Marco - 10. Chapter 10

On the way back to the apartment, I stopped at the feed store. “Jake, I need a 55-gallon drum, a spade, and a crowbar. I want to prime that water pump to see if I can get water from that old well. We found a way to get into the basement.”

Jake got everything I wanted, and Dad helped to put the spade and crowbar in the trunk along with the gallon drum. We had to tie the trunk lid down. I drove carefully to the apartment.

Mom started lunch as soon as we arrived. Dad and I began to make a list of what I needed to do. Chimneys need to be cleaned before we can test the fireplaces. I noted we would need wood. I need to clean out the barn and check the roof for leaks. I’ll need lime for the outhouse. I had a separate list, build a bathroom in the house, check out the beds in the bedrooms. I wasn’t sure if those feather mattresses were any good, and I may need to replace them. Building a door into the space under the floor, moving the stones every time I need to get under the house could be a problem. I also needed a new lock for the front door. I needed to change all of the locks.

After lunch, driving back to the house, I stopped at Jakes and picked up two new locks for the doors. “Jake, do you have a catalog for lights?”

“Inside or outside?”

“Both.”

Dad looked at me. “I’m having water, sewage, and electricity installed. Monday, they will start digging a trench from the road to the house. I will convert the lights to electric, but I want to keep the style that is there now. I really would like to use the chandeliers, but I’m not sure if I can install electricity to those kerosene chandeliers”

Arriving at the house, mom went inside. Dad and I tackled the stone at the corner of the house. I was anxious to see what was in the cellar if anything. Using the crowbar, we removed the top layer of stone. By shining the light from the lamp into the basement, we could see the interior. There were large beams of oak being supported by oak posts.

“If you are going to put a door here, you will have to remove this dirt. Since it has a slight slant away from the wall, it wouldn’t be a problem. You would have to do that to get in there to install any piping.” I added that to my list.

“Dad, let’s check out the barn.” I wanted to start a ‘to-do’ list. I knew I could never accomplish everything I would need to restore the buildings without some help.

The rest of the afternoon, we checked out the barn while I made a list of what we agreed needed to be done. I knew I couldn’t do all of the items on the list. I’d need the help of contractors.

Walking into the house, “Dad, I thought if I removed these tubs, I could put a bathroom here. It wouldn’t have to be large, just large enough for me.”

“That would be a good idea. When you come into the house after working outside, you could shower and not drag dirt through the house.”

“If I put the fuse box here, I could remove these shelves and install a washer and dryer as well as a freezer. I can put these shelves in the basement.”

“What do you have in mind for these porcelain pots?”

“I’ll use them until I get the bathroom finished.”

“When are you planning on moving in?”

“As soon as they run the sewage, electric, and water lines to the house.”

“You’ll have to rough it for a while.”

“Yes, but it won’t be that bad. Let’s change the locks, and then we can check on Mom.”

“Marco, Have you walked the property?”

“No, except knowing there should be about 5 acres here, I haven’t. Want to do it now?”

“Yes, let’s do it, and then your mother should be finished upstairs.”

That is what Dad and I did. It didn’t take long for me to realize that the boys couldn’t cut the grass with push mowers. There were a few trees along the fence in the back. A few were oak, but most of them were popular and fir. The big surprise was the garden area. It must have been at least one acre. There were several dead plants, but surprisingly there were some tomatoes plants. “Dad, this must have been their garden. I read somewhere that they supplied the people living here with fresh vegetables in exchange for meat. I wonder where they kept the meat from spoiling.”

“Let’s go back to that barn. There was a small building in the back.”

Walking back to the barn, I thought how smart Ephraim Wight must have been to create all of this. I wonder if someone living today could have accomplished what he did with the tools available at that time.

Walking to the back of the barn, we opened the door to the small shed. Dad started to laugh. “What’s so funny?”

“You wanted to know how they lived without a refrigerator. Here is your answer.”

I looked at a small stream of water running through a trough. “Put your hand in the water.”

I did and quickly removed my hand. “That water is cold.”

“Yes, and if you put meat in that water, it would be like putting meat in a refrigerator. This was the way most farmers of that time were able to preserve meat. Some would butcher their meat and pack them in jars with salt and lard. Then place them in this stream to keep it cold until they needed them.”

I needed to read up on my history. “Dad, how do you know this?”

“My grandfather grew up on a farm. When I was a young boy, I would visit, and he had one of these. He told me how his dad used it for keeping things cold. I put my hand in the water as you did. He gave me a bottle of milk and told me to put it in the stream. I did, and the next day for lunch, I had a very cold glass of milk.”