A Plymouth Rock Home

The first European settlers in New England (1620) built timber-frame homes clad with hand-sawn siding. The dimensional wood was cut in a saw pit. A log was dragged onto a couple of supports over the saw pit and cut with a long two-man saw. One man stood on top of the log while the other stood underneath the log on the floor of the saw pit. Pulling a long, two-man saw up and down cut a straight slice of log. The slice of wood was attached directly to the house frame. As there was no glass for the window openings, the houses were cold and drafty. Often, the family barn was enclosed in one side of the house as cattle and sheep helped heat the interior. Cooking and heating was accomplished by using a large fireplace which was enclosed in a wall. The roof was made of dry reeds. The risk of fire was very high and the chances of saving a burning house very small.

Elizabeth, IL

Like many folks, I like visiting historical sites to learn how American pioneers like Abe Lincoln, Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone lived. A couple of years ago, I visited a fort near Galena, IL called Apple River Fort. It was built at the time of the Black Hawk War as protection from a possible attack. The attack did happen and a small group of pioneer men, women and children defended themselves against 200 Native American warriors. The pioneer men were shocked when one of their friends was killed in the first volley. Three women, instantly assessed the situation and, as mothers often do, took charge. They organized the women and children into a production line to load muskets (a task of several steps) and distribute them to the men defending the walls. They also brought empty muskets back to the production line to be reloaded. The attackers were surprised with the steady firepower from the fort and reasoned that there were many more men than their scouts had reported seeing. Soon the warriors quit their attack, looted the log cabin homes near the fort and rode off. To honor the three brave women, whose given names were Elizabeth, the town voted (a decade later) to change the name of the town to Elizabeth.

The Voyageurs

Voyageur is a French word meaning “traveler”. During the fur trade era, crews of men who paddled canoes of supplies from Montreal, to “rendezvous” in the back country were called voyageurs. At these rendezvous the supplies were traded for furs which were brought from deeper in the wilderness. The furs were carried by canoe back to Montreal and on to Quebec where they were shipped to France. The majority of voyageurs were French, French/Canadians and Native Americans.
The strength and endurance of these men is legendary. They worked a 14 hour day, paddled 55 strokes per minute and carried their supplies and canoes when they crossed (portaged) the dry land that separated the lakes and rivers they traveled. Few voyagers could swim. Many drowned in rapids or in storms while crossing lakes.
A bundle of furs weighed about 90 lbs. A bundle of trade goods weighed the same. A routine portage meant each voyageur must carry 2 bundles (180 pounds) at a time, across rugged, sometimes muddy trails. Every ½ mile or so the voyageurs set down their bundles and ran back for 2 more.
There were two types of voyageurs: the pork eaters (mangeurs de lard)) and the winterers (hivernants). The men who paddled from Montreal to the rendezvous at Grand Portage lived on a diet of salt pork. . . so were called pork eaters.
The men who transported trade goods deep into the wilderness stayed at winter outpost and lived “off the land”. These men were called winterers. Winterers traded for furs in native villages and in the spring transported the furs from their outposts to a rendezvous post.