Remembering Grandma's Stories of a Small Kansas Farm

Reader Contribution by The Mother Earth News Editors
article image

This story is from Debbie Mildfelt, submitted as part of our Wisdom From Our Elders collection of self-sufficient tales from yesteryear.

My grandmother, Charlotte (Riley Mildfelt Thornburg) kept me entertained with tons of stories from her childhood. Her grandparents homesteaded land in Clay County, Kansas (coming from England). They were Mr & Mrs Daniel Waterman. Their daughter, Ethyl Waterman, married Winfield Scott Riley and they built a home near the Waterman homestead. The home never had any paint.

This home was a two-story home without electricity, gas or running water. The home was heated with wood. Food was cooked on a wood cook stove. They had a root cellar under the home and a cistern under the kitchen floor that collected rain water from the roof. Water from the cistern was pumped with a hand pump. Baths were taken in a tub in the kitchen and water was not dumped after each person (ewww). Dishes were first washed in lukewarm water, then set in the sink and boiling water was used for the second rinse. Perishables were preserved in a crock in lard and stored in the crawl space of the attic. Grandma Ethyl Waterman baked her own bread, and if food ran out at meal time, someone would go upstairs and get lard to be melted for the family to dip their bread into.

Comments (0) Join others in the discussion!
    Online Store Logo
    Need Help? Call 1-800-234-3368