Courthouse Tavern Museum Hosts Lawson-Marriott Kindergarten
Kindergarten students from Lawson-Marriott visited the Courthouse Tavern Museum on April 24 and participated in interactive exercises to compare today’s activities with those of many years ago. To visualize living without electricity and plumbing, they viewed a bedroom that was lighted by oil lamps, bowls and a metal tub were used to bathe, and rope was used to support a mattress on the bed. They learned that at one time people did not buy clothes or blankets at the store, but made their own by using wool from sheep and were shown how the wool was carded and spun into yarn to be used to create garments or household items. They found that long ago you did not “run” to the grocery when you needed food, but grew you own and preserved it, exploring one method by stringing dried fruits and vegetables on a line to be stored until needed. Hands-on, they practiced their letters using a McGuffey Reader with a slate and chalk instead of today’s books, pencils, and paper. In addition, they played games that existed long before video games, such as “who has the button.” They learned how to clean clothes without a washer and dryer by hand-washing clothes with a bar of soap and a washboard in a washtub, putting them through a hand-cranked ringer to eliminate the water, and then hanging them to dry on a line with clothespins. One student noted that the line was a “solar” dryer. They learned that long ago clothes were not wrinkle-free and they lifted the heavy “sad-iron” and pressed the dry clothes. In addition, in order to emphasize what the outdoors provided in entertainment, the “fossil man” showed them how to dig for and recognize sharks teeth….and they found some!
