Where did they all sleep?

My father, Albert William Gardiner, was one of 11 children. In the early days of his life, their father leased land on Scott’s Flat, a flood-prone plain of lush pasture surrounded by the curving Hunter River.

They lived in a house which may (or may not) have been built by Albert’s grandfather. Somehow Grandfather John initially owned his land, then did not own it. As the house was at risk of being swept away by flash-flooding, they had to move out several times when my father was very young.

I struggle to understand what their life was like compared to ours today. They had a good life, but not an easy one. They were not the poorest in the district, but they and many of their neighbours were poor.

Today we are surrounded by so much comfort and convenience that we take for granted. Unlike us, they had no water gushing hot from taps conveniently located in kitchen, bathroom and laundry (in fact, there was neither bathroom nor laundry).

Cold water was carried from a rainwater tank next to the house. This had to be supplemented with water transported some distance from the river. If you wanted hot water, it had to be heated in a pot over the fireplace.

The toilet (dunny) was some distance from the house, built over a smelly cesspit; a haven for snakes and spiders. At night, no-one wanted to visit the dunny.

The kitchen was not replete with packaged, bought food. Fruit and vegetables were largely home-grown and, in season, plentiful. Since they were dairy farmers – milk, cream and eggs were also readily available.

They, or a neighbour slaughtered a sheep or pig periodically, and the family then feasted on baked lamb and chops for a few days, before turning to sausages and cold meats, and perhaps some bacon until the next slaughter. Every slaughter was income foregone in a poor household.

There was no electric light, no convenient power points to power a myriad of electrical appliances we take so much for granted these days. Nor was there a refrigerator, electric kettle, toaster, coffee machine, dishwasher, electric oven, vacuum cleaner, washing machine or dryer.

When darkness fell, candles were used and shadows flickered across the rooms. They had no telephone, radio, TV, video, or internet. Books were expensive and apart from a bible, there were few others in the house.

No-one stayed up late. My father said that, as a child, he read by candlelight. However, no-one in the house ‘burnt the midnight oil’.

Where did they all sleep?

I assume there was one bedroom for father and mother and one for the three girls. Maybe there was another room for the younger boys but there were seven boys altogether (though one died shortly after birth and another aged 13).

The older boys were doing adult jobs from age 15 and the eldest probably no longer lived at home when the youngest was born, so say there were three young boys still living at home, with the older boys likely sleeping on the verandah through summer heat, mosquitos, then winter frost and rain.

And how many beds for the children? Certainly not one per child. Children sharing a bed was common, so I imagine two little ones in a narrow single bed and one older brother or sister in the same room in their own bed.

It’s just before dawn and the year is 1905. My father is 12 years old. His father, John, is already up and outside. Mother Christina is stoking the fire and calling the older children out of bed.

In no time they are all at the dairy, each assigned to their tasks. An hour’s solid work to milk the cows, separate the milk and cream, clean up the dairy, and cart the milk to the front gate.

Once finished, the children returned into the house, washed and ate breakfast before setting off in a straggly pack to walk the kilometre or so to school.

In the afternoon there was another round of milking as well as other tasks. Albert’s job was to carry water from the creek in a trolley pulled by their horse.

Other boys (younger and older) were tending to the livestock, helping to plough, sow and water the vegetable garden, while the girls washed clothes and linen, sewed, house-cleaned, looked after the little ones, darned socks, separated milk, made butter, and helped prepare dinner.

And what of a nice hot shower? Sorry, not possible. A dip in the river, maybe, and a thorough wash with cold water in a bowl and some smelly soap.

This was just a normal day for them. Imagine being time-transported back to that era and required to live that lifestyle instead of the one today!

How and where did your family grow up? I would love to hear your story. Leave a comment on this blog!