Homes

Have you ever given thought to what homes were like in the colonies?  Do you have any idea what furnishings they contained?  Were they similar in all colonies or was each colony vastly different?

In evaluating the life style of our ancestors, there are several things which must be considered.  From the 1600’s until the early 1800’s, most housing was just a first generational shelter as folk made their way inland from the Atlantic Ocean.  Slowly they built towns and villages before they moved into more remote wilderness areas.

The overwhelming majority were self-sufficient which resulted in most of America living in villages composed of small, crude dwellings or in remote wooded areas.  Winter severely limited their life style as it dictated they be confined to a single living area dominated by a fireplace.  Their activities, indeed their entire family’s existence – domestic, economic, and bodily functions – were all primarily limited to this one space. 

In areas from the Chesapeake Bay northward, the winter temperatures were harsher than the colonists had experienced in England. This resulted in families burrowing deeper into their shelters for protection against the bitter winds and the deep snowdrifts.  In many cases, a shelter was divided and shared with any livestock the family was fortunate enough to own.  The fireplace ensured the survival of all.  Edmund Morgan, the eminent historian, stated that heading into the 18^th Century, a few affluent colonists built homes of brick, “but everyone else still lived in the rotting wooden affairs that lay about the landscape like so many landlocked ships.  A heavy downpour would knock them down or fire devour them in an instant.  But no matter – sift the ashes for nails and put up more – wood was cheap.”  Jack Larkin in The Reshaping of Everyday Life: 1790-1840 wrote, “Many homes were genuinely squalid, starkly reflective of the world of scarcity in which their owners lived.”

It is known from the works of various historians that on an average there were five to seven people living in this small space.  The fireplace kept these folk alive by providing hot meals, warmth from the outside elements and about fourteen hours of firelight each day which enabled them to conduct their various activities.  Keeping the fire stoked was a life-or-death necessity as wind chill factors often plunged to below zero.  Normally a dozen cords of wood were used over the winter.  This wood had to be accessible which resulted in it also being stacked in the interior living space during periods of heavy snowfall.  Families spread straw over their dirt or rough plank floors to help insulate against the cold and to sop up the inevitable messes. Additional layers of straw were added to replace that which had broken down into layers of dust. 

                       

Slops, the time honored term for human and animal wastes, inedible food and other garbage, piled up as snowdrifts blocked paths to privies.  Washing clothes was confined to small batches which could be hung on poles near the fire to dry.  Bathing, which was considered a health hazard by most people, was postponed until warm weather.  Winter confinement, despite the best efforts of all members of a household, was a time of prolonged darkness, ashes, soot, vermin, stink and mounting filth.

With the appearance of spring, men readied their fields for planting, gathered syrup for making sugar, and sheared their sheep.  Women raked the dirty stinking straw from their homes and scrubbed everything in sight.  “Spring cleaning” was more than an event, it was a necessary ritual.  Regardless of how hard a woman worked, cleaning never ended as dust and bugs flew in the open doorway and windows. 

Eventually, as the economy expanded and the early settlers were replaced by new waves of immigrants, people were able to turn their attention to a better quality of life which brought an added sense of orderliness to their homes and gardens.