Every Day Life in the Massachusetts Bay Colony — John Shaqi
Every Day Life in the Massachusetts Bay ColonyDow, George Francis
History
Every Day Life in the Massachusetts Bay Colony
Dow, George Francis
Massachusetts -- Social life and customs -- To 1775
The earliest frame houses were covered with weather-boarding and
this before long was covered with clapboards. The walls inside were
sheathed up with boards moulded at the edges in an ornamental manner
and the intervening space was filled with clay and chopped straw,
and later with imperfect bricks. This was done for warmth, and was
known as "nogging," following the English practice. When roofs were
not thatched, they were covered with shingles split from the log by
means of a "frow" and afterwards hand-shaved. The window openings
were small and were closed by hinged casements, just as the houses
in England were equipped at that time. Generally, the casement sash
was wood, but sometimes iron was used, as was common in England.
The glass was usually diamond-shaped, set in lead "cames." Emigrants
to Massachusetts were instructed by the Company to bring ample
supplies of glass for windows, but the supply ran short and in the
poorer cottages and wigwams, oiled paper was in common use. This was
an excellent substitute and supplied a surprisingly large amount of
light.
A brickyard was in operation in Salem as early as 1629, and
everywhere along the coast clay was found and made up into bricks.
Chimneys were built upon a huge stone foundation. The brick work
began at the first floor level and the bricks were laid in puddled
clay up to about the ridge line where lime was used as the chimney
top became exposed to the weather.
It has been claimed and denied that bricks used in the construction
of certain old houses were brought from overseas. In general
the claims may be disregarded. It is certain, however, that the
Massachusetts Company at the outset sent over ten thousand bricks,
stowed in the ballast with five chauldrons of sea coals for the use
of the blacksmiths. At the same time came iron and steel, nails, red
lead, salt and sailcloth. Even fourteen hundred weight of plaster of
paris, appears in the list, priced at eighteen shillings per hundred
weight.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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