“Daniel Drake Pioneer Life in Kentucky

An Interesting Read….

Excerpt from “Daniel Drake Pioneer Life in Kentucky

...“There were a number of motives which accounted for the spectacular migration to the West (Kentucky).  Land was cheap and an inhabitant of the Atlantic states could sell his hundred acres  and acquire,in Kentucky,over a thousand .  The desire for adventure or for acquisition of riches in a newly developing territory played a part.  Some  wished to escape  persecution  for debt or crime.  Taxes were high in the Seaboard states. The climate was milder than in the more northerly Atlantic states, though this deterred at least on Pennsylvania German as reported by Schoepf ( Travels in the Confederation,1783-1784,…) “He had heard that in Kentucky there is no real winter; and where there is no winter, he argued, people must work year in ,  year out, and that was not his fancy; winter, with a warm stove and sluggish days, being indispensable to his happiness.”

I have often wondered why it took the New Englanders so long to migrate in a southwardly direction  to our milder winters.  I did come to the conclusion there is great security in knowing “ just what you got” therefore you would have a tendency to “stay put”.  Also I never underestimated the tremendous amount of effort it took to carve a settlement out of a wilderness.  But it never occurred to me the milder winters would be a deterrent.

At present I am reading “Daniel Drake  Pioneer Life in Kentucky.”  Daniel Drake was born in 1785 and at the age of 15 he began his studies to become a pioneer physician in Fort Washington Kentucky. (Cincinnati) The book consist of letters he wrote to his children to record his recollection of his frontier.  Great book. 

The Box Opener?? Really?

  I like tools.  With a tool I can make something better ( or attempt).  While on a recent pick trip I was rummaging thru a junk box.  Found a handy crow bar/pry bar.  I even commented to my friend on how sharp the edges were.  A tool used to demolish should show signs of extensive wear.   While in my picking mode I didn’t think anything about it and  threw it in my want pile. Not until I returned home did I discover my handy pry tool had words embossed on the handle “Mellor NO.1 Box Opener”.  Really, no blade? You guessed it . The tool was made for opening wooden grocery boxes.   Early 1900’s with the expanded use of corrugated paper boxes. The definition of box openers was changed. I am not saying the Mellor NO. 1 is a museum find but  a quaint reminder of a different time. 

 

More on Hearth cooking

The American Dutch Oven

The American colonies  made some much needed changes to  the traditional Dutch Oven.  Cooking in the brick and mortar fireplace took finesse…

Thomas Jefferson’s cookbook, as well as The Cookery by Miss Eliza Leslie, made me realized that cooking was not just putting a bird on a skewer. Of course, they enjoyed baking, stewing, frying and roasting.  Their meals included breads , cakes , pies and more.   The colonist needed the dutch oven to be more shallow, they needed the addition of short legs and what caught my attention  was the  flanged  lid. These changes made  hearth cooking/baking possible. The oven was so valued that wills in the 18th and 19th centuries frequently included the “iron kitchen furniture” or the cast iron dutch ovens.

To make  cakes and breads the legs of the pot were set over a ring of hot coals and then a specific quantity of hot coals were placed on top of the flanged lid to reach the magical 350..

Now you can tell your children why the Dutch Oven is a Dutch Oven.

On a recent buying trip I was excited to find the dutch oven pictured below.  True age is evident by the “Split Formed Handle” on the lid and  the “Applied Handle” on the pot.

True only a minute fraction of today’s population  cares enough about an old rusty pot enough to study it for any length of time. I actually was marveled by the term “Dutch Oven” well before I uncovered the example  in the picture. The dutch part did not interest me but even as a child I asked “Why is this an oven?” I can  cross this off of my list of curiosities.  I can now move on.

Thank You  for Listening,  Kit

Hope to see you soon. Please come to my shop!

Noordermeer Antiques

731 Broadway Homewood Alabama

tel.(205)870.1161

An educated guess….

My first real science teacher  Miss Cook  was pretty scary but very memorable .  It was the way she looked at you. The thing I remember most was  when she opened the

first  day of class with the word  ”Hypotheses”  then she ask    “What does it mean” ?   Of course no one had the nerve to answer. She sternly answered her own question after a fraction of a second  of a pause. >>> “An educated guess”.   Funny how something so little can stick with a young  girl in rural Alabama.  But boy I liked that answer.  A guess did not have to be an answer  out of the clear blue but  a guess could be based on the knowledge available to you at the time. Honestly a hypotheses   could be wrong and still seem okay because….Still today I get a good deal relief out of that term.

A good reputable dealer of Antiques works with educated guess work and with a little effort our reservoir of knowledge grows  everyday. A good antique dealer will welcome a customer who on occasion disagrees with our assessment of a situation .  Sometimes we admit defeat with a smile and sometimes we dig in our heals.

A customer came in last week and was clearly studying a what appeared to be a Lectern or a podium.  After working in retail for 15 years it becomes second nature to  pay attention to a customer’s body language and he was interesting.    I ask him what was on his mind. He  responded by saying     “This is not a Lectern”.  He lead into his defense by pointing out that the piece was unfinished on the back,  therefore it was intended to go against  a closed wall and not facing the intended audience.   I of course agreed with a “Huh , you are exactly  right”.  I later discussed this with my friend and her response was  “Yes it is Bob Crachit desk”.(Charles Dickens‘ A CHRISTMAS CAROL).

Now at Noordermeer’s we now  have a “Bob Crachit Desk” when we used to have an ordinary lectern.  This desk would be perfect for working with a lap top while standing.  This could ring a bell for my customers who prefer standing while they work due to reoccurring back problems.

Hearth Cooking … Andirons

The Hearth.

In Alabama for the past week we have been enjoying temperatures peaking near the 70 mark.   It has been exciting  to sneak a  peak through the mulch looking for my old friends returning  to my garden.  And as much as I enjoy my infamous wood burning heater it has been  a relief to let the fire go out.  Feeding a continuous fire is hard work although rewarding.  .  I  k n o w !! This is still  February and  more times than not  my  crocus heads find themselves buckling in an unexpected snow.  But still this spring break  has been  great fun.

Letting the fire go out was not a smart move in Early America. The  ceramic head match was  a luxury afforded only by the more  fortunate and not prevalent until the second half of the  1800.  The fire in the hearth was important 24/7 regardless of the ambient temps.  The hearth of course  important for preparing daily meals  for the hard working families and don’t underestimate the welcomed  light source the fire provided.  These have been my thoughts as I study the recently acquired andirons that Charles added to Noordermeer’s inventory.

note top basket and inside curl.

These are the best andirons I have had in my inventory in a good while.   Look at the multi-functions.  On the inside of the vertical surface of these andirons you can see a curl that would hold a skewer serving as a rotisserie for a good size piece of meat for dinner.  Now notice the  well formed basket top.   This basket was often used to  hold a warming dish for sauces and whatever. The basket was also convenient  in holding a  light source when a roaring fire was not in best interest ,  i.e.    a  spring day in Alabama.  Nice iron always a cool addition to a collectors fireplace.

Off The Grid…Miss Leslie…Noordermeer’s

I recently discovered a new magazine built around the concept of living off the grid.  Not  a new concept.  I remember an article in the ’80′s in “Mother Earth News” on using a car tire inner tube filled with water placing it on the hood of a car and calling it a hot water heater.   Yes it would heat water but give me my Rudd  grid and all.  My point is off the grid is harder than anything I read in the magazine.  A short definition …

OFF THE GRID – living in a self sufficient manner without relying on public utilities.

My favorite author is Miss Eliza Leslie.  She authored a house book in 1840 and a wonderful cookery in 1850.  Let’s call this time “Pre Grid”. No Grid was life.  Her house book deals with how to make a fire with details on what kind of ashes make the best lye for making candles.  She wrote about how to  bank the fire in order to be certain that it would  last until morning.  NO MATCHES?? This would make building a fire even more complicated.  She writes about cooking on hot coals.  Which reminds us don’t let the fire go out.  You need those coals 24/7 no matter what the weather. Her section on wash day reminds us that you have to make soap before you do laundry.  Let’s not forget about combing the cotton, spinning the yarn, dyeing and weaving . Only then could you begin to sew something that would  need washing.    Get my drift on the subject of  OFF GRID.  Attempting Off Grid is a good thing.  It is always good to be conscious of our carbon foot print.  Lets work toward being less of a society of consumers.  Lets use and reuse.  And avoid buying land fill.  Buy something permanent! Nothing is more expensive than buying temporary.  Take care   KIt Jenkins

An interesting read………

Please enjoy this  article I read in my favorite newsletter “Early American Industries” sept.1949

 

   

 

 

To Preserve Milk

Provide bottles, which must be perfectly clean, sweet and dry; draw the milk from the cow into the bottles, and as they are filled, immediately cork them well up, and fasten the corks with packthread or wire. Then spread a little straw on the bottom of a boiler, on which place bottles with straw between them until the boiler contains a sufficient quantity. Fill it up with cold water; heat the water, and as soon as it begins to boil, draw the fire, and let the whole gradually cool. When quiet cold take out the bottles, and pack them with straw or saw dust in hampers, and stow them in the coolest part of the house. Milk preserved in this manner , although eighteen months in the bottles, will be as sweet as when first milked from the cow.(McKensie’s Receipts Phila 1829)

 

 

My first reaction  was wow.  I then realized this was simple canning.   Still wow but a little less complicated than my first thought.  Keep in mind the date of this receipt was 1829, no Kelvinator, no knobs on the stove, and the cow did not share her milk 365 days.  Our guys and or gals figured it out. I’m proud of them

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

321.6 POUNDS

 

 

I love it but it is the type of thing you only want to move once!

 

The concept of the picturesque Maple Chopping Block is a relatively new one. Until the 1880′s the block of preference was a slice from a Sycamore Tree on three turned legs.  The trusty Sycamore because it was the largest hardwood on the North American continent with a diameter up to 10 feet.  Being a round tree trunk it held up well but could develop a split due to shrinkage and drying.  In the 1880′s a couple of meat packers had the idea of using “End Grain Maple”.  Maple was known  to be extremely hard and end grain pieces bolted together  could withstand pounding.  After about 100 years modern America cultivated hysteria by stating that plastic chopping blocks were healthier.  The plastic industry insinuated that wood chopping blocks would trap bacteria.  This hysteria was promptly reversed by laboratory test that proved wood had an enzyme that killed bacteria.  With in 3 minutes the bacteria was pulled down into the block leaving the surface pathogen free.  A test was perform on plastic  finding  that bacteria multiplied to twice the original count.  The original maple block in 1880 was called “THE SANITARY MEAT BLOCK”.  They had no idea just how right they were. I would like to add that intelligence and common sense should tell you to clean a good chopping block with salt and vinegar and retreating with mineral oil to prevent  build up of what ever (never a good thing). And don’t misunderstand me I am not telling you to run to the land fill with our plastic chopping block.  I feel certain that with proper cleaning they too have  their place in even my kitchen. But given a choice  “I CHOOSE WOOD!!” can’t beat it.

Recently acquired  this scarlet maple chopping block, end grain with original bolts. Nice piece. circa 1890

30"SQUARE,14"DEEP,32"TALL

Making room for Change

If you have come to Noordermeer’s within the past few weeks you were probably greeted by a note hung from the push bar of the front door. The note would have hinted to the fact that you would find me actively working to welcome a change. The change concerns Charles Torgerson, owner of The Brown House formally located on Oxmoor in Edgewood. Charles and I have decided to combine our efforts in order to bring to you the best in real antiques. As most of you know my specialty in the business is usually the unusual i.e. hogsheads, goat harnesses, or hand hewn 12ft river raft ores, all fine antiques by the definition of cool and old. Charles, on the other hand, knows ironstone, transferware as well as fine art. We both take extreme pride in our furniture to a point of competition.
Next time you visit our shop you are sure to see the Change.

Move that darn Chandelier

Often it takes someone else to tell us “HEY THAT’S A REALLY GOOD IDEA. I’LL HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT ONE.”

While on a really short picking trip I was faced with the dilemma of how to transport a large chandelier that was loaded with wonderful lead crystals. We all know glass in quantity is really heavy. Of course with the wrong pressure points you can be face with trying to replace a whole bunch of crystals or worse you can break an arm on the fixture. (Which is synonymous with landfill) . The answer is to find a way to distribute support over as many arms as possible and find a way that crystals hang without binding.

THE SOLUTION

For a smaller fixture Set the chandelier in/on a heavy 5 gal bucket. You want the edge of the rim to support the arms equally and let the crystals hang inside the bucket. In my case the fixture was to big for the bucket so we sawed a heavy trash can off to 12 inches high. Perfect support for the glass monster. Trip went superb!! hope this helps. After I check the wiring and general condition I will blog on cleaning a crystal chandelier. Stay tuned…….. kit