It’s been a busy day on the Flo in the City front. Flo in the City is my novel in progress about a young woman coming of age in the exciting 1908-1913 era based on the letters of http://www.tighsolas.ca/.
I just finished downloading and scanning a book on domestic science written in 1908 and revised in 1912, perfect for my purposes.
This entire domestic science thing is central to my story, as Flora will be exploring career possibilities but will outright reject Domestic Science as a career. Despite the fact her mother was a crack housekeeper, with all the skills,which she learned at home in the 1860′s.
She is about to go to Newton Center and there she will meet nurses who will tell her a bit about that profession. I also read an old book (or scanned) on nursing in 1910. The course for nurses overlapped a great deal with the course for domestic science… lots of sanitation and nutrition.
Most of this book is devoted to cooking and cooking science. There’s just so much you can write about the importance of dusting (one paragraph) and washing dishes (two paragraphs).
Of course, housework, even today, is much the same. Cooking too. No pickling though. No canning. The fridge still needs to be cleaned but not once a day. (Once a year?)
Food probably tasted much better back then because it was slow cooked.
Anyway, this book on domestic science has many recipes (digitally scanned so amounts came out screwy). All the typical anglo stuff many Canadians ate until the 70′s. A club sandwich, my husband’s favorite, is called a Club House Sandwich.
I also found some info on the Isle of Lewis Scots and their cooking traditions and a cookbook from 1900 written by the Quebec Presbyterians. So, I’m good to go.
1. FIRE-BOX, to contain fuel.
2. GRATE, which forms the floor of the fire-box.
3. DAMPERS, To circulate draft.
(d) Chimney to direct current of hot air.
4. ASH-PAN, to receive ashes, cinders, and clinkers.
5. STOVE-PIPE, to carry off smoke (unburned carbon) and gaseous products combustion.
6. OVEN, FOR FOOD.
HOW TO BUILD A FIRE (this is for a combination coal/wood stove. The Nicholsons had a wood stove.
LAYING THE FISE
1. Free the grate from ashes. Turn the grate back into place. Remove the covers.
2. Cover the grate with twisted pieces of paper.
3. On these lay sticks of soft wood cross-wise.
4. Put two shovelfuls of coal on top of the wood.
5. Cover the top of the range, open all the dampers except the oven and tUe che
damper.
STARTING THE FIRE
6. Light the fire by applying a lighted match under the grate to the paper or shaving
(If the stove is to be blackened, do it now.) ^
7. When the wood is all ablaze, add coal until the fire-box is level full. The fire-bd
should never be kept more than three-fourths full. I
8. When the blue flame disappears, half close the creative damper. When the coal J
burning well, close the creative damper almost entirely, and half close the chimney dampe
HOW TO MANAGE A FIRE
For a steady hot fire, rake out ashes with a poker. Fill the fire-box three-fourths fu^
Open the lower front creative damper and chimney dampers. Close oven and check damped
When the lower part of the coal is red, and the top still black, close the dampers.
Always have black coals on top.
To heat the oven, *open the oven damper and half close the chimney damper.
To check the fire slightly, half open the slide in the check damper.
To check decidedly, open the check damper.
To keep a fire over night, fill the fire-box with coal, close oven, lower front and ehimnej
dampers, and open the check damper half way.
•The oven damper, when properly turned, forces the heated air around the oven, before i
escapes through the chimney.
The dampers differ slightly in different ranges, but the purpose of each is the same.
NOTES:
