into maintaining our heritage buildings, daily operating expenses like utilities, and funding future events.  If you are able to contribute financially by purchasing a Tyrconnell Heritage Society Membership or making a donation in any amount your support would be greatly appreciated.  Memberships - Individual $30; Couple $35; Family $40; Organization $45; Business $75; Individual Lifetime $250  Here is the link to our page at CanadaHelps.

History Hits at Home: The Chamber Pot and the Toilet

We continue on with the sanitation theme for today's history hits at home featuring the Chamber Pot.

Chamber Pot in a Commode - Master Bedroom of Backus-Page House Museum

A chamber pot with lid from the Backus-Page House Museum collection.  

The Chamber Pot

Most of the rooms in our museum contain Chamber Pots.  These were mostly used during the winter months when the family members did not want to walk through the snow to get to the outhouse, and during the night when they did not want to light a candle. 

They came in a variety of sizes and colours to fit with the decor of the home and in upper class homes, would be nicely decorated and with matching lids.  The pots with lids were preferred because of the fumes and moisture of the waste material and were kept under the bed or in a nightstand. They were all shaped to make it convenient for women to squat or stand and was able to be hidden under the large skirts.

By the late 1800s, chamber pots were sometimes built into cabinets with covers that close, and were called commodes.  Even though we now have modern toilets, chamber pots are still used today in countries that lack indoor plumbing.

Why do we use the word toilet?

Until recently, we preferred not to talk about toilets in polite society. We now use a variety of euphemisms instead. Rather than use the word toilet, we talk about restrooms, washrooms and bathrooms, or powdering our nose.

The word “toilette” came from the Middle French word for cloth and by the Georgian era, a toilet referred to the cloth that lay on a dressing table, holding such things such as hairbrush and perfume. Since using powder was common for upper-class women and men, this would have given us the phrase “powder room”.

The word then moved away from the dressing table and the act of dressing to the place where the person dressed – the dressing room, which may have had a toilet (that is, a lavatory) in it. It started to be used as a euphemism for lavatory at the end of the 19th century.

There are other euphemisms that have come to us from the mid-Victorian era. A Privy is another word for a private place. Latrine, which we now think of as an outdoor toilet, is from an old-English word for washbasin or washroom.

In Britain, we often see the signs for the WC. It stands for water closet, another word used for the early flushing toilets. Around 1871, the initials came into common use.

No matter what term you use, we can thank our Victorian ancestors for giving us all the different words. Be sure to come out to our museum to see our collection of bathroom seats.

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You may not know that all our events, admission and programming income goes into maintaining our heritage buildings, daily operating expenses like utilities, and funding future events.  If you are able to contribute financially by purchasing a Tyrconnell Heritage Society Membership or making a donation in any amount your support would be greatly appreciated.  Memberships - Individual $30; Couple $35; Family $40; Organization $45; Business $75; Individual Lifetime $250  Here is the link to our page at CanadaHelps.

History Hits at Home: Soap and Water

You are probably tired of hearing about washing your hands frequently but it must be done.  Today we hit on soap and water.

Soap

·        Most people, except very rich people, didn’t use soap until about the second half of the 19th century.

·        Soap, made from tallow, was specifically for washing of clothes. Only the wealthy had access to the imported, specially wrapped, and expensive perfumed toilet soaps.

·        Soap could be bought at the general store, but most people preferred to make their own.  Basic soap was made from lye and grease.  Other ingredients, such as borax, ammonia, resin, wild ginger leaves and tallow of bayberry were sometimes added. 

Soap Making

·       Lye was made from ashes when trees were burned down around the homestead and were placed in a barrel, called a leach, which was put on top of a board. 

·       The board was raised at one end, the bottom of the barrel had a narrow slit which allowed water to seep through, a bucket was placed under the slit and as the water passed through the ashes, it trickled out as lye.  Lye was very dangerous; it could burn the skin badly and the throat if the fumes were breathed in. 

·       Animal fat and water were boiled in a kettle and became tallow. 

·       The lye was added to the tallow and they were boiled together over a fire, usually outdoors.  Tallow took the strength away from the lye. 

·       Bayberry tallow was added to the grease and lye for bath soap. 

·       Ammonia and borax for laundry soap. 

·       The liquid soap was poured into a pan or box and allowed to harden overnight and was cut into bars the next day.

                                        

Washing

·       Being presentable was generally accomplished by washing the face and hands and otherwise showing a neat outward appearance with emphasis on the smartness of clothing. Such hand and face washing usually took place in one's bed chamber, with a basin and a relatively small amount of water.

·       The stand-up wash was the main form of personal hygiene and the start of most people’s daily routine.  For men and upper and middle-class women it happened as soon as they rose from bed.

·       All a person needed was a bowl, a slop pail, a flannel, some soap and a single jugful of hot water.  Cold water was also an option and many used it, hoping to improve their circulation. 

·       With a single jug of water it is perfectly easy to wash and rinse the whole body.  A little water is poured into the bowl and the flannel is dipped in and then wrung out.  Some soap is applied and scrubbing the body can begin.  When this first bowl of water became murky, it is emptied into the slop pail and freshly filled from the jug. 

·       Body washing could be done in sections and it also allowed a person to remain mostly dressed throughout.  Once the last drop of clean water was used finally to rinse out the cloth and washing bowl, the slop pail was taken out and disposed of.

Washstand at Backus-Page House Museum

Water

• ·         Some settlers got their water from a nearby spring, but most dug a well as near to the house as they could because hauling water was backbreaking work, usually done by the women and children. 
• ·         People did not bathe or wash their clothes very often and when people did wash themselves or clothing, the dirty water was often thrown right outside the house so seeped into the nearby well, sometimes making it dirty or causing illness.
• ·         Water was boiled in pots over the fire and poured into a bathtub for those that could afford one. Bath water was shared. The head of household would be first and he would get the fresh warm water, and then the next person according to station or age.

Here's a link for making soap with pre-school age children.  https://www.brighthubeducation.com/preschool-crafts-activities/121163-making-soap-activity-for-preschoolers/

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You may not know that all our events, admission and programming income goes into maintaining our heritage buildings, daily operating expenses like utilities, and funding future events.  If you are able to contribute financially by purchasing a Tyrconnell Heritage Society Membership or making a donation in any amount your support would be greatly appreciated.  Memberships - Individual $30; Couple $35; Family $40; Organization $45; Business $75; Individual Lifetime $250  Here is the link to our page at CanadaHelps.

History Hits at Home: The Outhouse

Since we are all thinking about sanitation, toilet paper, soap, water, etc the next few history hits will focus on those topics. 

Picture courtesy of Wikipedia

·       Outhouses, also called a privy, were located at the far end of the garden or yard.  Our replica double seat outhouse at Backus-Page House Museum is behind the house on the east side. 

·       Outhouses were constructed of wooden walls and a sloped roof, usually very small in size and there was a gap in the walls at the top and bottom to allow airflow. Inside was the wooden seat which resembled a shelf.

·       Outhouses were lightweight for easy moving when the hole was full, and well ventilated, usually with fragrant flowers planted around it.

·       In some areas, pig manure and soiled straw would be added to the waste piles to help break down the waste material at a quicker pace.

·       When holes filled up, the shelter would be moved to a new area on the property if the family had the space. After the new hole was dug, that soil would be used to seal and cover the old existing hole. If families did not have the luxury of moving the privy, the hole would have to be cleaned out and taken out of town and then spread over fields. This was a major problem for people living in densely populated towns, where common overflowing caused a very unpleasant odor.

·       Not until the 1880s and 1890s did North American plumbing flourish.  Up until the 1840s indoor plumbing could be found only in the homes of the rich and in better, upper class hotels. 

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You may not know that all our events, admission and programming income goes into maintaining our heritage buildings, daily operating expenses like utilities, and funding future events.  If you are able to contribute financially by purchasing a Tyrconnell Heritage Society Membership or making a donation in any amount your support would be greatly appreciated.  Memberships - Individual $30; Couple $35; Family $40; Organization $45; Business $75; Individual Lifetime $250  Here is the link to our page at CanadaHelps.

History Hits at Home: Founding the Talbot Settlement

Let's go back to our founder, Colonel Thomas Talbot for today's History Hit at Home.  While we have your attention, these education resources could use some updating so we are looking for a volunteer with some graphic design experience to upgrade the fonts, clean up the copies, and in general spruce up the resources we've been using in these blog posts.  Send an email to info@backuspagehouse.ca if you are interested.

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You may not know that all our events, admission and programming income goes into maintaining our heritage buildings, daily operating expenses like utilities, and funding future events.  If you are able to contribute financially by purchasing a Tyrconnell Heritage Society Membership or making a donation in any amount your support would be greatly appreciated.  Memberships - Individual $30; Couple $35; Family $40; Organization $45; Business $75; Individual Lifetime $250  Here is the link to our page at CanadaHelps.

History Hits at Home: Regency Clothing

How are you doing with everything shut down and being at home?  We hope you are very well.  Below is another History Hit for you to enjoy and share.  

How to Make a Mop Cap

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You may not know that all our events, admission and programming income goes into maintaining our heritage buildings, daily operating expenses like utilities, and funding future events.  If you are able to contribute financially by purchasing a Tyrconnell Heritage Society Membership or making a donation in any amount your support would be greatly appreciated.  Memberships - Individual $30; Couple $35; Family $40; Organization $45; Business $75; Individual Lifetime $250  Here is the link to our page at CanadaHelps.