 | Agriculture |  |
Water was hauled from nearby streams to wash all clothes by hand with homemade soap. Filling a large pot with water, the women would heat it over a fire. When the water was boiling, lye soap would be added along with the dirty clothing. This was then stirred, by hand, like the motion of a washing machine. The clothes were wrung out and hung to dry.
It was very important for a boy to have a hat with a wide brim and a girl to wear a bonnet to protect their eyes. There were no sunglasses then and the pioneers spent many hours in the hot and bright sun. Boys wore suspenders and girls wore aprons and pantalets. None of the clothing had zippers since they had not yet been invented. By 1839, there were 11 dry goods merchants in Sidney whereby residents could purchase or barter for material and/or sewing items.'Pioneer' segment written in October, 1997 by Sherrie Casad-Lodge |
Boys wore shirts and pants made of cotton or buckskin, which is leather made from the skin of a deer. It is soft and strong, and yellow or gray in color. Girls wore skirts or dresses, usually made of brightly colored cotton called calico or gingham. It had stripes, checks or flowers in different colors. 
FAQs
Who were the first settlers in Shelby County Alabama? ›
Most of the first settlers came from South Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky and returned to this region after the victorious Battle of Horseshoe Bend in 1814. They brought their families and their household goods, traveling chiefly by pack horse, to remain in this section of Alabama.
What was the average lifespan for pioneers? ›The average life expectancy of a pioneer man, woman or child ranged from 30 to 40 years, if they were fortunate enough to survive childhood.
What did pioneers use instead of sugar? ›Syrup extracted from sorghum stalks (termed by some settlers “sugar cane”) could be boiled down to thick molasses, and sorghum seed could be used as grain. “Many of the farmers made their own pure molasses from the sugar cane they raised,” Alma Chambers remembered.
What was the average age of a pioneer? ›The majority of the people coming west in the mid-1840s were farmers from Missouri. The average age of the pioneer wife was 20-22 and the average of the pioneer male was 34-44.
What is the oldest settlement in Alabama? ›The first Europeans to make contact with Alabama were the Spanish, with the first permanent European settlement being Mobile, established by the French in 1702.
What is the oldest house in Shelby County Tennessee? ›Located at Brunswick, Davies Manor is recognized as the oldest extant dwelling in Shelby County and perhaps West Tennessee. The west section of the two-story, white oak log, central hall plan house dates to circa 1807 and has been attributed to an unknown Native American owner and builder.
How tall were the pioneers? ›Today's average woman measures about 5'5" to 5'7" in height, whereas young pioneer women stood 5'2" to 5'4". Liddell says most of the young women's dresses at the museum have waistbands of approximately 18-inches. Pioneer men stood 5'5" to 5'7" as compared to today's average male of 5'10".
How old did people live to be in the 1700s? ›Childhood death was a fact of life, and infant and childhood mortality rates figure in that life expectancy calculation. However, while that figure calculates life expectancy at birth (LEB), a more informed calculation accounts for lifespan post childhood, and in the mid-1700s, that figure was close to 64.
How long can a 75 year old expect to live? ›The data shows that the least healthy 75-year-olds, those in the lowest 10 percent, were likely to die in about three years. Those in the top 10 percent would probably live for another 20 or so.
What did pioneers eat for lunch? ›About midday, the travelers would stop for their “nooning” rest and meal. Lunch choices could include breakfast leftovers, more beans but now cold and with bacon, bread and crackers, rice and dried beef. A day's travel ended in the early evening.
What did the pioneers eat for breakfast? ›
Beans, cornmeal mush, Johnnycakes or pancakes, and coffee were the usual breakfast. Fresh milk was available from the dairy cows that some families brought along, and pioneers took advantage go the rough rides of the wagon to churn their butter.
What did the pioneers drink? ›It was an easy example for the colonists to follow. The first beverages of choice were cider and beer. Both were simple to make. For cider, the raw material, apples, was readily available.
What was the average age to have kids in the 1800s? ›In 1800, the American birthrate was higher than the birthrate in any European nation. The typical American woman bore an average of 7 children. She had her first child around the age of 23 and proceeded to bear children at two-year intervals until her early 40s.
What did pioneers do kids? ›Children were expected to help the adults with the farm work. Milking cows and gathering cow or buffalo chips for fuel in the cook stove was a duty for both girls and boys. Girls helped with the cooking, cleaning, mending, gathering eggs, and taking care of the younger children.
Where did most pioneers settle? ›Early pioneers extended American settlements to the Mississippi Valley. Later pioneers settled the Great Plains and the West Coast. The Oregon Trail was one of the most traveled trails heading west.
Who founded Shelby County? ›Shelby County was drawn onto Tennessee maps on November 24, 1819, by an act of the state General Assembly. Named for the first governor of Kentucky and Revolutionary War hero Isaac Shelby, the county's first government was appointed by the General Assembly.
What was the first black town in Alabama? ›In 1899, Hobson City became Alabama's first established all-African-American city and the second in the nation. Hobson City was a magnet for Black excellence and entertainment in the American South.
Who settled Birmingham Alabama? ›Birmingham was founded on June 1, 1871, by the Elyton Land Company whose investors included cotton planters, bankers and railroad entrepreneurs.
Who were the first people to live in Alabama? ›The land that is today the state of Alabama was originally settled by two groups of Native Americans: the Cherokee and the Muskogee peoples.