Life in Old Colony Times
By Charles Morris
CHAPTERS IN UNITED STATES HISTORY.* NO. 7.
Life in Old Colony Times.
Contrast in Conditions — Population in 1763 — Colonial Houses — The Kitchen and Its Hearth — The Best Room — Life in the City and on the Plantation — Distinctions in Rank and Dress. THE year of 1763 was a turning point of much interest in the history of this country. It marked the end of the long struggle with France for dominion in America, and the beginning of the events that led to the struggle with England for American independence. It is therefore a good point to pause and consider the condition of the people of the colonies at that period, observing some of their habits and customs, their comforts and discomforts, their methods of thinking and modes of life. In these days of railroads and trolley cars, electric lights and telegraphs, stoves and furnaces, cheap clothing and furniture, canned food and tropic fruits, and endless labor-saving devices, it is difficult to comprehend the sparseness of life in colonial times. Yet we may console ourselves with the idea that our forefathers of the past century were not troubled seriously about the hardness of their lot, and that they may have looked back with commiseration on the condition of the earlier settlers of America and felt glad of their great advantages. In 1763 the population of the whole country was probably not much greater than that of New York City to-day. There were probably more than a million and a half of people in the colonies, but less than two millions. About one-sixth of these were negro slaves. These might be found in every colony, but the bulk of them were in the south. Those owned in the north were principally house servants, and were kept in the cities, there being no need for them on the farm. The people were mainly of English origin, tho there were many Dutch, Germans, French, Irish, and Scotch. They nearly all lived east of the Alleghany, while the western country was still a wilderness, and in possession of its savage original owners. Philadelphia, New York, Boston, and Charleston were the chief cities, yet even Philadelphia, the largest of these, had only about twenty thousand inhabitants. Of inland towns, Lancaster, Pa., with perhaps six thousand people, was the largest. There were comfortable brick and stone houses in the cities, but the houses of the farmers were built of rough-hewn timbers. The older ones were of logs cut square and laid together. The later ones were framed in heavy oak timbers, firmly braced together and covered with split clapboards. The roofs were made of split cedar shingles, fastened with large wrought iron nails, the doors of oak plank, doubled and nailed together, the nails or spikes being arranged in diamond shape. They were fastened at night by heavy wooden cross-bars. The windows were small, and contained a few small, diamond-shaped panes of glass, set in lead frames. In the humbler log houses oiled paper often took the place of glass. The lack of a clock was overcome by making the house itself a timepiece. It faced due south, so that the sun "shone square in" at noon. The earlier and later hours were indicated by the angles made by the sunshine on the floor. In the interior these houses were far from comfortable, in our sense of comfort. The walls were rough and unfinished, the floors bare, the bedrooms small and poorly provided. Warmth outside the living rooms no one dreamed of, and to go to bed and rise in winter was a severe penance. Toilet appliances were sadly wanting. The morning ablutions were usually made in the kitchen basin or at the outdoor pump. In winter the struggle to escape freezing was one of the chief ends of life. The chief apartments of a colonial mansion of the north were the kitchen and the "best room." The kitchen was the principal living room, and the only one in which winter comfort was usually to be had. Its center of attraction was the great fireplace, with its roaring fire. The vast chimney into which it opened was about twelve feet square at the base, the fireplace being wide enough for seats to be placed at the side, and for the stars to be seen through its top. A large "back log" formed the foundation of the fire. On the andirons rested a smaller "front log," and heaps of smaller timber were piled between. Over the fire swung an iron crane, with pot-hooks to hold the pots for cooking. Cooking was also done by the aid of spits and skillets, and in a brick oven built in the chimney, which was heated by a fire built in it, then swept clean of ashes, and the bread or beans set in to bake. It retained its heat a long time. If by chance the fire went out, it was no small matter to rekindle it. Friction matches were not yet dreamed of, and sparks struck into tinder by flint and steal, or live coals borrowed from a neighbor's hearth, were the only means of regaining the vanished flame. For illumination the fire had largely to do duty. Oil had come little into use. Gas and electricity were marvels of the far future. The tallow candle did nightly duty. But this was not the trim factory candle with which we are familiar, but its home-made predecessor, whose thick wick brought the snuffers into constant requisition. As regards the utility of the hearth fire as a warming agent in cold weather, doubtless many of my readers can speak from experience. It meant to roast on one side and freeze on the other, while the eyes were none the better for the smoke which made its way into the room. From the bare joists overhead, just high enough to let one walk upright, hung bunches of herbs and seed-corn, and strings of drying apples. In the better buildings the walls were plastered and whitewashed, but in many the bare timbers were visible. The furniture was plain and scanty. There might be a tall wooden clock; a dresser adorned with pewter dishes, often considered too good for ordinary use; a spinning wheel; and, less commonly, a loom for weaving. In poorer houses wooden platters were used to serve food upon. This food was greatly lacking in variety. Salt meat or fish, a few garden vegetables, bread of rye and corn, and bean porridge formed the staple dishes. Tea and coffee were rare luxuries in country houses. Many of the vegetables now common were then unknown. Tomatoes—"love-apples" as they were called—were deemed poisonous, and the tropical fruits which we use so abundantly were never seen. The "best room" was used only on occasions of ceremony. At other times it was kept as dark and damp as a vault. Here was the splendor of the house; brass andirons, polished till they shone like gold; high brass candlesticks, with attendant tray and snuffers; the uncarpeted floor, sanded and marked off in9neat designs; the family portraits on the wall; on a shelf the family's small store of books, including the Bible, with perhaps Fox's "Book of Martyrs," Addison's "Spectator," Young's "Night Thoughts," and similar works for the improvement of the mind. The novel, which forms our daily mental dessert, rarely found its way into this serious company. Going south we would find differences. The Dutch mansion of New York was usually of brick; its gable end, which receded in steps to the peak of the roof, facing the street, its door adorned with a great brass knocker; the polished floor scrubbed until it fairly shone. Philadelphia, the largest American city, was noted for the elegance of its brick and stone residences, sitting back in the midst of green gardens and orchards. The plantation houses of the great southern estates were grand and spacious, much of their interior woodwork of solid oak and mahogany, richly carved and paneled, while their sideboards shone with gold and silver plate, and their tables groaned with all the luxuries that money could procure. All the labor was done by slaves, menial labor being considered degrading to a white man, and hosts of negroes stood ready to perform any task which the needs of the household demanded. The distinction of rank of the Old World had been brought over to the New, and the democracy of the present day was but slowly making its way. Only the gentry, including ministers and their wives, were addressed as Mr. and Mrs. Others, above the grade of the servant, were called Goodman and Goodwife. The farmer and his family were dressed in coarse "homespun" cloth, woven on the family loom. Mechanics and working men generally wore red or green baize jackets, and leather breeches and aprons, with shoes of coarse "neat's leather." Calfskin shoes were reserved for the gentry. The colonial gentleman, when in full dress, far surpassed his successor of the present day in the bravery of his attire. Long velvet coats, knee-breeches, white silk stockings, and shoes with silver buckles made up the essential parts of his attire. His long hair was powdered white, and tied in a twist or queue with a black silk ribbon, while on it rested a three-cornered cocked hat. White lace ruffles fell over his hands. A gold-headed cane, and a gold or silver snuff-box were indispensable marks of gentility. His morning costume was a silk or velvet cap and dressing gown. The embroidered velvet of his evening attire was gay with gold or silver lace and buttons, and glittering knee buckles. Ladies wore dresses of brocade and rich silk. These distinctions of dress were at an earlier period fixed by law, every one being obliged to dress in conformity with his or her rank and wealth. As an instance may be cited the case of one Alice Flynt, who had ventured to wear a silk hood, and was ordered to appear before the court and show that she possessed the £200 required to entitle her to wear so costly a garment.