Old Barn, Old Tools ~ Farming in By-Gone Days

Sometimes looking into the more recent past gives a better glimpse of by-gone days. Join me on a brief tour of my family's old barn and a few old-time tools that were shaped from the past.

Barns were often built into hillsides so that the upper story could be at ground level, and equipment could be pulled right up to the doors and unloaded directly into the hayloft. Animals were housed in the cooler basement of the barn.

And now the tools...

In the video, I mistakenly referred to the piece at the end--our paper towel holder--as used in haying, but what I should have said was that it was for hauling ice blocks. Not really sure what I was thinking there.

I'm off to work on my bird feeder / bird bath project. Thanks for joining me on this brief tour.

For the summer months, I'm offering two of my series starters for 99¢ each. Both are full-length historical romances. The Green Veil is the first in the Empire in Pine series, set in 1800s Wisconsin, and The Deepest Sigh is book one in the Echoes of the Heart WWI and post war, early '20s series. I hope you'll give one or both a try during these languid, summer days!

Naomi Musch

https://naomimusch.com/

Happy Colonial New Year! Wait... What?

It might be a good excuse to rejuvenate my New Year's resolutions and evaluate how I'm doing with my "Word for the Year", but why not take advantage of a little history to do just that?

Did you know that, back in the day when the Colonies were young, it wasn't until 1752

that everyone got on board with the Gregorian Calendar and January First began each new year? For centuries, the New Year belonged to March 25th due to the fact that everyone followed the Julian calendar, which emphasized March 25th as the date of Jesus' conception. However, not only is that questionable (since theologians suggest Jesus was likely born in October), but the whole equinox thing was kind of a mess. In fact, to straighten things out, they had to lose eleven days in September—POOF!—just to get the calendar properly aligned.

Here's the thing, most of the world switched over to our "modern" Gregorian calendar in the 1500s, but it was another two centuries before the British joined the New Year party, because--you know England--they've always been sort of starchy about their traditions. Yet they eventually had to face it. The messed-up calendars affected trade and banking and even George Washington's birthday. (More on that in a sec.) 

So in 1752 Parliament passed the Calendar Act of 1750, and January 1st became the official New Year beginning in 1752.

What I find funny isn't that they changed the date so much as what the new year meant. It wasn't a time to celebrate Baby New Year coming in with a smooch under the mistletoe or tossing confetti. It was a time to collect the rents, pay the tax man, and handle annual paychecks. (Well, yeah for that last one anyway.) 

They did have a few fun traditions—some mumming and wassailing and visiting friends. Oh—and about George Washington... He changed his birthday from February 11th under the old Julian calendar to February 22 under the new one. I'm not sure what the people did who were born during that eleven-day elimination period in September. Maybe the summer loving ones grabbed a date closer to August and the harvest lovers aimed for October. I know which way I'd have gone.

again.

Naomi Musch 

https://naomimusch.com/

Before you go, mark your Gregorian calendars for Monday-Friday, Feb. 10-14 to get The Deepest Sigh (Echoes of the Heart, Book One) for FREE! Books Two and Three will also be on sale, but for FIVE DAYS ONLY!  

On Sale February 10-14, 2020