From another list . . . ----- Original Message ----- From: "Peggy Coleman" <graciepmarvel@bellsouth.net> To: <TNSMITH-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Wednesday, March 22, 2006 1:02 PM Subject: [TNSMITH] Interesting >I have to be honest and tell you that I got this from another site I belong >to. It said to share it with a friend. I found it to be intestering and >hope you will too. > > Peggy > > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > LIFE IN THE 1500'S > The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water > temperature isn't just how you like it, think about how things used to be. > Here are some facts about the 1500's > Bride & Groom > Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in > May, and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they were starting to > smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor. Hence > the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married. > Soaking Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of > the house had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other > sons and men, then the women and finally the children. Last of all, the > babies. By then the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in > it. Hence the saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the Bath water.." > > I want to add to the soaking bath: When I was growing up in the 1960's. > My grandmother would fill a number 10 wash tub with water from the garden > hose and add a few kettles of warm water heated on stove. The grandson's > bathed first and then the girls. Being the 7th of 10 to get a bath in the > water, I can tell ya it was very dirty. It bothered me then but now it > makes me shudder at the germs amongst other things. > > Thunderstorms Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no > wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the > cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof. When it > rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall > off the roof. Hence the saying . "It's raining cats and dogs." > Bed > There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house. This posed > a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could mess up > your nice clean bed Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the > top afforded some protection. That's how canopy beds came into existence. > Door > The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt. Hence > the saying, "Dirt poor". The wealthy had slate floors That would get > slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on floor to > help keep their footing. > As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until, when you opened the > door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in > the entranceway. Hence the saying a ...thresh hold.. > In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that > always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to > the pot. They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would > eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold > overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew had food in it > that had been there for quite a while. Hence the rhyme, "Peas porridge > hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old.." > Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quite special. > When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off. It > was a sign of wealth that a man could, bring home the bacon. They would > cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit around and chew > the fat.. > Tomato - Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acid > content caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing lead > poisoning death. This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next > 400 years or so, tomatoes were considered poisonous. > Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottom of > the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or the upper > crust. > Ale House Lead cups were used to drink ale or whiskey. The combination > would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someone > walking along the road would take > them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the > kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and > eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up. Hence the custom of > "holding a wake". > Tanning Bed England is old and small and the local folks started running > out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take > the bones to a bone-house, > and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins > were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had > been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the > corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to > a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the > graveyard shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be, saved by > the bell or was considered a ...dead ringer.. > And that's the truth...Now, whoever said History was boring ! ! > Educate someone..Share these facts with a friend. > > > > > ==== TNSMITH Mailing List ==== > Submit Your Family Pictures, Biographies, Histories > Wills, Fokelore, To The Smith Co Web Project > http://www.rootsweb.com/~tnsmith/ >