Household Items
Overview
The first settlers used an assortment of household items to do daily tasks and chores in the house and the kitchen. Some household chores include cooking, washing laundry, making candles, making soap, and tending the fireplace.
PHOTO CREDIT: WESTERN DEVELOPMENT MUSEUM
This photo shows many household items on display in a settler’s home in 1908.
Some of the kitchen hand tools in this photo are a rolling pin, eggbeater, coffee grinder, lantern, Dutch oven, cup, and a water jug.
Household Items
Kitchen Dishes
Kitchen dishes including buckets, bowls, dishes, cups, and cutlery were made of wood or tin.
Kitchen dishes are set on a table and ready for this family’s next meal.
Meat Grinder
Rolling Pin
A rolling pin is a kitchen utensil used to roll out dough. It is a hard, smooth cylinder of wood or marble with handles on each end.
Coffee Grinder
A coffee grinder is a tool that is used to grind coffee beans so that it can be made into coffee.
Butter Mold
A butter mold is a hollow container where butter is poured into so it when it hardens, it takes the shape of the mold.
Candle Mold
A candle mold is a hollow container where liquid wax is poured into so when the wax hardens, it takes the shape of the mold.
Fireplace Tools
Washboard
A washboard is a board with a ridged surface of glass, metal, or another hard surface. This board is used for rubbing soil and stains out of clothing.
Cast Iron Cookware
Cast iron cookware is made from iron. The cookware is made by melting iron and pouring it into molds so when it hardens, it takes the shape of the mold. Cast iron cookware is heavy-duty and can be used on stoves or in the fireplace to cook food.
Egg Beater
An egg beater is a kitchen utensil that is used for beating liquid foods such as cream or eggs.
Dutch Oven
A Dutch oven is a heavy iron or enamel container used for baking or cooking roasts, stews, and other meals.
Butter Churn
A butter churn is a container in which cream or milk is beaten or shaken to form butter.
Iron
An iron is a heavy appliance with a flat surface that is heated and used to press wrinkles out of cloth.
Lantern
A lantern is a container that is made of a material where light can shine through and be protected from blowing out. Lanterns make it easier for people to see inside and outside during the dark.
Washtub
A washtub is a large tub used for soaking, washing, and rinsing clothes.