For reservations to experience “nkwiluntàmën: I long for it; I am lonesome for it (such as the sound of a drum)” by Indigenous artist Nathan Young, please go to https://nkwiluntamen.com/
Our fellow museum bloggers over at Winterthur just posted a great article on the popular Posset Pot, a commonly-shared drinking vessel which had its own unique beverage concoction.
A couple years ago, one of our interns posted a Collections Featurette on one of the posset pots in the Manor House, so I was excited to see more examples from the Winterthur collection, which is located just outside Wilmington, Delaware. Some look very similar to ours, but some feature amazingly detailed and ornate decorations on the sides and lid. They also posted a recipe for the posset, which might be worth a try! Visit their blog at the link below to learn more about this fashionable 17th-century tradition:
This summer a young friend attended summer camp at Pennsbury Manor, and during the course of the week she formed some opinions about my job as the Museum Educator. She told me that I have the coolest job in the world because I get to “take care of the animals, give tours, and drive the golf cart.” Well, maybe my job isn’t quite as simple as that, but it is pretty cool!
Without question, my favorite part of the job is talking with visitors. I get to learn where they are from and what brought them to Pennsbury Manor, hear their questions and discussing answers – because history is rarely made of pure facts. Most of all, I love that moment (especially transparent in children) when an idea catches hold and true learning takes place.
Every day, all sorts of people (including you!) visit our blog. I often feel like I am missing out because I can’t have the same conversations with you as I do with the people who visit the physical site. But lately we’ve been having some great discussions with our readers and volunteers. We’d like to encourage everyone to feel they can participate, with questions, comments, and experiences of your own!
Below each blog article, there is a comment section for anybody to post their responses. If you are shy (like me) and don’t wish to post a public response, please email us at willpenn17@aol.com. We’d love to know what your interests are, and what you would like to hear more about! I’d like to know what questions you have about current or previous posts. Finally, I’d like to hear about YOU. Where are you from? How did you come to love history? What experience at a historic site or museum truly moved you?
Go ahead, make my day and shoot me an email or comment. I look forward to hearing from all of you!
Last month our Open-Hearth Cooks demonstrated the cooking traditions of the Netherlands, previewed in an article we posted about Dutch foodways.
Now we turn our attention to another highly influential culture, one that has been closely intertwined with the English for centuries: France!
A French maid peeling potatoes in the kitchen. "The Kitchen Maid," Jean-Baptiste-Simeon Chardin, 1738
For many years England and France shared many of the same trends and traditions, from food to fashion. This began to change around the mid-17th Century. Many in England began looking to the French as the trendsetter of the age, mostly for the upper class. Even as their countries waged war against each other, the English were often reluctant to give up French trends in the name of patriotism!
A typical kitchen filled with all varieties of meats, which were the most popular feature at any table. "Kitchen Scene," David Teniers the Younger, 1644
French cuisine began to move away from the heavily spiced and sweetened meals they had long enjoyed, and began returning to a focus on the more natural flavors of produce and meats. All varieties of salads and sauces appeared during this time. Salads featured the fresh vegetables and flowers of the season, and were often dressed with toppings including various meats, eggs, and oil. Check out Colonial Williamsburg’s recipe for a “salmagundy!”
Notice how the table is filled with all sorts of dishes, instead of places being set for different courses. Hosts aimed to provide a variety of dishes to please her guests, so there would always be something to their taste. "Wedding Dinner," Jacob Gerritsz van Hasselt, 1636
The new trend in French cooking also spurred changes in table etiquette. Meals began to be served in courses, rather than platters being laid out on the banquet tables for immediate consumption. The use of utensils also became more common place, along with the use of more restrained table manners. Though the French remained a small minority in colonial Pennsylvania, their influence on English culture translated into an influence on the population of William Penn’s colony.
Following our 17th-century Fashion Show last spring, I posted an article highlighting the Laborers and their clothing – next up are the Servants & Tradespeople!
These men and women did not have to break their backs in the fields or peddling wares on the streets, but they still lived a humble life. Perhaps they performed a trade, like turning table legs in a Joyner’s Shop, or worked as a housemaid on a large estate like Pennsbury Manor. Perhaps after saving their wages, they would have enough to purchase a small farm or open their own shop. They had enough to live on, but their modest clothing reflected their lower station in society.
Pennsbury volunteers Valerie and Joseph Long are pictured here modeling appropriate ensembles. Valerie is wearing the latest in 17th-century gowns: the Mantua (featured in a previous post). Her gown is a modest cut and color, and the fine wool fabric would last a long time. Her serviceable coif may not have been the latest style in caps, but it kept the hair off her face while she worked.
Just like his wife, Joe’s simple linen waistcoat and justacorps (also featured previously) was fashionable yet serviceable. Linen is a hard-wearing fabric that would last, which is important when every piece of clothing you buy is an investment. Tradesmen like Joe would dress informally when working in their workshops – shops were for manufacturing, not selling; that would happen at a store or at least a separate room at the front of the building. But when walking through town, he would still want to look like a man of business and stature.
Notice this housemaid's appearance - her clothing is made of high-quality fabrics but in a simple style, and she obviously keeps them clean and in good repair. John Roley, "Bridget Holmes, a Nonagenarian Housemaid," 1686
A person’s outward image was a reflection of their status in society and served as a walking advertisement to others on how to treat you. Earlier in the 17th century, English law actually restricted what people could wear based on their social class. But as the gentry class increasingly sold their clothes to secondhand shops in order to fund their new, more fashionable wardrobes, the lower classes began to buy those high-quality garments. In wearing these gently-used pieces, just a fraction of the price for new clothes, they started looking just as nice as their employers. The gentry were NOT HAPPY and wrote in their letters and journals how frustrating it was when the maid looked just like the mistress!
Marcellus Laroon, "Old chairs to mend," published late 17th-century.
Written by Hannah Howard, Volunteer Coordinator & Costumier
**You might be wondering why our models don’t have any shoes on in these pictures? That’s because we haven’t been able to afford any. We are fundraising to purchase reproduction shoes, since a costumed interpreter in sneakers ruins the whole atmosphere… To help out, you can visit our official website www.pennsburymanor.org and click the “Donate Now” button at the bottom.**
“Education is the stamp Parents give their Children”
– William Pen
When we think of standards in education today, it is safe to say it has come a long way since our colonial forbearers. We talked last month about the realities of colonial childhood, particularly for Quakers. Because of their responsibilites to their family, general education in the 17th century was erratic.
Without buildings dedicated for teaching, communities had to organize financing for the construction of school houses, funding teachers’ salaries, and getting parents to agree to let their children spend the day in a schoolroom instead of helping at home. This last condition was sometimes impossible for poorer families, who needed their children’s help to survive.
Gerard Terborch, "The Reading Lesson," mid-late 17th century
As a result, families often chose to become their own center of education. So if a child was to learn to read, write, or calculate, someone in the family had to teach them. This also meant time away from chores, but these skills would be necessary if a son (especially the one to receive the family inheritance) were to manage the family’s business and participate in public affairs.
One of the few existing hornbooks today. This particular one is owned by a family in Long Island.
The common way for the children to learn to read and spell was through the use of a hornbook. Named literally for the materials that made it, a hornbook was a thin piece of wood backing topped by a piece of printed, then covered with a layer of horn. The horn was thin enough to let the paper be seen for reading, and all was held together by strips of metal around the edges. The book had a small handle with a hole for string so the book could be carried, either around the neck or over the shoulder. The printed page would include an alphabet with large and small letters, along with simple syllables and the Lord’s Prayer. The backs of the books were often decorated with a design. Used nearly every day, they were often used until worn out, meaning few 17th-century hornbooks exist today.
Quakers used the hornbook and some of the other practices of traditional 17th-century education; however, the main ideas behind their educational practices were based in their religious beliefs. They tried to control the children’s environment, preserving their faith and promoting certain behaviors including dress, speech, and silence. This led Quakers to believe that education was a foundational tool for spreading their practices, and opened their own institutions separate from the Protestant or Angelican schools.
A young man learns the skills of being a Joyner, a 17th-century woodworker.
Because of their isolation and irregular practices, Quaker education did not prepare children (mainly boys) for college. Classic topics (Latin and Greek) were often not included in their education. Moreover, Quakers were also “free in their criticisms of traditional schools.” Even Penn noted the issues with English schools, saying “We are in Pain to make them Scholars, but not Men! To talk, rather than know.” Nonetheless, both Penn and other Friends wanted “classical learning with the study of useful knowledge”. This practical knowledge meant being able to” read, write, and cipher” while gaining “a fuller appreciation of the Creator”. William Penn also made his sentiments on education known through letters to his wife, which can be viewed in a previous post entitled, Stay in School.
Classical and practical education also came in the form of apprenticeships. Apprenticeships were seen as privileges that provided an education which ensured a child’s livelihood later on. On the other hand, becoming an apprentice could be a traumatic experience, seeing as many children (again, boys) would start young (usually around 12 years old) and leave their families to live with their master. This strict frame for growing up was backed by the Proverb 22:6, a popular verse amongst Friends: “Train up a Child in the way he should go, and when he is Old he will not depart from it.”
Realistically though, we know better than to think all children listen to their parents! For Penn this proved true and it’s safe to say that his children didn’t quite follow his religious and education views through and through.
Mary Barbagallo, Intern
Sources:
Child Life in Colonial Days, Alice Morse Earle,Corner House Publishers, 1989, Williamstown, MA.
Everyday Life in Early America, David Freeman Hawke, Harper and Row, Publishers, Inc. 1988, New York, NY.
The Quaker Family in Colonial America, J. William Frost, St. Martin’s Press, Inc. 1973, New York, NY.
When many people think of the harvest, they think of autumn. But another important time for gathering crops, not to be forgotten, takes place in the heat of the summer!
In an age where food wasn’t from the local supermarket, but from the land people lived on, it was important to use the soil to the best of its ability. With ground-breaking techniques (no pun intended!) of the time, farmers were able to work the land to provide maximum yield from the beginnings of spring, to the eve’s of winter.
The Corn Harvest (August), Pieter Bruegel the Elder, 1565
One important crop of colonial Pennsylvania was wheat. Of three varieties grown, winter and summer wheat were able to be harvested around the month of June, if weather had been good. Governor Penn even reports “they may sow eight acres; half with summer wheat and half with oats,” referring to successful agriculture production in his colony. Other summer crops include rye, hemp, barley, oats and flax.
In smaller kitchen gardens, more customized techniques could be applied to each plant being grown. Here at Pennsbury Manor we have a reconstruction of William Penn’s own kitchen garden. It was intended for raising vegetables, herbs, and anything else that could be found useful in the estates kitchen. Structures like “hot beds” were created to begin the germination of seeds in late winter. This wooden framework was filled with manure, and topped with a layer of soil; this bed could become as hot as 100°F in the coldest of winter. Once mature enough, they can be moved to garden beds.
A view of the cold frames and hotbed at Pennsbury Manor.
Similar to the hot bed, the cold frame was a structure used to protect fragile herbs. This structure was enclosed with spare glass, matting or canvas. One would also find raised beds. This state of the art invention allowed planters to control the fertility of their soil and manage it accordingly.
With innovations such as these, the kitchen garden would be able to adapt to the seasons and continuously provide for the estate. In a time like Penn’s, it was always important to put time to its best use, even in the heat of the summer!
“One drop of ink makes thousands, perhaps millions think…” – Lord Byron
Although from different centuries, Lord Byron and William Penn shared a common tie: the fervent use of the quill pen and inkwell. As kids and adults prepare for another school year to begin, it’s interesting to look back on the technology of our ancestors.
No BIC ballpoint to be had at the time, the quill was the predecessor of modern day pens and became the universal tool for placing one’s thoughts to paper! Resultantly, in the 17th Century, the quill and ink maintained a strong hold, especially among the educated. As the primary resource for composition, the quill (so named after the Latin word “penna”, meaning feather) and ink were staples not only in Europe, but the colonies too.
"Man Writing a Letter" by Gabriel Metsu, 1662-65
As governor, an academic and religious leader, William Penn was truly a man of writing. Composing books, letters, official documents and more, his quill was so much a part of him that the Lenape referred to Penn as Brother Odus (“odus” being the Lenape word for feather). Nevertheless, the expectations for a quality quill pen were not as light as the feathers they were made of.
There is a fair bit of literature dedicated to documenting specifications for making, maintaining, and using quill pens. For making quill pens, it is noted that the flight feathers from geese made for the best pens and, depending upon which hand you wrote with, this could dictate your preference for which side the feather was taken from (left or right wing). Furthermore, the preparation and formation of the quills was truly treated as an art form. Letting the quills thoroughly harden, the outer layer of skin could be removed through a process known as “dutching”, the baking of the quill in hot sand. They would then be cleaned and cut. The process of forming the nib of the quill was also precise. You had to ensure you had a sharp penknife, patience, and good technique. The development of the shaft along with the carving of the tip by the quill maker resulted in no two quills being alike. For maintain a quill it was recommended that you “keep your pen-nib always wet. Keep tip in water. Don’t let ink residue dry on it – it clogs the nub.” As for using the quill, it is recommended to use a light touch and a slanted hand, although some require more pressure.
In similarity to the creation of quills, the manufacturing of ink varied as well. No two were perfectly alike, as there was usually a variation in ingredients and process. Produced from varied plant, animal, and mineral extracts; a common recipe (often produced by farmers as an additional source of income) consisted of oak galls (growths on oak leaves caused by insects), copperas (a naturally occurring, greenish, crystalline, hydrated ferrous sulfate, used in manufacturing of fertilizers and inks and water purification), and water. High in tannin and often also used for dying fabrics and tanning the ink was poisonous, but very permanent. As a result, it held up well over the years and has allowed us to examine documents and make numerous discoveries from writings made centuries ago. These discoveries include accounts of William Penn’s purchases of ink, amongst various other goods; it allows us to examine the development of handwriting and penmanship over time, as well as allowing us to examine ever changing grammar. So, the next time you pick up your quill and inkwell (or maybe just your ballpoint pen), think of the immense “mark” you can make!
By Mary Barbagallo, Intern
Further Reading:
Nickell, Joe. Pen, Ink & Evidence: A Study of Writing and Writing Materials for the Penman, Collector, and Document Detective. Lexington,KY, U.P. of Kentucky, 1990
BBC Video Series – Tales from the Green Valley
A Secretary Hand ABC Book by Alf Ison
Richard F. Gray, quill maker – Historic America Quill & Document Co.
Here at Pennsbury Manor we just finished our annual Colonial Summer Camp, and boy did they have fun!
This summer camp features a number of activities that were common to the colonial period and gave our campers a feel of just what is was really like to live nearly 300 years ago. At the end of the week, the campers get to give their friends and family guided tours dressed in period clothing. In conjunction with the camp it only seems appropriate to elaborate on children’s lives. Expectations and philosophies on how to raise a colonial child from our views today.
A young boy gets water from the cistern to fill the kettles for doing laundry.
Child rearing throughout the 17th Century rooted itself in rather different soil than it does today. Growing up in 17th Century England or Colonial America, it sure wasn’t all fun and games. This is the case unless of course you were born into an elite family and then perhaps the rules could change, however; most were not this privileged.
Children in colonial families were numerous and averaged between seven to ten in each household. The number of children at home varied, however, for a variety of reasons. The most common of these being (sadly) early death; roughly half of the off-spring would not reach maturity. They were also apprenticed out, or having started a family of their own. For William Penn, the first and last of these were the cause of his small family in home, particularly while in Pennsylvania. Nevertheless, before the children left the house, they were instilled with fundamental morals and an understanding of one’s actions. “Colonial children were initiated into the adult world early, but not in a hasty or harsh manner.” When a Quaker child reached the age of reason, they were thought to understand that they were sinners and capable of sinning. This age was typically between 4 and 8, usually being marked by the start of school; for boys, this was also the age where they stopped wearing petticoats. Parents were advised to “govern, counsel, and correct as soon as they could understand what they were being corrected for and knew what they should say and do.” This varied with the belief of other religions, such as Catholicism, which deems the child born with original sin and not innocent until it was removed with the sacrament of Baptism. Furthermore, the Quaker hand in the raising of children was sufficiently stricter than in other religions. Parents were conscientious to lead by example, especially to be “…careful of actions in the presence of children, for they have very quick eyes and ears.”
A colonial mother and her children on the estate.
What may seem harsh about some of these practices is in reality a matter of practicality and necessity. All members of the family had their own role to play. Their contribution preserved the family’s welfare. The entire family would work together, educate each other, and keep food on the table. Young children were given chores to suit their strength and ability, not just out of need and to teach discipline, but to keep them from underfoot. Nonetheless, it is also fair to note that the trust placed in young children early on would likely horrify modern parents. For example, colonial parents left unsupervised 8 year olds with guns, carrying large pals to retrieve water from rivers/wells, and facing wild animals to defend a heard of sheep.
Still, we must remember that these factors do not lessen the affection colonial parents had for their children. Surely the most important lessons to be learned were to be “loved but not pampered” and to be shown “tenderness but not softness”. We have enough remnants of their world to know of the“great love” and “nurtur[ing]” nature of parents, and the surprise toy or whistle from a father when he returned from town. Resultantly, not only did 17th century children learn practical lessons, but so too did they learn of love and compassion in these small, thoughtful gestures.
Written by Mary Barbagallo, Intern
Sources/Further Reading:
Everyday Life in Early America, David Freeman Hawke, Harper and Row, Publishers, Inc. 1988, New York, NY.
The Quaker Family in Colonial America, J. William Frost, St. Martin’s Press, Inc. 1973, New York, NY.
Just as in the time of William Penn, the work was never done, and so too do we find our fourth post in regards to Dairying!
Our first posts covered the business of being a milk-maid, the history of dairying and cheese-making. Now let’s take a look at the importance of cream and butter, which held an important place at the table long before cheese was acceptable to anyone but “common folk.”
In these aristocratic households, their status and wealth meant their butter was made purely of cream. In addition, cream was used in pasties, dressings for meat, and custards.
The butter itself took on a purpose all its own in a number of different forms. Initially, butter was acceptable for children and the old, but not middle-aged gentlemen of higher stature like William Penn. Even the most basic thoughts for butter (such as being spread on bread) were something that came from Flemish practices, who were influenced by the Dutch on this matter. Eventually it became common practice for the English toward the late 16th to early 17th century.
Still Life with Glass, Cheese, Butter and Cake, Floris Gerritsz. van Schooten, mid-17th century
The trend eventually went away from butter as a hard spread; as butter began to be melted and poured over vegetables, it became more prominent at the dinner table. Melted butter was also used for sauces on fish, meat, and other main dish delicacies. Moreover, it became an important element of preserving food, which was always important in regards to ensuring enough sustenance for the winter months. “Butter was used lavishly to seal the cooked food from contact with the air, and in order to ensure that no cracks appeared in the sealing, many pounds of butter were used in large households”. “The improved arts of preserving food also involved another use for butter, by filling pies after they had been cooked with melted butter to make an airtight seal, and filling jars and pots of cooked meat and fish in the same way. Thus they kept for days or weeks”.
Landscape with Cows, Anthonie van Borssom, 1649
Furthermore, just as cheese took hold and started to become an area specialty, so too did butter. It began to be made with less-expensive dairy products (whey, milk, town milk, etc), which allowed it’s accessibility to all classes. The variations in butter also came as a result the cows’ diets, which would affect the taste based on what was eaten. Fresh grass from the pasture was preferred for the best quality milk to turn to butter (just as it was with the milk to be used for cheese) yet, this was not always the case due to the large portion of cattle eating clover as well. Resultantly, this variation created noticeable differences and would often affect the flavoring and coloring of butter.
The dairy industry boomed and the growth of butter lead to its export from England from the 1630’s onward. The height of which was between 1638 and 1675. Does that mean we could perhaps call it… the bread and butter of the English economy? Oh c’mon, that’s funny!
Written by Mary Barbagallo, Intern
Further Reading:
Food in Early Modern England – Phases, Fads, Fashions 1500-1760, Joan Thirsk, Continuum Books, 2007, New York, NY
As the summer heat drags on, we turn our focus to an important crop we’ve been growing in the Kitchen Garden: flax. This reed-like plant has been used for thousands of years to create a light-weight, durable fabric called linen, which was a staple textile for common folk and aristocrats alike.
Flax plants starting to grow in the hot beds at Pennsbury, 2011
Linen production in the Delaware River Valley began primarily in Swedish settlements as farmers began cultivating flax. By the time William Penn held the proprietorship of the colony, local leaders were urging settlers to increase growth of this fiber crop.
The harvest of the flax begins in late July. Farmers would pull the crop from the ground and tie them into small bundles in which they would be laid out to dry for several days. Next step would be to pull the fibers apart with a tool referred to as a “ripple comb.” During this stage, the seeds would be removed and could either be used for planting or sent to an oil mill for pressing.
Flax-breaker
Following this, the separated fibers would be wetted and laid out to soften. After separating them again, they would begin a process known as “hackling” or “hatchling.” Workers would draw fibers through a board with fixed steel teeth, providing fibers for grades of linen varying from rough working clothes to finer table clothes and sheets.
Combs for "hackling" the linen fibers
Flax was not initially a popular crop because of its need for fertile soil and the time-consuming, strenuous process of harvesting. However, flax became more profitable up into the mid-1700s as a major export of the region. Soon, with the rise of cotton in the 1800’s, linen production would nearly cease to exist.
Bolts of modern linen from Pennsbury's clothing program
On an estate such as Pennsbury Manor, linens of all kinds would be common, from the roughest weave to the finest bleached linen. Visitors can see evidence of it’s colonial role all around, from the tools of flax harvest found in the kitchen house to the linen press kept in Penn’s Great Hall to store his expensive investment. Linen was one of the key fabics of its time, and continues its popularity today!
Our fellow museum bloggers over at Winterthur just posted a great article on the popular Posset Pot, a commonly-shared drinking vessel which had its own unique beverage concoction.
In similarity to the creation of quills, the manufacturing of ink varied as well. No two were perfectly alike, as there was usually a variation in ingredients and process. Produced from varied plant, animal, and mineral extracts; a common recipe (often produced by farmers as an additional source of income) consisted of oak galls (growths on oak leaves caused by insects), copperas (a naturally occurring, greenish, crystalline, hydrated ferrous sulfate, used in manufacturing of fertilizers and inks and water purification), and water. High in tannin and often also used for dying fabrics and tanning the ink was poisonous, but very permanent. As a result, it held up well over the years and has allowed us to examine documents and make numerous discoveries from writings made centuries ago. These discoveries include accounts of William Penn’s purchases of ink, amongst various other goods; it allows us to examine the development of handwriting and penmanship over time, as well as allowing us to examine ever changing grammar. So, the next time you pick up your quill and inkwell (or maybe just your ballpoint pen), think of the immense “mark” you can make! 
