Learning about life in 1800s

The historic display has
become an annual event.

By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.

VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF

GIRARD — Fourth-grade pupils set aside the iPods, video games and computers for a short but informative visit to life in the 19th century.

Members of the Girard Historical Society donned 19th-century period clothing and set up various stations throughout the historic Barnhisel House on U.S. Route 422, all geared toward teaching history.

Pupils from Girard Intermediate School visited one station designed to show how clothes washing and care would have been performed if the students had been alive in the 1800s.

The historian got a myriad of answers — including “from butter” — when asking how she would get soap for washing. There was silence when the ingredients animal fat and lye for soap making were explained.

Chaylee Bentley was one of several pupils who accepted the challenge of using a scrub board to hand-wash a shirt. The fourth-grader said she is familiar with scrub boards and enjoyed the experience but would not want to do it on a daily basis.

“It was fun,” she said. “My grandma, she buys a lot of washing boards. She doesn’t use them; she just likes to buy them.”

At another learning station, Colette Chuey, historical society vice president, standing alongside an antique wood burning coal stove, explained the daily chores each of the pupils would likely have had in the 1800s. Fetching wood and water for the stove as well as helping with the canning of vegetables would have been part of the regular routine, she said.

Most pupils were familiar with the concept of canning vegetables, but when asked where ice to keep the food cold would be found, one young girl quickly answered, “the freezer.” Cutting ice from the nearby lake and storing it in an ice house was an intriguing and foreign concept to the kids.

Hygiene practices

Another intriguing point for many was the explanation of hygiene practices in the 19th century. Situated in an upstairs bedroom of the house was a wash basin that a historian explained was used to bathe, but not on a daily basis. She explained that bathing might have been weekly or less and the dirty water emptied into a slop jar.

Other learning stations included explanations about the Civil War and those from Ohio who fought in the war, the work of blacksmiths and examples of how clothes were made.

Chuey said the historical society has been putting on this presentation for four years. She said kids enjoy learning the various bits of historic information.

“This is a living history, a part of their Ohio history. We want them to see how people lived back then,” she said.

Wendy DiBernardi, fourth-grade teacher at Girard Intermediate, said the visit to the Barnhisel House and various stations set up inside facilitates classroom learning.

“They do this every year for our fourth-graders, and it is so wonderful because we are studying Ohio history, and this helps the kids identify,” she said. “They do a wonderful job.”

jgoodwin@vindy.com