Colonial Winter Cabin: Celebrating Candlemas & Spending Time in 1775

Could we survive Colonial America?

If we at the cabin suddenly found ourselves literally transported to 1775  (for that's our living history year this year),  would we/could we survive?

That was a discussion we had.

Many reenactors I know have a high self-regard and will not hesitate to state matter-of-factly,  "Oh,  I most certainly could!"

Of course,  I could say the same thing,  knowing I'll never have to truly actually find out.  I mean,  I do know quite a bit about life during that time,  but could I,  in effect,  live it...everyday...for years,  non-stop?  

I suppose if I had a wife from that period who knew the ins & outs of daily life  (for she actually was living it),  with her caring for me,  I would say I would have a fair chance at another decade or two,  for my physical shape at this point,  and given my age,  finding myself transported to the past without help would be extremely difficult for me,  I'm sure.  Now,  if I were 30 or 40 years younger,  I believe I could give it a good go and have a much better chance,  and quite possibly succeed...even on my own.  

But me---now at my age and physical shape---?  

"Could we survive Colonial America"  is one of the main questions that gives us a reason that we - myself,  Larissa,  Norm,  Charlotte  (in addition to Jackie & Patty) - attempt these cabin experiences and experiments;  we're 21st century people  (born in the 20th century)  so with these cabin excursions,  we're giving it a try as best as we can to have a sort of awareness...an exposure...to Colonial life in a way we may never encounter elsewhere.  We may not actually be transported to the past,  but living at the cabin the way we do,  one day at a time,  is probably as close as we'll ever get...and thus we are having past experiences to a varied extent.

And that means a lot and keeps us happy.

But that's why I do it - and I imagine my cohorts probably feel the same.

So,  with that being said:

~Welcome to the colonial frontier cabin 1775~

.     .     .

Let me begin by telling you it was a cold day,  this February 1st,  with highs topping off only in the 20s.  The previous day saw an all-day rain-fall - a cold,  hard rain that created a very dank and overcast atmosphere.  Then by early evening,  the temperatures began their downward turn to become bitter cold,  and the rain turned to snow,  while the rain-soaked ground had turned to ice.

On cabin day I had a bit of a drive ahead of me,  meeting at Charlotte's and then all riding the journey from there together  (Norm did choose to ride separately,  though on his own accord).  Some questioned on whether or not we would even take on the adventure to drive in the slick,  slippery mess that had occurred the night before.

But we would-and we did.  We do take our living history seriously.

Luckily the roads were not nearly as bad as they could have been,  for the expressway was mostly ice free.

Time to travel back in time!

The attitude we take is to try not to diminish the past - we try to keep it real as best we can.  I mean,  here we are in mid-winter and generally the temperatures continue to remind us of the season.  Now,  we do have the opportunity to have an electric heater set up inside the log home if we desire to do so,  but that would diminish all we stand for as living historians.  Yes,  one was used during our Christmas presentation there,  but that was more for the visitors.  Aside from Christmas,  when we are out at the cabin,  the last thing I want is to have a heater there to take all we strive to accomplish away.  So we spent our day experiencing an 18th century frontier winter,  with snow covering the ground and temps to keep it from melting.

Heater-less.

And we had a wonderful time~

Our beeswax candle and Betty Lamp -
Both lit for Candlemas.

Every February 2nd  we celebrate Groundhog Day.  However,  Europeans and many of the American colonists in earlier centuries celebrated the Candlemas holiday that same day.  

So how are the two celebrations intertwined?

Long ago the celebration of Candlemas was a very religious occasion.  The name Candlemas comes to us from England and refers to the custom of  blessing and distributing candles in procession before the celebration of Holy Mass.  And since many Christians consider Jesus as the  “light of the world,”  it is fitting that candles are blessed on this day and that a candle-lit procession precedes the religious service.  It speaks of this in a book that I have in my personal library called  Observations on Popular Antiquities,  Chiefly Illustrating the Origins of our Vulgar Customs,  Ceremonies and Superstitions by Henry Ellis and John Brand  (copywrite 1815).

Candlemas occurs at a period between the December solstice and the March equinox,  marking the 40th day after Christmas;  many people traditionally noted that time of the year as winter’s  “halfway point”  while waiting for the spring,  and celebrated the annual triumph of light/spring over darkness/winter.  It was the day when the blessing of  the year’s supply of candles would take place,  for candles blessed on this day were thought to be among the most powerful  "religious protectors"  available to ordinary folk in those days of old. 

Norm:  the man who portrays our 18th century minister.
As far as I'm concerned,  he not only  "portrays"  our minister, 
but he is our minister!  He knows his Bible...and the ancient prayers.
He takes it all to heart.
So when he blesses our candles,  I believe they are truly blessed.

Preaching is an act of faith and obedience to Jesus,  not a task that requires formal credentials.  A license is not required to preach in a church - no federal,  state,  or local government determines any licensing or certification requirements for church leaders.  However,  some religious bodies may have educational and experiential requirements for their church leaders. 

And this is why I do consider Norm to be our preacher and include him as such.

Artificial light in the 18th century was truly a luxury.  People were used to working by daylight while indoors,  so lighting a candle when the sun was up was rare.  It was customary for folks to move from room to room to get the most out of the day's light.  This was generally due to the lengthy candle-making process.  According to one of the chandlers I spoke to at Colonial Williamsburg,  a typical middle class home in the 1750's could go through nearly 500 to 700 candles a year.  And that may even be a conservative amount for some.  Then again,  it could be much more liberal an amount out on the frontier,  with far less amounts lit.

Norm researches his prayers,  digging deep into history to find what would have
been said 250 years ago.

18th century homes were as self-sufficient as they could be and those who lived in them did their best to produce as many things needful to life as they could,  and this did include candles.  As part of their domestic work,  colonial women usually were the ones who carried the entire candle-making process from start to finish,  though many times the children,  and even the men when available,  would help out as well.

This is where I come in - I'm one of those men who will carry on the candle dipping.  I do enjoy my artificial light.

We did not make candles on this day as we've done before,  but I brought numerous
 that we dipped last fall to be blessed.  Perhaps I'll dip more come spring.

Now,  making candles only during the months of fall wasn't a hard and fast rule,  as notations in the diary of Martha Ballard shows us:

March 16,  1787

Clear.  mr Jonston & wife & Son Left here for home.  mr Ballard gone to Capt Sualls.  Jon gone to Joseph Fairbankss for hay.  Sally Peirce here,  mrss Chamln,  Savage, Bolton,  [Vinc]  Savage & Sally Webb also.  I made 6 Dos Candles.  have been at home. 

November 5,  1787

Clear & pleast.  I Came from mr Fosters.  we made 25 Dozn of Candles.  mrs Voce here.  Hannah is not So well as usual,  I was Calld about mid night to go See Wilm  Whites wife.  I was very unwell.  Seth Williams after me to See his wife also in travil.  mrs White Safe Delivrd of a Son by ye asistance of Moses Whites wife before I arivd.  I was Exceeding Sick while gone. 

April 10,  1788

Clear.  I have been at home;  made 20 dz of Candles.  Hannah washt.  mr Ballard been at mr Pollards on Business. 

April 12,  1788

Clear.  Hannah is much Better.  Betsy Chever here.  I have made 28 doz of Candles; 6-1/2 lb of the tallow,  Cyruss.  mr Gillbreath Came here;  is unwell.  Theophelus & James Burton here also. 

Have you kept track of how many candles Mrs. Ballard made in this thirteen month period?  79 dozen,  equaling to a total of 948!

Now,  according to the wonderful book,  Our Own Snug Fireside,  Elizabeth Fuller made sixteen dozen candles in December 1790,  and another eighteen dozen the following March,  equaling to 408 candles,  while Ruth Bascom made twenty four dozen on George Washington's birthday in 1812,  which comes to 288 candles.

Yep,  the 500 to 700 average mentioned earlier looks to be spot on.

As you can see,  candles and artificial light were of great importance to many who could either afford to purchase them from a chandler or make them.  This is one of the reasons why Candlemas was a celebrated holiday.

If you are interested in hearing our minister give his Candlemas prayer,  click the You Tube link below:

Candlemas celebrants lit candles and held them during parts of the church service,  then brought them home.  They believed the lit candles protected the home during storms,  warded off evil,   and comforted the sick.

Pancakes a-frying on the spider skillet
on the hearth.

As I continued to research this ancient Candlemas Festival,  I learned that February 2nd is also a day for pancakes!

Yes,  pancakes!

And that,  too,  goes back to ancient times.

The round shape of the pancake,  as well as its golden color,  are a representation of the sun and the return to light,  considered to be the coronation of spring.  'Twas a tribute to the days getting longer and lighter,  to the cycle of the seasons,  and the announcement of spring itself.  Pagan in origin,  but as so many of our ancient holidays,  has blended with Christianity,  for another explanation is that eating pancakes for many became a traditional way to use up dairy products before lent,  and by the year 1100 AD,  became part of Shrove Tuesday  (now called Fat Tuesday).   It is also called Mardi Gras.  Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday.

For those with a sweet tooth,  Candlemas is also a chance to eat pancakes with maple syrup,  which is how we at the cabin celebrated again this year.  By the way,  from what I've read,  the first recorded mention of pancakes dates back to ancient Greece,  around 600 B.C.

So!  Why is it called a pancake?

Well,  because of how it is made.  A pancake is a thin,  flat cake that's made by pouring batter into a pan—hence its name—and then flipping it so that both sides are cooked.

So guess what we did on February 1st?

A bit of smoke from the hearth found its way into the room,  creating a pretty cool atmosphere with the sunshine streaking in through the window.

The winter sun coming through the cabin window.

In those days,  glass was expensive and many cabins,  if they had windows at all,  may have used alternatives such as greased paper or cow horn - just something to let light through - though,  yes,  glass could have/would have been used as well.  However,  there were shutters to help keep out the cold.

So,  noting the streaks of sunshine,  we decided to take advantage:

Norm~

Larissa~

Charlotte~

Yep---that's me!

Here we have my good friends Charlotte,  Norm,  Larissa,  and then there I am:
the Winter 1775 Cabin Crew!
And winter it was!  On with our cloaks and head coverings to help keep us warm.
And this is indoors!
The Little Ice Age indeed!

There is a beauty about winter,  with the ground covered in snow.  In the city it covers up the blemishes.  In the country,  it adds to nature's beauty.  I do enjoy the winter,  and the allowance of this event makes wintertime even more splendid---yes,  even with the cold.

Looking out the cabin window we see an icy,  crunchy snow...
The 18th century saw the tail-end of what is now known as  “The Little Ice Age,”  a period lasting from the years 1300 to about 1850.  It was during this time the world saw much harsher winters than the previous and following centuries,  and many well-documented winter storms capable of dropping three feet of snow over a matter of hours.  

With these intense winters came not only the need to keep warm in the home but to find an easy way to travel for individuals without sleighs or wagons capable of handling the snow. 

Keep in mind that this was in a time before video games,  home computers or cell phones,  internet,  Facebook,  Instagram,  Twitter (X),  You Tube,  Tic Toc,  I-Tunes,  Amazon,  or streaming services.  And no automobiles,  movies,  telephones,  or even photographs.   And if one runs out of food,  there are no local Circle K,  CVS,  or Rite Aid party stores available.  Yet family's made due.

By the way,  contrary to popular belief,  colonials did  enjoy life,  as we do in our day.
There are few things that drive me crazier than hearing some uninformed
nincompoop stating that people in those old days were miserable.
Like Americans today,  the greater majority of colonists were quite happy.
How do I know this?
Reason and research.

I/we very much enjoy celebrating the old holidays.  Before I got into reenacting,  I'd never heard of Candlemas  (aside from the Swedish heavy metal band from the 1980s).  And it seems like only recently I've been hearing about churches - mostly Catholic - celebrating this ancient ritual.  No matter,  for I think it's great that this holiday is returning.

Charlotte took on the task of preparing and cooking our peas porridge.  

The smoking ham will soon be in the pot.

Larissa looks on as Charlotte prepares our peas-porridge by cutting up the ham.

Charlotte gathered wood

Running a kitchen and cooking on the hearth really did require a staggering range of skills,  which our ladies learned,  including chopping kindling,  keeping a fire burning indefinitely,  knowing which wood was best for baking or frying,  cosseting  (caring for)  bread yeast,  adjusting  'burners'  of coals on a hearth and gauging the temperature of a bake oven.  Not done by us yet,  but you never know is plucking feathers from fowl,  butchering animals large and small,  brewing beer,  and making cheese.  In fact,  the colonial cook,  like Larissa & Charlotte,  would have to begin their work by  "building a good-sized fire on the hearth,  but once the logs had burned to coals,  the embers were moved around,  and carefully selected pieces of wood would be added to produce different kinds of heat,  often having several small fires going at once.  Piles of live embers on the hearth were like burners on a stove;  a gridiron set over a pile of coals could be used for broiling;  a pan set over coals on a trivet could be used for frying;  and coals could be piled over and under a Dutch oven for baking."  

(The was taken directly from the book America's Kitchens by Nancy Carlisle and Melinda Talbot Nasardinov).

Cooking on the hearth - the center of the colonial home - has been thoroughly 

romanticized,  and yet it remains an art that few today have experienced.

While the food cooked,  we sat near the fire to warm ourselves.

If we were actual colonists from 1775,  I highly doubt we would spend much time doing this,  for there was always work to be done;   I know I most likely would have been doing some sort of physical labor such as chopping wood - you can never have enough wood - or perhaps repairing broken tools. 

A bit different from a forced-air furnace~
No...I'm not sleeping - I'm resting my eyes!

However,  none of us were used to spending all of our waking hours in such frigid temperatures,  and,  I hate to sound like a broken record,  but at this time my back will not allow me to do too much physical labor  (yes,  I am going to physical therapy...),  so we spent some of our time a-waiting for the food to cook,  thawing ourselves out - - mostly stopping our feet from being in such pain.

And it worked!
Within minutes we were toasty...and so were our toes.

Now,  that being said,  there are plenty of journals and diaries from the period citing exactly how 18th century folk dealt with the cold,  including wearing layers of clothing and winter cloaks while indoors:

Charlotte's becoming an old pro at hearth cooking~

The easiest cooking technique was to make a one-pot meal in an iron pot hanging above the fire.  "It was very popular to cook meals in this manner,  using simple ingredients that required little attention,  such as meat and vegetables boiled together in a single pot,  maybe including a starchy pudding tied in a piece of cloth."

Look at the steam coming from the boiling pot!

Here is Amelia Simmons'  American
Cookery cookbook from 1796.

And inside we have an original
receipt for Rice Pudding~

But we did not have any starchy pudding,  such as rice pudding.

Now,  that doesn't mean we won't ever give it a try - - just not this time.

(From Webster):  "Most of us know the difference between a recipe and a receipt.  We think of recipe as the yellowed,  typewritten card that your grandmother hands down to you that shows how she made your favorite chocolate chip cookies,  and receipt as the 22-foot-long strip of paper and coupons that spits out of the register when you buy a pack of gum at the drug store.  

Recipes are basically instructions;  receipts are a record of what has been received as part of a transaction.  Both recipe and receipt derive from  'recipere',  the Latin verb meaning  "to receive or take,"

But there was a time when receipt was used for what we now call a recipe.

Receipt is the older word,  turning up in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales  (1392),  where it referred to a medicinal preparation.  

The form recipe is the Latin imperative,  and its original use,  a couple hundred years after receipt,  was not in cooking instructions but in prescriptions.  Eventually that word got abbreviated to an R with a line though the leg,  which we later would render in print as Rx.

The sense of receipt that we know today—that of a statement documenting the receiving of money or goods—began in the 16th century,  and by the 17th century,  both words were referring to cooking instructions. 

While recipe is the preferred word for that meaning today,  the memory of being handed down  “a receipt for cookies”  does get handed down—like a beloved recipe—from older generations."

The ladies always do an amazing job creating authentic colonial-era meals!

Larissa prepared pancakes~
Over the years here at the cabin,  we've learned so much about a variety of
things,  including foods of the past.  Larissa has been preparing and cooking
historical food for 25 years now,  whether over the 18th century hearth
at the Daggett House or on a mid-19th century cast-iron stove at Firestone
Farm.  She is definitely our go-to girl for period food!

Larissa once said to me that to cook on a hearth,  "You really have to plan things because you need enough space,  cookware,  and coals and heat."

Frying the pancakes up on the spider skillet~

The colonial women who spent their time in the kitchen were nothing short of culinary geniuses.  I include the ladies here at the cabin in that  "club".  Thank you.

One of the things that has noticeably changed in recent times is how much actual time is spent cooking meals at home today by modern folks.  With  "innovations"  such as microwaves,  frozen and pre-packaged foods,  and fast food restaurants,  the time and energy spent doing this oh-so-important job is nowhere near what our ancestors did for food preparation.

Pride in cooking seems to have gone out the window as well.

But not for our cabin ladies.

Methinks the porridge is ready!

As always,  we said a thankful grace for such a meal...and for this get-together.

Our meal of peas porridge,  pancakes,  bread,  cheese,  a few nuts,  and beets was as good a winter meal as anyone can have.  Oh,  and pure maple syrup as well!  Plus cider to wash it all down.

This food was so good - a perfect winter cabin meal!
When Larissa commented that this tasted just like the meals she makes when she works at the historic Daggett Farm House in Greenfield Village,  well,  that was the toppermost of the poppermost  ("top of the pops")  not only for me,  but I believe for all of us!
See?  Dreams can  come true!

Thanks to Ron for snatching my  "image maker"  and capturing the group shots of us enjoying our dinnertime meal!

There is no necessary  inside the cabin.
So it's a bit of a walk - - - - 

My thoughts for next year's winter excursion is to actually chop wood,  providing  (God willing)  that I am physically able.  That's the goal I'm working toward.

In the meantime...

Yet here is something I can  do - work the shaving horse!

As we have proven over the years here at the cabin,  we're not afraid to do actual work and get dirty and get our period clothing a bit mussed.

I hope to turn this into a handle of some sort--maybe an axe handle.

See that belly  (and how can you not?)~~~
Next year,  God willing,  I hope it to be much smaller!

I very much enjoy doing period activities while here,  and,  like last year,  we plan to do some gardening again.  It's funny,  but sometimes Patty and I will tell our modern friends that we're heading to the farm.  Now,  I know we are just gardening and not actually farming,  but that's okay---the spirit is there and willing...

Whenever we are together we try to take a group photo in front of the cabin.
Here we are on this February 1st day.
Thank you for joining us,  even if only through the pictures in this blog post.
I hope you enjoyed it.

Ian Mortimer is one of my favorite historical authors,  even though his era of study is the Medieval period.  Judging by the books he's written,  he and I tend to think of history along the same lines.  As he wrote in his  "Time Traveler's Guide to Elizabethan England:"  I wrote my first Time Traveler's Guide in order to suggest we do not always need to describe the past objectively and distantly.  In that book I tried to bring the Medieval period closer to the reader,  describing what you would find if you could visit fourteenth century England.  Where would you stay?  What might you wear?  What would you eat?  How should you greet people?  Given that we know so much about the period,  it stands to reason that the historian should be able to answer such questions.  There are limits,  of course:  the historian cannot break through the evidence barrier and actually recreate the past...although we in the colonial cabin crew certainly do strive to recreate the past as best as we can,  not only physically,  but somewhat mentally as well.  But we all always know that we will soon be in our own 21st century lives,  with all of our modernisms that we are very used to having and using.  That is something that can't be helped,  for we are a product of and live in our modern time.  Oh!  But we do strive desperately hard to recreate a time of long ago - 250 years ago,  as has been our objective since our first cabin experience in the fall of 2020 when we reproduced the year 1770.

In the 21st century,  we are used to hearing a far more over-generalized view of  America's colonial times.  The problem is that our view of history diminishes the reality of the past.  We concentrate on historical events as something that has happened,  and in doing so we ignore it as a moment which,  at the time,  is happening. - Ian Mortimer  (with slight modification)~

Just as I fully disagree with presentism  (the practice of judging historical figures by the moral and ethical standards of the present day),  I also like and agree with Mortimer's criticisms of the  postmodernist approach to history (the dilution of historical accuracy in favor of diverse perspectives).  These are my thoughts as well.  You can take both presentism and postmodernist approaches to history and toss them out the door. 

So,  in this spirit,  I hope you enjoy what we do ~~~~~~~

Until next time,  see you in time.

Thank you to Larissa,  Norm,  Charlotte,  and Brian for the use of some of their photos.

There is a bear skin covering that's been at the cabin since we've been going
there.  It's used for show for school group tours,  mostly.  However,  we decided
to have a little fun with it.  Yes,  of course  that's Larissa!

To read and learn more about the early days of the February 2nd celebrations  (Candlemas & Groundhog Day),  please click HERE

How about our previous colonial life cabin excursions?

(remember - each year listed here we are representing 250 years earlier:

2020 = 1770

2021 = 1771

2022 = 1772

2023 = 1773

2024 = 1774

and now

2025 = 1775

~To read about our 2020 excursion - our first autumn at the cabin - click HERE

~To read about our 2021 wintertime excursion at the cabin - click HERE

~To read about our 2021 springtime excursion at the cabin - click HERE

~To read about our 2021 summertime excursion at the cabin - click HERE

~To read about our 2021 summer harvesting of the flax at the cabin - click HERE

~To read about our 2021 autumn excursion - click HERE

~To read about our 2022 winter excursion at the cabin - please click HERE

~To read about our 2022 spring excursion at the cabin - please click HERE

~To read about our 2022 summer excursion at the cabin - please click HERE

~To read about our 2022 autumn excursion at the cabin  (Pioneer Day) - please click HERE

~To read about our 2023 winter excursion at the cabin - please click HERE

~To read about our 2023 spring excursion at the cabin - please click HERE

~To read about our 2023 late spring at the cabin - click HERE

~To read about the 2023 early summer - please click HERE

~To read about the 2023 mid-summer - please click HERE

~To read about the 2023 autumn Pioneer Day - please click HERE

~To read about our 2023 Thanksgiving harvest celebration - please click HERE

~To read about our 2024 Winter experience at the cabin - please click HERE

~To read about our 2024 spring excursion at the cabin - please click HERE

~To read about our 2024 late spring with just Patty & I - click HERE 

~To read about our 2024 summer - please click HERE

~To read about our 2024 mid-and-late-summer - please click HERE

~To read about our 2024 mid-September - click HERE

~To read about our 2024 autumn Pioneer Day Celebration - please click HERE

~To read about our 2024 Thanksgiving Harvest - please click HERE

~To read about our 2024 Christmas at the Farm Cabin presentation - please click HERE

Including today,  that makes 27 days spent in the good old colony days!

By the way,  I simply cannot thank those special folk at the Waterloo Farm Museum for their allowance for us to have such experiences.

We are so honored.  And grateful.

I am also honored to live in the past with my cabin cohorts of Larissa,  Charlotte,  Norm,  and Jackie,  for,  without them,  none of this would even happen.

~~  ~~  ~~

Histories of Ages Past: Putting History In Its Place (This is the Way Ken Thinks Dept.)

"Histories of ages past

Unenlightened shadows cast

Down through all eternity

The crying of humanity"

(lyrics from Hurdy Gurdy Man  by 1960s folk/pop singer Donovan)

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Some kid a hundred years from now is going to get interested in  ~(American History)~  and want to see these places.  He's going to go down there and be standing in a parking lot.  I'm fighting for that kid." 

- Brian Pohanka,  1990 - the late Civil War Researcher,  Author,  & Preservationist

"We are tellers of stories,  we history folks.  Our decorative and utilitarian objects are not merely things,  but clues to tales of our past as a country.  We don't just purchase a lantern;  we investigate how it was used and the significance of the pattern of the piercing of the tin.

All of the looking back is also a looking forward as friends and families grow closer just as they would have in early America.  Make the right historical environment and let the situations and camaraderie unfold."

Tess Rosch - Publisher Early American Life Magazine

~~~~~~~~~~~~

It is up to us history folk to become  "tellers of stories,"   without a social or political agenda.  No presentism or postmodernist approaches.

And today's post centers on and acknowledges the understanding of history and how we,  as historians and living historians,  look at objects from the past.

And the past itself.

(Some of what you are about to read was taken,  word-for-word,  from other sites.  I tried to give credit where credit is do - no plagiarism when credit is acknowledged)~ 

~"We are tellers of stories,  we history folks" ~
Those standing on the grass represent the 17th century
Those on the porch are representing the 18th century.
"Histories of ages past..."

~*_--0-.

- - -

I came across the following on a Facebook page called  "Saving Castles,"  and it so very aptly describes a door - a simple door,  of all things,  but in such an intriguing manner.  I then searched the  'net for the original writer of this poetry and found the author's name to be Marianne Tioran  (a  "scientist turned impassioned bible student" - her own words).  If Ms.  Tioran happens to come across this post and wants me to remove this portion,  I will,  though hopefully she will not mind me using it.  

Okay,  now,  before we get to the wonderful imagery,  let's understand that doors in general have changed little since their invention dating back to about 3,000 B.C.  (from what I've read).   They open,  and they close,  allowing folks to enter or leave.  They latch,  also allowing for privacy and protection.  

Simple without a thought,  right?

That all goes without saying.  But never have I read such a wonderfully mesmerizing account on a door - a door in time - until I saw the following verse:  

In the heart of time's tapestry,  there stands a weathered sentinel,  a door to the ages past – a portal hewn from the ancient embrace of wood and time.  This medieval castle door,  with its gnarled grain and venerable scars,  whispers tales of knights and fair maidens,  of battles lost and victories won.

This Medieval door has a story to tell~

The wood,  once vibrant and full of life,  now carries the weight of centuries in its grain.  Each knot,  a testament to the storms weathered,  each crack an echo of forgotten whispers.  It is a silent witness to the passing of kings and the rise and fall of empires.  The door,  with its stoic resilience,  guards the secrets of a bygone era.

As one approaches,  the creak of heavy hinges becomes a symphony of antiquity,  a sonnet sung by the passage of time.  The locks,  aged and proud,  hold the mysteries of generations,  their clasps and bolts forged in the fires of yesteryears.  With every turn of the key,  one can almost hear the echoes of knights preparing for quests and the rustle of velvet gowns in candlelit chambers. 

The patina,  like the strokes of a masterful artist,  tells stories of dawns and dusks,  of shadows dancing in the flickering candlelight.  The grains seem to recount the rise and fall of kingdoms,  the ebb and flow of history etched into its very fibers.

This portal into the past beckons with a melancholic allure,  inviting the curious traveler to step beyond the threshold and immerse themselves in the whispers of forgotten epochs.  As one reaches out to touch the ancient wood,  there is a connection forged with the souls who have tread these stones before – a communion with the spirits of chivalry and romance.

Oh,  the tales this door could tell!  Of battles waged in the moonlit courtyard,  of banquets echoing with laughter,  and of sorrows whispered to the stars.  It is a doorway not merely of wood and iron,  but a passage to realms where time itself is captive,  where the past lingers like a fragrant perfume.

In the silence that envelops this relic,  one can almost hear the heartbeat of history,  steady and ancient.  The castle door stands not as an obstacle but as a guardian of the ages,  inviting those who dare to turn the key and venture into the embrace of centuries past.

Marianne Tioran - author

Thank you,  Ms.  Tioran. 

This is the road my mind takes most times upon being surrounded by history.

This is exactly how I try to look at historical objects.   

Yeah...the road less taken...like the one that leads to the Cotswold Cottage:

Built in 1620,  and in this image someone from the 1760s is strolling passed...

From England we have the Cotswold Cottage,  which was built,  as far as we know,  around 1620.  I say  “as far as we know”  because I heard a rumor that the house may have been built many years before that - possibly sometime in the 1500s.  Now,  I’ve not heard anything official,  so no gossip please.  1620 is still over 400 years old!

This house – this  “rose cottage”   (as it was originally known as when first transported to Greenfield Village) - was originally built in  Chedworth,  Gloucestershire,  England.  Whether it was built in 1620 or a hundred years before,  it still was a part of the later Renaissance period.

Yes,  the Renaissance period,  which went from about 1450 to 1650!  

That would be like my home,  built in 1944,  still being around in the year 2344!  For all the many many times I have either stepped in or even walked past the Cotswold Cottage,  I'm surprised at myself that I've not given thought of the building as being from the Renaissance period!  I mean,  playwright,  William Shakespeare was a contemporary at that time,  as was astronomer Galileo Galilei,  James I  (“King James”),  England’s ruler,  who was also the son of Mary,  Queen of Scots,  and the Pilgrims sailed across the Atlantic on the Mayflower to found Plimoth  (Plymouth)  the year it was built.

To me,  that’s astounding!

The Cotswold Cottage door. 
Another door with a history.
And here we are,  gazing at merry old  England from the time of the Pilgrims.  
But there's no Renaissance Festival behind this  door - only the real deal outside & in!
But...just on the other side of this door - - - - - 

...is this room you step into,  where we can see,  sadly,  an empty room,  though we can also see the Cotswold Cottage fireplace from 1620  (or possibly earlier).  This is the hearth in what I believe to be the main room of this stone cottage.  No---that's not a mantle you see.  It is a large piece of wood imbedded into the surrounding stone.

It has a very almost gothic feel to it.

"Histories of ages past..."

And this is the way I think - this is how I look at things...seeing the history of ages past,  for I look at it in amazing wonder:  I wonder about the people,  the everyday ordinary people,  who built it...who lived there;  their clothes,  their food...their music...what made them laugh,  what did they do for enjoyment,  their conversations & how they spoke---what did they sound like... 

Well,  for instance  (coming from the Plimoth Patuxet page):

Instead of  "Hi,  how are you?"  those who stepped through this door might've said:

Good morrow

How now?

How do you fare?

What cheer?

Instead of  "Excuse me,"  the visitors might've said:

Pray pardon me

Instead of  "Fireplace,"  the visitors might've said:

Hearth

Instead of  "Goodbye,"  the visitors might've said:

God be with you  

God bye to you

Fare thee well

Pray remember me

Instead of  "Stew,"  the visitors might've said:

Pottage

Instead of  "Pants,"  the visitors might've said:

Breeches

Instead of  "Skirt,"  the visitors might've said:

Petticoat

Again,  these are things I think of when I am able to visit the old English Cotswold Cottage and the 18th century colonial structures there in Greenfield Village.

That is my train of thought.

How many people have knocked on this door over the 400+ years it has been in use?
How many from days of old twisted this knob to open and walk through this doorway?

As we circle to the back of the forge building:

Also a part of the Cotswold Collection as it sits inside Greenfield Village is
the back door to the forge.   Now,  this door would not necessarily have been used by
customers,   but perhaps the smithy himself to begin and end his day.

The windows of Cotswold cottages were glazed with lead.  In smaller structures,  the windows were the only elements in which lead was used.  I honestly do not know if the windows here are still leaded or not.

Then there's this back forge window from the outside and...

...the very same as seen from the inside.

This gives a decent partial showing of an early 1600s forge.
400 years ago-----
Renaissance!

While ancient China,  Korea,  and Japan widely used paper windows,  the Romans were the first known to use glass for windows around 100 AD.      In England,  animal horn was used before glass took over in the early 17th century.  Frames were made in timber and windows were small to suit the glass.

To me,  it's sad that this Cotswold Cottage of 400+ years ago has been mostly relegated as a tea house - an area where visitors can have special teas and sandwiches.  And it does have a few pewter pieces inside for show - I suppose that's fine and all,  but I would love to see it as it once was,  many years ago when brought over,  furnished to how an English home from the 17th century would have looked,  as was shown in the Village until not too long ago:

From a Greenfield Village guidebook - 1970:
"Dining area in a downstairs room in the Cotswold Cottage.
Wooden trenchers,  burl bowls,  and a leather  "blackjack"  used as a water dipper or drinking vessel are displayed on the open gateleg table.  An English brass lantern clock ,  circa 1630,  is a luxurious appointment in such a simple home."  
Oh!  To have it revert back to this!

But there is something that is not often paid much attention to inside the Cotswold garden:  the Armillary Sphere.

For years I thought this stand in the middle
of the Cotswold Garden was a sundial.
I was wrong - - it is not  a sundial...

As what many others thought,  I used to think this was a sundial,  but,  as you are about to read,  it is not:

Before the advent of the European telescope in the 17th century,  the armillary sphere was the prime instrument of all astronomers in determining celestial positions.  In its simplest form,  consisting of a ring fixed in the plane of the equator,  the armilla is one of the most ancient of astronomical instruments.  In the 17th and 18th centuries such models—either suspended,  rested on a stand  (as seen here),  or affixed to a handle—were used to show the difference between the Ptolemaic theory of a central Earth and the Copernican theory of a central Sun.  The main idea of the Ptolemaic System was that the planet Earth was the center of the universe and all of the other planets,  stars,  and the Sun revolved,  or circled,  around it,  and the Copernican theory,  which is a model of the solar system centered on the Sun,  with Earth and other planets moving around it,  formulated by Nicolaus Copernicus and published in 1543.   Galileo's observations strengthened his belief in Copernicus'  theory that Earth and all other planets revolve around the Sun.

"Galileo challenged the widely held belief of his time that the Earth was the center of the universe,  instead supporting the theory proposed by Copernicus that the Sun is at the center and the Earth revolves around it;  this contradicting the prevailing current view where people believed the Earth was stationary and the sun orbited it."

Did you ever think such an item as an Armillary Sphere existed inside Greenfield Village?

And being that the Cotswold Cottage was built during age of discovery makes it the perfect place to have such an item.  Yes,  as mentioned earlier,  Galileo was alive at the same time the Cotswold Cottage was built.

It boggles the mind...

The Armillary Sphere adds much to the garden.
A small sign to explain to visitors what it is would certainly be helpful.

 The armillary sphere is one of the most ancient of astronomical
instruments.  I honestly have no idea how it works -
how it can be studied.
This one was dedicated in memory of Henry Ford's wife,  Clara,  who
simply adored gardens and gardening,  and the garden at Cotswold can
rightfully be considered the most beautiful inside Greenfield Village!

In fact,  it states:  "In memory of Clara Bryant Ford/ A gift from The Woman's

National Farm and Garden Association/1952"

So,  it seems like this is a replication,  possibly made in 1952,  which only makes sense considering its location is within easy reach of the public,  and it's placement in the garden has it dealing with the harsh outdoor elements.  I highly doubted this was a 400 year old original.

The Armillary Sphere
from University of Melbourne

But I repeat:
They should have a small sign denoting what it is and its purpose - too many think it is a sundial.

Now here's another interesting piece of history:

These are not a part of the Cotswold collection,  though the connection could be through their age.  They are from the private collection of Brian Dewey.

The spoon is Elizabethan era/Renaissance pewter seal spoon 1570s-1610.

And could be much the same for the fork and knife,  which are from the first half 

of the 17th century: 1600-1630s

The broad rimmed pewter plate from the 1660s with the cartouche marks, 

indicating it was made in Belgium.

I,  too,  am an antique collector.  Though my collection is not a large one,  I still very much enjoy what I have,  most of which are candle holders and oil lamps  (among other items).  Here are some of my favorites:

Here's my little collection of actual 18th century antiques:

at the top is a candle stick from 1757,

The plate on the left is from 1740.

Next to the plate is a small pewter porringer from 1769.

My friend,  Brian,  commented:  "You’re now a bonafide 18th century antique collector!"

1757?  1752?  Could be either~~~
What part of a house did this candlestick with candle light up?
A bed chamber?
A great hall?
A dining/kitchen table?
Perhaps it sat upon a sideboard or a writing desk?

1740
Where did this pewter bowl/plate spend most of its time once its owner was through with it?  Was it buried amongst many other things in a drawer,  or was it forgotten about on a kitchen cupboard?  Was it tucked away in a garret/attic? 

1769
This is a rather small porringer - - 
Was it made for a child?
And,  like the bowl above,  was it tucked away in a garret after it's use was over? 
Did it hold nails or screws in a basement or a garage in later years?

Where have these three items been for the past 250+ years since they were made?

And who made them?

Moving on - - - - 

Note the year of the Plympton chimney:
1640 - mighty old bricks!

The Plympton House,  originally from Sudbury,  Massachusetts,  has a very interesting history as a house,  along with the people who lived in it.  In fact,  this is not the  "original"  Plympton House - that one had burnt to the ground sometime within the first few decades of the 1700s.  Well,  all was burned except the chimney brick of the fireplace inside.  So the then current owner,  either Thomas or Peter Plympton  (not sure which one)  rebuilt the house around the remaining fireplace,  hearth,  and chimney.  Even the placard states that  "...later generations of the family built the house you see here...".

For a more complete story on the house and family,  please click HERE

But as it sits inside Greenfield Village,  it is a wonderful example of late 17th and early 18th century living with a generous helping of American history within its walls,  which have stories to tell if you know how to listen.

In this image you see my wife in the doorway and me wondering off.  We are both in clothing more suitable to the 1770s than to the time period this house depicts.  But the Plympton family remained in this house until 1834,  so we could still  "be us."

Plus the house has a history from the 1770s --- (April 19th,  1775,  if that date rings a bell):

It was in the early morning hours of April 19,  1775,  that Abel Prescott, 
brother of Samuel  (who rode with Paul Revere the night before), 
pounded his fist upon this very door,  awakening Thomas Plympton,  the leading
Whig in Sudbury,  Massachusetts,  to let him know that the Regulars were
on the march,  and they were headed toward Concord.

And just on the other side of this door,  this is what we see:

Just in case you are wondering about the original antiques situated inside this home,  

on the left side in the above photo we have a blanket chest from 1680 to 1700.  Next, on the back wall,  there is a hutch  (with no year given).  In front of the hutch is the settle  (no year given).  The table,  again no year,  is known as a hutch table,  and three of the chairs are called Carver and the one in back is called a slat-back.  Beneath the window looks to be another chest,  though I have no other information about it,  with what could be a wash tub for dishes upon it.  Then there is the great wheel  (large spinning wheel)  on the right.  No year given.

Where we have no years given,  the curators will have suitable items - usually antiques - so the viewer can be rest assured they belong of the same era. 

Every-so-often,  a mishap occurs and an item placed may be incorrect,  but generally that can be pretty rare in an internationally known museum such as Greenfield Village,  and once caught will soon be corrected.

Below we can see the same scene from a slightly different angle.

The curators did a fine job in setting up the presentation here -
giving a good impression of this early 18th century house.
The settle can be plainly seen,  and there is a butter churn,  a bed warmer, 
and what could be a wood box.

And back when the house was utilized more:

This photo is from an old postcard of the interior of the Plympton House taken probably in the 1960s or early 1970s.  Before the Daggett House was brought to Greenfield Village in 1978,  this Plympton House was the main house in showing colonial life.  But since Daggett was a farm house with a front and back door,  for easy public entry and exit,  and also had what is now known as the typical New England salt box architectural style,  that became the main house to show colonial life.  The Plympton House has since been plexi-glassed off.  Luckily,  however,  we can still see the entire room.  It would be nice,  however,  if the Village,  on special days  (maybe April 19th)  would open this house to the public with a period-dress docent inside.  Especially with America's 250th at hand.

Earlier I wrote of Abel Prescott and how he awakened the Plympton's in a warning that the Regulars were marching toward Concord.  On his return after his warning ride early on that fateful morning of April 19,  1775,  Abel was fired upon by the British and was wounded in his side.  He managed to escape to the home of a Mrs.  Heywood.  He died of dysentery in September 1775.  To refresh your historical mind:  "dysentery is an infection of the intestines that causes severe diarrhea with blood and mucus.  It can be caused by bacteria,  parasites,  or viruses." 

It is difficult to see the plexi-glass in this photo,  for I was positioned in
such a manner that it almost seems as if I am in the main part of the house. 

So,  let's spy history in the aforementioned Daggett House.

And here we can see the break-back/lean-to/salt box style of architecture of the Daggett House from the early 1750s,  which was very common in colonial New England.

This type of architecture design is a direct descendent of rural houses in medieval England.  English settlers created this manner of engineering by adapting said medieval house form to meet the different needs and weather of northeast America.  The most distinctive feature is the asymmetrical gable roof,  which has a short roof plane in the front and a long roof plane in the rear,  extending over a lean-to --- in this case,  the kitchen.  I have read that this form got its  "saltbox"  name years later - in the 

19th century - from the similarly shaped small chests used for storing salt at that time.  The style was perfect for the harsh New England climate. 

Samuel Daggett himself built this house.

We have now another door of ages past:

If doors could talk,  what stories this door could tell...and yet...well...here's a tale---a true tale from ages past:

This is a most recognizable door to me,  for it is one I have opened and walked 

through perhaps thousands of times:  it is the door to the Daggett House,  

originally built in Coventry,  Connecticut  (now Andover)  in the early 1750s.

There is some question on whether or not this is the original Daggett door  

Samuel Daggett built with this house.    If it is - - and it very well could be - - 

how often did he,  his wife Anna,  or their children Talitha,  Asenath,  

and Isaiah enter and exit this door?

Or even neighbors like...Nathan Hale?

As you know,  I am always searching and re-searching for more information about the  Daggetts and their lives.  Well,  my good friend,  Larissa,  pointed out something I never knew:

Nathan Hale,  the American Patriot,  soldier,  and spy for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War,  was born and raised in Coventry,  Connecticut - just a hop,  skip,  and a jump from where this Daggett house originally stood!  Yes,  true!  Same neighborhood,  in fact~~~

(Sadly,  Nathan Hale was found out as a spy - caught by Robert Rogers of Queen's Rangers fame - and hung when he was just 21 years old)~

And Nathan Hale's father's name was Richard  (who,  like Sam Daggett,  was a Deacon at the local church) - - so...in my opinion,  I would be very much surprised if the Hales and Daggetts did not know each other pretty well,  being from such a small rural area,  and with Samuel not only being a Deacon at the local church,  but also the jack-of-all-trades that he was - - - he was a well-known man about town!

To think Nathan Hale most likely,  at the very least,  saw this very same house that's now sitting inside Greenfield Village - - !  And,  who knows?  He could have stepped through this very same doorway when his father,  Richard,  came a-calling or in need of a helping hand or a repair job!

Is that Mrs.  Daggett in the doorway,  perhaps inviting Mr.  Richard Hale and his son,  Nathan,  to enjoy a dinner with them?

I love historical research---and friends who  "know and share stuff"!

The door that separates the kitchen from the great room - - - 
Why a door to separate rooms?
Well,  oftentimes,  a family would spend the cold winter months huddled
together in a single room,  such as a kitchen,  for warmth,  with the closed door
helping to block off the cold and hold in the heat.

While in the kitchen we oftentimes get to see the historic interpreters use many of the items seen here---but not the rare hogshead  (that's the large barrel in the center)!  

Inside this Daggett home we have a very fine example of the average family’s kitchen from the mid-1700s:  we see,  on the bottom left,  wood for the cooking fire,  and,  in the center,  we see the large barrel called a hogshead which could be used to store liquid such as cider  (and some were even filled with tobacco!).  According to one source,  it was the one who awakened last whose job it was to draw the day's cider from the hogshead. 
Also in this photo I see lanterns,  a mortar and pestle for the spices,  a rushlight holder,  a peak into the parlor,  brooms--most likely homemade…where else can one in our area see such a kitchen unless they plan to travel back east?

Now…let’s speak further about the hogshead for a moment  (thanks to Phyllis D.  and Brian D.  for their additional information):  

A Hogshead was a type of English measurement by way of a barrel,  thus the Hogsheads came in many sizes.  The largest of these were used to transport tobacco to port and on to a ship.  They were rolled down a lane leading to the dock and then set upright for transport.  There are several roads Maryland named  “Hogshead Road”  because they were used to move Hogsheads to the docks.  

An original hogshead barrel from the 17th and 18th centuries is pretty rare,  and most did not survive all these hundreds of years.  It was mentioned that they are so rare that even the Smithsonian doesn’t have one,  so what we have here in the Daggett kitchen is a very valuable piece.  

(Click HERE for further information)

Now you understand when listening to The Beatles  "Being For The Benefit Of Mr.  Kite"  from their Sgt. Pepper's album when John Lennon sings:
"Over men and horses,  hoops and garters,
Lastly through a hogshead of real fire"  ---this line is an expression that refers to a barrel set on fire.

 

"I'll put the kettle on!"
Houses,  such as Sam Daggett's,   were not the museums we know them to be today:
they were ALIVE!
Just like everything else in this post~~~~

Let's head over to Exeter,  New Hampshire.

John Giddings,  builder of this house around 1750,  was a shipping merchant,  and Exeter,  New Hampshire was the center of political colonial activity for many years.  It was the seat of government and included numerous state offices.  Giddings,  being a man of prominence,  was an elected statesman for several years,  and a representative just before and during the early years of the American Revolution.  The New Hampshire Provincial Convention met in Exeter in 1775 to consider rebellion against the King.  It was also in this city where the New Hampshire Convention voted to accept or reject the Federal Constitution in February of 1788. 

John Giddings passed away in 1785.   Joseph Pearson,  who,  in 1786 would become the Secretary of State of New Hampshire,  bought the place in 1790,  and married Giddings'  daughter,  Dorothy,  in 1795....inside this house!

Another doorway that I passed through hundreds of times, 
if not more.

Being that the two men who lived here were so involved in local affairs,  one can just imagine the people who may have stepped through this doorway.  Sadly,  the front door was recently replaced with,  what I'm pretty certain is,  a modern replication of a colonial door.  So I won't even bother to show it here.

A noticeable difference between the rural Daggett and the more urban dwelling Giddings can be plainly seen.
Both houses were built in the mid-1700s.

We are so very lucky to have such a ancient houses as the Daggett House,  Plympton House,  and Cotswold Cottage within our midst here in Michigan.  Even though our area was settled as far back as 1701,  when Detroit was founded by Cadillac,  Detroit and Michigan are often over-looked in America's colonial history.  Sadly,  nearly every home and structure from 18th century Detroit has been destroyed,  either by fire  (the Great Fire of Detroit in 1805 sure did take its toll),  or,  as most old structures,  being razed/torn down.

Now,  I said  “nearly,”  for we still have the Navarre-Anderson Trading Post from 1789 in nearby Monroe,  and there are a few structures from the 1700s up in the Mackinaw/Mackinac region.  But,  that's about it.  So it’s here at Greenfield Village we have a few 18th century transplants,  where we can learn so much. 

Let's cross the great Atlantic for our next historical journey:

I hope the owner and originator of the following photo does not mind that I am using it here.  I did include her name in the comment below the photograph.

The actual gate  (then called the private postern gate,  now in the Byward
Tower)  through which Queen Anne Boleyn entered the Tower of London
on May 2,  1536. 
Photo taken by Anne LW at the Tower.

We tend to think of changes in the past as we do with change today:  instantaneous.  Almost overnight.  But that simply was not the case in those ancient days.  

As I continue to study the B.C.  and early A.D.  periods in human history,  it becomes more and more apparent that early history was very slow to change.  All things took time to catch on.

An early wheel made of a solid piece of wood.

Not sure of its age.

You can research how people lived 5,000 years ago and make the comparison to 2,000 years later,  and there is not a great difference.  Oh,  mind!  That's not to say there aren't some  differences,  but not anything that would be extremely noticeable.  For a great example,  let's look at the wheel.  Most tend to assume that when the wheel was invented,  it was used for moving things from one area to another...for transportation.  But the first wheels were not used for transportation.  According to various early world history books,  evidence indicates they were created to serve as potter's wheels,  and this happened around 3500 to 4,000 B.C.  in Mesopotamia  (in Lower Mesopotamia - now modern-​​day Iraq),  where the Sumerian people inserted rotating axles into solid discs of wood for them to spin in helping to make bowls and drinking vessels out of clay.  It then took about 300 years more before someone figured out that these spinning pottery tools/wheels could be used for mobility on chariots.  

Three hundred years!

Time just seemed to move slower...

Here is information I found about a plain,  ordinary tool seen often with hunters,  reenactors,  and campers,  and the info came from a variety of sources,  including from  'A Museum of Early American Tools'   by Eric Sloane:

Taken from  "A Museum of Early American Tools"  by Eric Sloane

"Tomahawks and axes differ in their shape,  purpose,  and history: 

Shape

Axes have a long,  rounded cutting edge and a flat head,  while tomahawks are shaped like a semicircle with a line segment extending from the center to form a spike,  and another line segment for the handle. 

Purpose

Axes are used for chopping,  splitting,  chipping,  and piercing,  while tomahawks were used for chopping,  cutting,  and as a weapon."

"A tomahawk is a type of single-handed axe used by the many Indigenous peoples and nations of North America.  It traditionally resembles a hatchet with a straight shaft.  In pre-colonial times the head was made of stone,  bone,  or antler,  and European settlers later introduced heads of iron and steel."

"A heavier tomahawk can split wood in the more conventional way like an axe by standing the wood up vertically,  and then using weight and momentum to chop through.  Tomahawks with thinner bits will have trouble splitting this way."

"Tomahawks were general-purpose tools used by Native Americans and later the European colonials with whom they traded,  and often employed as a hand-to-hand weapon."

"The Early American ax or axe,  historian Eric Sloane says either spelling is acceptable,  was a tool derived from the European weapon.  As its name suggests,  a trade axe was made for bartering.  Sloane suggests that Native American tomahawks were patterned after European axe designs.  Pre-columbian axes had heads of stone,  not iron and steel.  The Iron Age essentially  "bypassed"  the American Indians,  as they never developed the technology to smelt iron on a large scale,  meaning they did not enter a true Iron Age before European contact;  instead,  they primarily worked with copper in some regions,  while most cultures remained in a Stone Age technological phase when Europeans arrived.  

Sloane refines the nomenclature of this type of tool:  Its cutting surface is the bit;  any portion opposite the bit is its poll.  Sloane conjectures the reason for a poll was to add momentum to chopping,  not primarily as a hammering tool."

A tomahawk and an axe.

The pre-20th century man spent a good part of  his day with the axe in his hand,  for that's one chore that was never-ending - families could never have enough wood.  Children and women would chop wood if the necessity arrived.

Here is Roy,  out back at the 1750s Daggett House inside Greenfield Village,  chopping wood for cooking on the hearth for demonstration purposes.  But this would have been a very common site in days of old.

On average  (remember,  I wrote  “average”),  most Colonial homes would have needed at least 40 cords of wood for heating and cooking over the course of a year.  A cord of wood is technically 128 cubic feet...or,  roughly,  a stack of wood 4 feet wide,  4 feet high,  and 8 feet long - very similar to a  "rick"  of wood.

And it would not only be just one variety of wood – there would be different varieties used for cooking,  for instance:  hardwoods,  such as birch,  hickory,  and maple,  were ideal for cooking food in the hearth,  as was ash,  beech,  oak,  and elm.   These types of wood are dense and slow-burning,  which means they release a consistent heat over time.  They were ideal for cooking food because it helped to prevent hot spots that could burn the food.  Like the cook of the house,  in this case Anna Daggett,  wife of Samuel,  the axe man knew what size and even shape to cut the wood into for the type of fire needed.

As for the types of wood used for heating the home during the cold months:  given the choice,  Samuel may have chosen oak,  black locust,  and/or maple,  should these tree varieties be accessible.  Again,  it was the hardwood that gave off the best and longest-lasting heat.

Chopping wood was not simply going out with an axe – there was a purpose for each piece cut. 

Not many people today have much of an idea about how early American history actually was,  which includes the nuance of how early Americans would have chopped the trees down...by hand...with the axe...and then split the wood with a wedge,  knowing which tree gave the wood needed for the many uses.

I helped to chop a tree down with an axe,  and I can honestly say,  it is not an easy job.

I enjoyed the tree-chopping opportunity~
A few of us took turns chopping down this walnut tree a few years back - it was not only me doing the chopping - and,  even with multiple people taking turns,  it truly was one tough job.

I do like the idea of being able to say that I helped chop down a tree with an axe,  though!

I posted the following on my Facebook page in the fall of 2024:

Instead of all the political hate and crap everywhere you turn,  here's some cool and fun historical information,  and I double checked each to make sure - - 

How cool!

Picture  #1)  Sean's Bar  (Athlone,  Ireland)...through my research I found out it is considered the oldest pub/bar in the world,  from 900 A.D.-----I'm not a drinker at all,  but I think I would here...just because...pretty cool meme,  by the way

This is the meme that sort of piqued my interest in the old bar thing.
And I absolutely love seeing this posed photo of two Nordic-looking men there,
quaffing a few.  Though they are in Ireland.....

My point of purpose is that it is not only the oldest,  but it is still being used as its original intent.

That's what makes the difference. 

That's what makes it full of interest. 

Here is the exterior of what is claimed/considered the world's oldest bar.
It is definitely the oldest in the British Isles and Europe.

The proprietors have claimed to possess a list of  "nearly all previous owners"  going back centuries,  potentially to the time of Luan,  after whom Athlone town is named.

Picture  #2)  White Horse Tavern from 1673 -(Newport,  Rhode Island)- The oldest bar/pub in the United States.

White Horse Tavern from 1673 -(Newport,  Rhode Island)

And then we can visit more locally  (for me):

Picture  #3)  New Hudson Inn from 1831 - the oldest pub/bar in Michigan  (New Hudson,  Michigan) - a place I have actually been to a few times.  In fact,  I took the photo of it posted below.

New Hudson Inn 1831 - New Hudson,  Mi
The hotel was opened up in 1831 as  'The Old Tavern.'
It is Michigan's oldest tavern still in its original location and still in use as a tavern.

Located on Grand River Avenue near Milford Road,  the New Hudson Inn/The Old Tavern was one of the stops from Detroit to Lansing along Grand River.

The 18"  beams and wooden pegs remain as prominent today as when they were installed.  

It has been updated over the years,  needless to say,  but the  original structure remains intact and plainly seen.

In only seven years,  as of this writing,  this will be 200 years old!

I have a book called Michigan Haunts  (which mentions this Passion for the Past blog for their Greenfield Village chapter)  and one of hauntings it speaks on occurs at the New Hudson Inn.  Well,  though I found the ghost stories interesting,  I found the history of this building much more intriguing. 

Fun stuff---even if you're not a drinker!

How about Christmas?

I saw this meme and,  as I usually do with history memes, 
did a bit of research to ensure its accuracy.
It depicts how the Striezelmarkt looked in the 1400s.

The Striezelmarkt is the oldest Christmas market in Germany,  and generally considered in the history of Christmas markets to be the first Christmas market in the world.  The market takes place every year in Dresden,  Germany.  It began as a one-day market in 1434 and currently runs throughout the Advent season until Christmas Eve each year.

Here is the Striezelmarkt today - still going after all these years.

"As you walk through the market,  sampling local treats and taking in the sights,  sounds,  and beautiful aromas,  you are immediately taken back to the joy of Christmas from centuries ago.  There is a vintage charm to the market and a special atmosphere that can only be described as Christmas magic."

And then there is - - - - - 

A cross-section of ground from the A303 highway in England reveals the path of the ancient Roman road,  the Fosse Way.  This route,  which has historical significance dating back thousands of years,  passes by Stonehenge,  the renowned prehistoric monument,  and has been a center of human activity since the Iron Age and possibly earlier...

Trent workmen have uncovered a 2,000-year-old Roman road in a field near Evesham,  in Worcestershire,  UK.

Aidan Smyth,  archaeology advisor for Wychavon District Council says the ancient Roman road is the only one of its kind discovered in Britain and could be of   “global importance.”

It looks like a well-made Roman road surface and may have taken over from an earlier trackway or route that the Britons were using before the Romans.  We had simple roads before the Romans,  and these sometimes followed traditional routes.

The 10m  (32ft)  stretch was discovered during routine waterworks and is said to have been constructed like a wall with large stones laid in bands – a traditional Roman technique – with its only comparisons in Rome and Pompeii.

Roads through time.
We don't have anything quite like this in the U.S.,  but I do
know that beneath many of the main roads in the towns and 
cities in Michigan,  for example,  there are the original brick roads.

Along the same lines as the road photo above,  who would have ever thought bricks could be historic?

Certainly not me,  though my mind has been opened,  for old bricks can be very historical.  And I never thought I'd ever have such a collection.

Well,  not an intentional collection.

But each brick here has a history and helps to tell a story. 

The first two bricks in the first row  (left side going down)  once were part of the road/street in the tiny city of Croswell  (Michigan),  from back in the horse and buggy days when they had brick streets;  they were in a pile and some were beaten up pretty bad,  but we were allowed to grab some,  and at the bottom of that 1st row I decided to include a leftover paver from our own backyard patio my brother Tom and I built about twenty years ago.  It is a piece of my own personal home history of my wife & our kids.

The brick top middle is from  "old Greenfield Village."  At one time it was a part of the walk in front of the Henry Ford Birthplace after the house was brought to Greenfield Village - yes,  it was once a part of that wonderful place of history.  When the Village  "updated"  its infrastructure in the late 20th and early 21st century,  many of the employees at that time were able to collect these bricks as they were removed from the walkways - - and a friend,  knowing what a fan I am of the Village,  was so very kind and gifted one to me.  My sincerest thanks...!

Now,  this Greenfield Village brick is directly above my bicentennial brick from Massachusetts  (can you guess which one that  is?)  that I found on eBay.  What a cool and unique souvenir.

The bottom brick in the center row was given to me as a retirement gift by a co-worker who knows how much I love history,  and so she got me a brick from the Willow Run Bomber Plant  (located a bit west of Detroit)  that she was able to grab during the remodel.  Construction of the Willow Run Bomber Plant began in 1940 and was completed in 1942,  to manufacture aircraft,  especially the B-24 Liberator heavy bomber  (WWII).  Willow Run was also the  "Birthplace"  of Rosie the Riveter - and now I have a historic brick from that plant!

How cool!

The top brick in the third row  (on the right going down with the 10 holes)  is from Oakwood Junior High School  (Oakwood Middle School),  the school that I attended back in the early-to-mid 70s,  which was torn down about 15 years ago.  I asked one of the workers for a brick and he grabbed one for me.   The two bricks below that are from the chimney of our former family cottage built in the early 1930s.  Our cottage holds near and dear memories for me and my family - including my children.  Sadly,  we no longer have it in the family.  At least I have a small piece of it...

For more brick details,  see below: 

Those bricks on the upper left that once paved the streets and walks of Croswell,  Michigan are simply a part of American history,  aren't they?  Bricks were commonly used to pave streets and walks,  going back,  as far as research shows,  to the early 19th century  (some say bricks were used in the colonies,  along with cobblestone),  and the idea carried on westward as America grew.  Croswell was founded in 1845  (under a different name),  and was incorporated as a city in 1881.  This was more than likely around the time the bricks were laid on the streets - perhaps maybe a little later,  in the 1890s or the early 20th century,  once automobiles became more popular.  Some cement still sticks to them from when they were paved over with concrete.

Then there's the paver directly below the two Croswell bricks.  My brother Tom and I worked together on making the patio that is still there at the back of my house.  My brother is no longer with us,  for he passed away in 2014,  so this is an important part of my life,  my history,  which is why it is included here.

Now we go to the second row  (center going down);  you all know how much I love Greenfield Village,  so to have a brick that I am sure I trod upon  (along with millions of others)  that was once a part of that favorite of all historical places is,  well,  let's just say  "goosebumps."

In this old photo of the Henry Ford Birthplace inside Greenfield Village,  you can make out the brick sidewalk.  The brick given to me was one of these from this location.

As for the Bicentennial brick in the center:

tell me this isn't one of the coolest,  most unique,  and even most unusual Bicentennial collectibles you've ever seen:  a 1776-1976 brick!  It was advertised as a door stop  (lolol)!  I didn't hesitate to  "Buy It Now"  when I saw it.  With me it'll have a quiet,  more gentle  (haha)  life,  sitting on a shelf with other collectibles.  

As far as the Willow Run brick center bottom,  well,  from my friend  (and giver of this gift),   Serina,  said she was able to  "pick out bricks when they started part of the remodel"  and that it  "is related to Henry Ford  (since)  he opened the Bomber Plant."

Serina is also a part of the group of women who pay tribute to Rosie the Riveter,  so this is also a Rosie brick!

The brick on the upper right came from a school where I attended back in the early-to-mid 1970s.  It was also my workplace as a custodian in the 1990s and into the 2000s,  so it also has a personal history to it.  The school was built in the early 1950s.

My family cottage chimney bricks are the last two bottom bricks in the third row.

My grandfather bought the place before I was even born,  and I spent my entire youth there in Lexington  (Michigan,  on the banks of Lake Huron).  I continued to visit the cottage well into my adult life,  even after I married and had kids,  so even my own family learned to love the place.  When the cottage chimney suddenly came crashing down - no one was hurt,  thank God - I grabbed a few of the bricks.  

All of these bricks - bricks that help to tell a historical American story - will be kept until one day when I'm no longer a part of the living----my wife,  kids,  or grandkids can do what they wish.

You see,  I don't pay attention to the younger generation telling me I must get rid of my stuff because no one will want what are near and dear to me.  However,  it is my hope that my collection may be of some interest to my kids,  grandkids,  or even,  one day in the distant future,  my great grandkids.  Maybe not everything I have,  but I do have a feeling many of my items will be in our family for generations to come,  for I have raised my kids with a deep commitment to family and our family history.  Screw those people on the internet and in magazines who spew the psychobabble of telling us Boomers to get rid of our stuff - things that make us happy.  We're alive now,  and enjoying the heck out of them!

The following is taken directly from THIS and THIS site:

In 1936,  Hugo Kraft was plowing his field at the bottom of the former Lake Mästermyr on the island of Gotland,  in Sweden,  when he found a strange - encircled by an iron chain - chest.  It contained the largest collection of tools of this date so far found:  iron working and carpenter's tools,  raw materials,  un-finished products.  His field was located on a drained lake. 

During the Viking Age,  the area where Mästermyr mire is located,  used to be a lake.  The mire was drained in 1902–10.   

Most of the find had been placed in the chest,  but there were also objects around it such as three bronze cauldrons,  three bells,  and a fire-grid of iron.  A chain,  made up of 26 figure-of-eight shaped links,  was wrapped around it.  It served both as an extra lock and handle since the chest was too heavy for the original handle.  The chest and the other items had probably been placed in a boat which capsized and sank in the lake.  Another theory is that the chest was temporarily hidden at the water's edge.

The thousand-year-old chest  (from roughly 793-1066 A.D.)  contained over 200 tools and blacksmith works or works in progress,  making it the largest Viking tool find in Europe.

The chest contained Viking-era blacksmithing and woodworking tools:  axes,  hammers,  tongs,  punches,  plate shears,  saw blades,  files,  rasps,  drills,  chisels,  knives,  awls,  and whetstones among the 200 objects that were found in the chest.   Also included inside was raw material and scrap iron as well as finished objects such as locks,  keys,  a frying pan,  cauldrons,  and bells.  The chest and its contents provide a valuable insight into technology during the Viking Age.  The amazing thing is that the tools are at least 1000 years old but look like they could have been made yesterday.   They are of the same material,  have the same shapes and the same functions as modern tools.

The contents of the chest indicate that it belonged to a travelling craftsman who made repairs and produced new items.  The tools show that he was a smith and a carpenter,  and had some knowledge of locks,  coppersmithing,  and coopering. 
Such an amazing find~

The chest was made of oak with iron hinges and lock.  It was intact despite the rough encounter with the plow.  It was rectangular with a slightly curved lid and flat bottom.  The bottom was joined to the ends via a mortise and through tenon.  Pegs were used to attach the sides to the bottom and end pieces.  The ends and sides were trapezoidal and slightly angled.  A lock wrought from iron was attached to the front side of the chest.

So,  in fact,  1000 year ago a skilled and wealthy Viking lost his belongings during the sail on the Mastermyr Lake.  Imagine how angry he was.  Or maybe he also lost his life?

Bibury,  a charming village in Gloucestershire,  England.

It dates back to the Anglo-Saxon period,  with its earliest mentions recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086.  Its most iconic feature is Arlington Row,  a series of 17th-century weavers'  cottages originally built in 1380 as a monastic wool store and converted to homes around 1600.  During the Middle Ages,  Bibury thrived on wool production,  becoming an essential part of the local wool trade and contributing to the Cotswolds'  prosperity.  Today,  Bibury preserves its traditional architecture and natural beauty,  becoming a popular destination for tourists and a symbol of English rural heritage.

The Village of Bibury has been around for over a thousand years, 
though the cottages seen here are from the 1600s.

So let's look at the unusual lives and deaths of people of the past:

"You & I have passed our lives in serious times..." 

John Adams in a letter sent to Thomas Jefferson in 1813.

Charles Carroll was 95 when he died in 1832.

I'll help spread the word - - 

Then there's Noah Webster,  who was born October 16,  1758 and lived a long life until May 28,  1843.

Why the inclusion of Noah Webster here?

Due to his being known as the  "Forgotten Founding Father."

And he is known by that moniker because he was a significant contributor to the early American republic,  and while most people primarily associate his name with his dictionary,  overlooking his important role as a political writer,  he was also an ardent supporter of the Constitution,  and an advocate for a distinct American culture during the nation's formative years;  he was a confidant to figures like George Washington and Benjamin Franklin but did not hold a prominent political office like many other Founding Fathers.

I know...you all think I'm nuts,  but,  as stated in the title of this post,  this is the way Ken  (moi!)  thinks when it comes to history.

And this leads me to:

Conrad Heyer

Conrad Heyer,  born April 10 in either 1749 or 1753.  He is often credited as being the earliest-born person to have been photographed alive.  Whether he was or not doesn't really matter,  for note the year when he was born!  He was photographed for this picture in 1852 at the age of either 103 or 99.  For those of us who visit the Daggett House mentioned earlier in this post,  he's just about the same age---or maybe a little older!

Think about it this way - when you look into his eyes in this photograph you are looking at eyes that saw what we read about in history books...at someone who was alive before the American Revolution...even before the French & Indian War,  and was a contemporary of Ben Franklin,  George Washington,  John Hancock,  Paul Revere,  and the aforementioned John Adams,  and Thomas Jefferson.  And even John Chapman  (Johnny Appleseed!),  Daniel Boone,  Noah Webster,  and Davy Crockett!  Or how about even Samuel Daggett!!

But even crazier is to think about when you look into this man's eyes,  you are seeing all the way back to the 17th century - for you can be certain that as a youngster he knew people who were around before and during the Salem Witch trials of the early 1690s! 

 

Now,  inching up closer to our modern times - - the last person alive from the Titanic was Millvina Dean,  and she was only 9 weeks old when her family boarded the Titanic in 1912.  She lived to be 97 years old,  dying in 2009.  She was the last living survivor of the ship.

There was also Florence Green,  a British citizen who served in the Allied armed forces as a Royal Air Force  (WRAF)  service member,  who is generally considered to have been the last verified veteran of the first world war - The Great War---WWI - at her death on February 4,  2012,  aged 110.

In a similar vein,  now we are going to visit two people - two women - who,  when you read about them and then read what I wrote about the two together,  it may just blow your mind:

Margaret Ann  (Harvey)  Neve

Margaret Ann  (Harvey)  Neve was born on an Island in the English Channel in May of 1792 and died in April of 1903.

In her lifetime she lived in three different centuries:  was born when King George III was still king  (and had recently lost the Revolutionary War) - and even though she was across the Atlantic,  the year she was born George Washington was president of the new United States---at various times in her life she was a contemporary of not only Washington,  but Adams,  Jefferson,  Revere,  Queen Victoria,  Charles Dickens,  Beethoven,  Jane Austen,  Mark Twain,  Chopin,  Edgar Allan Poe,  Napoleon,  Tchaikovsky,  Abraham Lincoln,  King Edward VII,  and Washington Irving.  She also lived through the War of 1812,  the French Revolution,  visited Waterloo soon after the battle  (1815),  the Crimean War,  and America's Civil War,  saw the end of slavery in England,  France,  and the United States,  saw  (or was aware of)  inventions such as the photograph,  the electric light,  the phonograph,  the moving pictures,  and early horseless carriages.

How many images do we have of such people that have lived though so much history?

When I was growing up in the 1960s and 1970s,  most of the old people I knew,  including my own grandparents,  were born in the previous century - the 1800s  (my grandparents were born in the 1890s).  And I really didn't think much of it at the time - but as I got older and those old folks began dying off,  it began to hit me that these people from the 19th century were leaving us,  that soon all living remnants of that century would soon be gone.

Emma Martina Luigia Morano

And then it happened.  Emma Martina Luigia Morano  (1899-2017)  is considered to be the last person born in the 19th century to have been verified as still living...until she died in April of 2017.  So here is a little bit on Emma Martina Luigia Morano,  a very special woman who died in 2017 at the age of 117,  and is considered to be the last person to have lived in three centuries:  the 19th century,  the 20th century,  and the 21st century.  Most notably she was the last person from the 19th century to die  (she was born in Italy in 1899).  Think of it this way - at the time of her death,  the entire human population on earth on the day she was born was already dead.   Okay...a little morbid,  I suppose,  but...well...fact.

Emma lived through two World Wars,  the invention of the flying machine,  transatlantic flight,  the sinking of the Titanic  (no,  she was not a passenger!),  the automobile becoming the main mode of transportation,  Ian Fleming's discovery of penicillin which paved the way for antibiotics,  man landing on the moon,  the computer age,  the television age,  and was a contemporary of Enrico Caruso,  Charles Lindbergh,  Henry Ford,  Bonnie & Clyde,  George M. Cohan,  Rudolph Valentino,  dictator Benito Mussolini,  Glenn Miller,  the Wright Brothers,  and any of us who were alive before April 15, 2017 - the date of her death.

Between these two ladies,  who themselves were contemporaries for a few short years  (but did not know each other),  we have 225 years,  from 1792 to 2017!

It's this kind of information that blows my mind!

What's next?
The roaring 20's? 

WWII?

So during my own lifetime  (so far)  I've lived on this earth at the same time with people from the age of the mythical cowboy era,  the Spanish-American War,  WWI,  the silent movie era,  Big Band and doo wop music,  from orbiting the moon to landing on the moon to robots on Mars... Heck!  The very last authenticated Civil War veteran to die was Albert Woolson,  a Union army drummer boy from Minnesota who died on Aug. 2,  1956,  at the age of 109 years - just five years before I was born!

To this - - - - 

Sad...very sad.

Putting history in its place.

I really try to do my best to place people in history in their environment in their time,  not in our time.  To be totally honest,  you can't even place someone from as recent as 1975 in our time,  much less someone from 200+  years earlier.  This is called Presentism.  Presentism is the practice of judging historical figures by the moral and ethical standards of the present day.  And yes,  there are those who attempt this atrocity,  with others of their ilk nodding their heads in agreement  ("uh huh,  uh huh...yup!").

But...

I believe in learning from the past - presenting the facts as best as I can with the information on hand.

Placing them in their environment.  Not ours'.

There was a time not so long ago - when I was a young kid,  in fact - that farmers were thought of as being dim-witted...not so smart.  Yet,  the farmer was perhaps among the smartest people I've known,  and it's only recently that they are being acknowledged as such.

In fact,  it seems as we head further into the future,  the more looking back to the past society does,  at least to some extent---especially for food.

This is the way I think when it comes to history.

Putting history in its place - in its own environment - is the only way it can make sense in every sense.  To only see an earlier time as a series of graphs and charts showing data of age,  race,  sex,  or occupations cannot give a complete picture;  just as bad is seeing the past in a more general overview,  like those history Facebook memes that so many people tend to post.  When one can delve deep into research and think or see an object - an antique - in its place and time is like going from a pencil sketch to a full color painting.  It comes alive!

Histories of ages past  indeed!

Until next time,  see you in time...

                                  

~If you enjoy this sort of history,  you may enjoy my  "Buried Treasure"  post---click HERE

~And in a similar vein,  HERE is another favorite I wrote of buried treasures,  including bourdaloues.

~To read and learn a bit more on ancient farming practices of  the B.C.  and early A.D.  periods,  please click HERE

~To find books showing the early ages of world history,  click HERE

~How about when I visited Michigan's oldest pre-statehood buildings that are still standing:  click HERE

~Interested in a deeper history of the structures inside Greenfield Village?  Well,  HERE is a listing of links to the historic structures at Greenfield Village

~How about a history of music---most of which you can actually purchase?  Click HERE

~HERE is a blog filled with links to posts I've written about the American Revolution

----