DEVELOPMENT
Houses had no electric light in the early days and no domestic appliances were available. No cookers, washing machines, spin dryers, fridge-freezers, cleaners, microwave ovens, radios (It was called a wireless in those days).
The kitchen was the room for all things. It was were you cooked, it was the dinning room, sitting room, bathroom, laundry room, children’s nursery, playroom and anything else you wanted it for.
There was a small room attached to the kitchen which was a pantry where the food was stored. In this room there was a stone slab at one end which was always cold and that was your fridge.
As you entered the kitchen the fireplace was in the opposite wall. This consisted of an open fire grate with a metal hob one side and an oven on the other, the fire between the two.
The fire was usually kept in 24 hours a day, which was more economical on coal than relighting it every day. Also the men of the house worked in the coal mines and were getting up at 5:30 am and needed a good hot breakfast. They took a few sandwiches and a can of water or cold tea to work with them. Their next meal was at about 4 pm on returning from work.
No pithead baths in those days, a bathe in the metal bath in front of the fire. A boiler of hot water would be on the fire and this had to be ladelled into the bath, the boiler being too heavy. To lift off the fire it was cooled with cold water from the wall tap behind the back door, no wash basins. They had to kneel in the bath since it was not big enough to sit in. Someone had to wash their backs then a good rub down with often what was a canvas towel which made you tingle all over. After emptying the bath and cleaning up came the cooked meal which somehow the ladies had to prepare at the same time as preparing the water etc for the bath.
If there were any children of school age they would be home a little while after the bathing had finished so there was a meal to prepare for them.
On washing day which was always on a Monday it had to be completed before the men came home from work because the same bath was used. Up at 5:30 am, cook breakfast, fill the boiler for hot water , prepare the bath, sort out the clothes to be washed, the whites from the coloureds, no different from today, cotton and wool had to be washed separately after washing the whites were boiled.
In between this the children had to have breakfast and off to school. At midday they were home for lunch so the washing had to be left. On a fine day the washing was dried on lines in the garden if not it was dried on lines suspended from the kitchen ceiling which made everything steamy and damp. Mondays were not a housewife’s happy days.
The ironing was done on Tuesday. No ironing board, all done on the kitchen table. The irons were about the same size as travel irons today, being solid iron base with a metal handle. A
The kitchen was the room for all things. It was were you cooked, it was the dinning room, sitting room, bathroom, laundry room, children’s nursery, playroom and anything else you wanted it for.
There was a small room attached to the kitchen which was a pantry where the food was stored. In this room there was a stone slab at one end which was always cold and that was your fridge.
As you entered the kitchen the fireplace was in the opposite wall. This consisted of an open fire grate with a metal hob one side and an oven on the other, the fire between the two.
The fire was usually kept in 24 hours a day, which was more economical on coal than relighting it every day. Also the men of the house worked in the coal mines and were getting up at 5:30 am and needed a good hot breakfast. They took a few sandwiches and a can of water or cold tea to work with them. Their next meal was at about 4 pm on returning from work.
No pithead baths in those days, a bathe in the metal bath in front of the fire. A boiler of hot water would be on the fire and this had to be ladelled into the bath, the boiler being too heavy. To lift off the fire it was cooled with cold water from the wall tap behind the back door, no wash basins. They had to kneel in the bath since it was not big enough to sit in. Someone had to wash their backs then a good rub down with often what was a canvas towel which made you tingle all over. After emptying the bath and cleaning up came the cooked meal which somehow the ladies had to prepare at the same time as preparing the water etc for the bath.
If there were any children of school age they would be home a little while after the bathing had finished so there was a meal to prepare for them.
On washing day which was always on a Monday it had to be completed before the men came home from work because the same bath was used. Up at 5:30 am, cook breakfast, fill the boiler for hot water , prepare the bath, sort out the clothes to be washed, the whites from the coloureds, no different from today, cotton and wool had to be washed separately after washing the whites were boiled.
In between this the children had to have breakfast and off to school. At midday they were home for lunch so the washing had to be left. On a fine day the washing was dried on lines in the garden if not it was dried on lines suspended from the kitchen ceiling which made everything steamy and damp. Mondays were not a housewife’s happy days.
The ironing was done on Tuesday. No ironing board, all done on the kitchen table. The irons were about the same size as travel irons today, being solid iron base with a metal handle. A