History Hits at Home: Teeth and Hair Care

How did people around here take care of their teeth and hair in the 1850s?  

Brushing Your Teeth

·       Toothbrushes were not common, so people had to find other ways of keeping their mouth clean.  Some people brushed their teeth with frayed twigs and gunpowder and mouthwashes were made out of everything from lemon juice to wine.  Rubbing gums with wool that had been coated with honey helped to get rid of bad breath, but it was not a great way to fight cavities.

·       The first toothbrush was patented in 1857.

·       By later in the 19^th century, toothbrushes looked the same in shape as they do today but had handles of bone or wood and bristles generally of horse or pony hair. 

·       The usual word for toothpaste was “dentifrice” and many such pastes were made at home with the simplest being no more than a little soot or salt.  Commercial forms could be bought over the counter, and most, whether home-made or bought were simply flavoured and often coloured abrasives—in effect, polishes. 

·       One recipe for such a polish was: coral, cuttlefish bone, dragons blood, burnt alum and red sanders, orris root, cloves and cinnamon, and rose pink, all to be powdered and mixed- was called American tooth powder.  The cuttlefish provided polish, gently abrading the teeth, burnt alum gave recipe a “medicated” taste and may have also had a small antibacterial effect.  The coral, dragon’s blood and rose pink were used for colouring and spices were added to give flavor and scent to breath.

Hair Receiver from the Backus-Page House Museum collection.

Hair

·       Most didn’t wash their hair very often, but there were other ways of keeping it “healthy.”  Women brushed their hair more than 100 times a day to make it shiny.  To treat dandruff, they rubbed bran into their scalp.

·       Brushing and combing your hair would dislodge dirt and also spread the natural oils and fluids across the length of the hair, improving its conditions. 

·       As the century developed, the habit of washing one’s hair with water began to be promoted.  A range of washes for the hair were widely recommended, most of which were relatively basic.  Rosemary water was particularly popular. It removed more grease than just water. 

·       By the 1840s, occasional washing of men’s hair with water was creeping in, led by women, who had adopted the process first.  For most, it meant a swill around in cold water to dislodge the dust and dirt, but some were willing to risk soap, although it did tend to leave the scalp sore in some people. 

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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.

Mondays at the Manor - Table Settings

Welcome to a new blog series with volunteer, Beth Goldworthy, where we will explore the home life of a farm family in the 1850s. With many of us at home these days, this will give us an idea of how our ancestors lived 170 years ago.

This week and next week, we will be taking a look at family dinners. Family dinners in the era would vary with the social class of the home.  Working class families would often eat together, while the upper classes would have the adults eating together, while the children ate in the nursery.  Once a child became of marriageable age, they were allowed to join their parents. Many of the more formal dinners were an opportunity for marriages to be arranged.

Dinner for families was often a formal occasion.  Seats at the table were assigned according to a person’s importance in the family and society.  Even the tables were set with exact rules and everything on the table had its place.  For many of us in the 21^st century, these rules can be overwhelming, and most of us will not be facing the formal dining situation.  Still, having some knowledge might some day come in handy.

The most formal table setting would be used only for multi-course meals. These might be very special occasions, such as upper-class society weddings or royal and court meals. Most working people would not be facing such an extravagant meal. Of course, there would special wine served with each course.

Formal Place Setting for Upper Class Families

  

The Andrew Backus family was considered an upper-middle class family. They would have used the less formal place setting for special meals, still keeping to the more formal rules, but with less flatware. There were also fewer courses, usually one main meal, and on holidays and special events, there would be what we know as an appetizer, a salad course, the main entrée, and then a nice simple dessert. There might have been separate wines served.  For those of us in the 21^st century, this is the place setting that we would find in a fancy restaurant or what to us is a formal dinner.

Semi-Formal Place setting for Upper-Middle Class Family

  

In the 21^st century, the idea of family meals has been interrupted by after school / after work activities. Perhaps with our present Stay-Home days, this would be a good opportunity to return to family meals, and re-learn and teach younger members of the family the lost art of setting a proper table.  The basics to learn are quite easy, and even the younger family members can be included. You can also use this as a craft project. All you need is a Bristol board, construction paper, old wrapping paper, or simply crayons or makers. Once the place-mat is designed, cover it with clear shelf plastic. Each family member can have their own special place, and the decorations can be made to suit each person. 

         

Here's an example

Or use this template and customize them with each person's name.

Have fun with this, and enjoy your meals together!

Next week, we’ll take a look at table manners of the Victorian era and how we can use some of these manners in our everyday meals.

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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: 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.

Make Due & Mend #throwbackthursday

Make Due & Mend

 #throwbackthursday

By: Sabrina Merks

For the next few weeks I will be sharing some crafts and things you can do while at home and to get yourself ready for a fruitful spring! This week will be how to hand knit! I hope you're ready to learn a new hobby, because I am! 

Hand knitting was a very popular pastime during the Second World War. Many wartime hand-knitted items, like underwear, may seem unappealing to modern tastes but these items were warm, hardwearing, and saved on precious coupons. Knitted headgear, like a Dutch bonnet, also became popular. Most wool was rationed but some was available off-ration. To qualify, it had to be made of less than 16 per cent animal hair. Knitting woollen comforts for servicemen enabled people to contribute to the war effort. Organizations like the Women's Institute coordinated volunteers into knitting parties.

Today I will help you will be sharing some basic instructions to help you learn to hand-knit! No needles required! I've definitely never hand-knit before but I think I will give it a try today! 

http://blog.consumercrafts.com/craft-basics-main/yarn-crafts/arm-knitting-blanket/

youtube.com/watch?v=lBlzVCaX7HU&noredirect=1 

https://cutediyprojects.com/diy/heres-how-you-can-create-remarkable-winter-wear-with-finger-knitting/

If you try any of these at home let us know what you make! Thanks for reading!

If you have any spare time as well, consider donating to help the Museum.

https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/tyrconnell-heritage-society/?fbclid=IwAR3ySU1-syiMGYqGmHGrhgIUMDvxzoORSta8X7kZg0pSg5G5TmfeDIEK7KA

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.

Site Check with Catie

Hi everyone!
I have volunteered to check on our beloved museum on Fridays and while I’m there I will be snapping some photos of nature around the house and quickly blogging about it here! When I was there this past Friday, March 27th it was very exciting to see the work being done to put up our Agricultural Centre, which has been a LONG time in the works. What was equally as exciting for me was the fact that the flora around the museum has started to come out of its sleepy winter slumber and grace us with its beauty. It my my eyes and heart happy to see these little darlings in a number of our gardens as well as parts of the lawn. There is beauty in every day if we choose to see it! Stay safe, healthy and well friends!