“Wash Day Monday”

by

 

Women have been organizing and keeping house from the beginning of recorded time. However, several centuries back, universal housekeeping regimes were adopted in England. These schedules were shared mother-to-daughter and sister-to-sister until they were widely accepted. Nursery rhymes even incorporated them.

Ivory Soap added a Mother Goose rhyme about washing on Monday to one of their ads (below). In Laura Ingalls Wilder’s book Winter Days in the Big Woods, the author notes the following schedule for homemakers:

              • Wash on Monday
              • Iron on Tuesday
              • Mend on Wednesday
              • Churn on Thursday
              • Clean on Friday
              • Bake on Saturday
              • Rest on Sunday

As a lover of history, I’m fascinated by these rituals in which our early sisters partook. However, while doing my research I came across a slightly different variation of the poem and the reasoning behind it that made perfect sense.

              • Wash on Monday
              • Iron on Tuesday
              • Bake on Wednesday
              • Brew on Thursday  
              • Churn on Friday  
              • Mend on Saturday
              • Church on Sunday

It’s worth noting that “brewing” was not so that early American homemakers could get tipsy. These were not early “desperate housewives!” It was necessary because settlers were told not to trust the water. So, they would brew and drink apple cider instead. Thompson notes that once the water controversy was cleared up, “Thursday was designated as marketing day.” Another transition happened when farmers began providing dairy products and it became unnecessary to have a segregated day for churning. “This relieved the city dwellers of churning and making cheeses on Friday, and they began using this day for housecleaning.”

However, the wash day process started days ahead of the actual washing.

On Saturdays, the laundry was gathered, sorted, and mended. Any rips or tears were sewn, socks darned. On Sundays, the clothing was then soaked overnight in warm water, of with a bit of soap, baking soda, or lye.

Once Monday arrived, the real work began. Women would rise early, gather a great deal of fuel for the fire, and haul many gallons of water to fill their wash, soaking, and rinse tubs, then they would go through the following steps:

  • wash clothes right side out, including applying soap and scrubbing on a washboard.
  • wring to rid clothes of excess water
  • wash the clothes inside out, including applying soap and scrubbing again on the washboard.
  • wring to rid clothes of excess water
  • boil the clothes in soapy water, agitating them with long sticks.
  • wring again
  • rinse clothes in fresh, clean water to remove all traces of soap.
  • wring once more
  • dry on clothesline, a nearby bush, or even laid flat in the grass

     

Whew!!! All I can say is as much as I’d want to travel in a wagon train…thank goodness for my Maytag washer and dryer!!!

In addition, it was also necessary to “blue” the laundry to rid the fabrics of the yellowing that came with age, washing, and wear. Bluing could be found in stores and mercantiles in the later 1800s. A bit of bluing would be added to the water causing the eye to see less of the yellow, and instead, see more of the white.

Other bleaching agents were buttermilk or turpentine for cotton material and ammonia for flannel material.

And just when you thought wash day was over, there was still starching and ironing to be done. Starch would be mixed with water, the clean, dry clothing submerged in the mix, and then wrung out again. Once the clothes were almost dry, a sadiron would be heated on the stove until hot, then applied to the clothing to remove the wrinkles. From my own memories, I recall my mother sprinkling liquid starch on my father’s Sunday white shirts, rolling them up before them in a plastic bag and refrigerating them until she was ready to iron.

Folding the clothes and putting away the clothes was the final step.

Imagine doing all this while chasing after the children, getting meals on the table, and doing a myriad of other things?

***********Giveaway***********

To win a $10 Amazon Gift Card answer the question below:

Were you aware of all the steps it took to wash clothes in the 1800s?

He was the most stubborn and prideful man she’d ever met.
She was a busybody who stuck her nose in his business at every turn!
With Christmas on the horizon, Claire McAllister has far too much to do to entertain dreams of a husband and family. Even if she feels inclined to help Lincoln Wyse outwit his three mischievous young daughters, it’s impossible to imagine the handsome widower seeing her as anything but a scolding schoolteacher.

Even though the pretty schoolteacher never turned a favorable eye to him, Linc Wyse’s heart skipped a beat whenever she pinned him with her mesmerizing green eyes. Beautiful or not, Claire McAllister was a meddling spinster who placed judgments on him and his family.

Yet, neither one can imagine how three little, mischievous matchmakers and a magical Christmas Eve sleigh ride will open their eyes to love…or how the Lord will awaken their faith and hope.

CLICK HERE

 

 

 

 

 

Jo-Ann Roberts
Author at JMV Creative Enterprise | jrobertsauthor@yahoo.com | Website | + posts

Born and raised in western Massachusetts, Jo-Ann Roberts was fascinated by America’s Old West and always felt she was destined to travel on a wagon train following the Oregon Trail. With her love of history and reading, she began reading historical romance during high school and college. Victoria Holt, Jude Deveraux, and Roseanne Bittner were among her favorites. Influenced by her father, she fell in love with John Wayne, James Garner, and her all-time favorite, James Stewart and grew up watching Wagon Train, Bonanza and Rawhide.
A firm believer in HEA with a healthy dose of realism, Jo-Ann strives to give her readers a sweet historical romance while imparting carefully researched historical facts, personalities, and experiences relative to the time period. Her romances take her readers back to a simpler time to escape the stress of modern life by living in a small town where families and friends help one another find love and happiness.
When she isn’t creating believable plots and relatable heroes and heroines, Jo-Ann enjoys spending time with her husband, children and grandson. She also enjoys baking, quilting and eating way too much chocolate.
After 38 years in public education in Connecticut and Maryland, she’s now calls North Carolina home.

87 thoughts on ““Wash Day Monday””

    • Welcome, Denise. I enjoy going to living history museums…my husband calls them “brown spots” because the Historical Registry signs are that color. Visiting these kinds of museums is a great way to learn visually what the early settlers and pioneers went through to survive and thrive. Thanks for commenting.

      • My Southern grandma made her own lye soap and she had a washboard. I know she had and used a wringer washer till the late 70s. It’s still in the basement of the old house.

        My other grandma was Plain, and I remember an Amish man buying the old wash tub at her auction in Manheim, PA.

  2. I’d heard of most steps but never seen the whole process laid out in such an orderly (and exhausting!) fashion. Even the historical novels I’ve read didn’t give me such a clear picture of what women used to have to do just to keep their families’ clothes clean (I still set mending aside to be done before clothes are laundered – why enlarge the holes?).

    • Welcome, Mary. I agree that it was certainly exhausting. Some authors often fail to include historical information, fearing their readers might find it boring. But I think historical facts add a layer of richness to the romance. Thanks for commenting.

    • Welcome, Ann. However, I can’t remember if I washed clothes on Monday during the early days of my marriage, but once I went to work full-time and the children were in school, I did the wash on weekends. A practice I still do. Thanks for commenting.

  4. Hello Jo-Ann! I enjoyed this! I use to help my grandmother (Grandma Tom)hang her clothes out on her line. A wonderful memory. I can’t even imagine the hard work! My husband calls me “ole wash woman” now! LOL I’ve added my mother’s load of clothes during the week now. So, he says that is all I do anymore! Hehehe…wish is so easy compared to what my grandmother and great grandmothers use to do! Thanks for the trip back! Makes you more grateful to what we have now, for sure!

    Best wishes to you and your new Christmas book!

  5. I knew some of the steps but not the whole process. And here I was complaining when my washer went out and I had to lug my clothes to my mom’s house next door to wash them. The pioneer women would be ashamed of me!

  6. i do remember the laundry being wet in a bag in the fridge! Also remember the sprinkler top for the Pepsi bottle with water/starch in the fridge too!

    • Welcome, Joannie. I love learning new things, also. That’s why I try to incorporate tidbits of information in my historical romances and the blogs for P&P. I guess it’s the former teacher in me!! Thanks for stopping by today.

    • Welcome, Debra. I enjoy going to living history museums…my husband calls them “brown spots” because the Historical Registry signs are that color. Visiting these kinds of museums is a great way to learn visually what the early settlers and pioneers went through to survive and thrive. Thanks for commenting.
      P.S. I’m very glad to have my washing machine and dryer, too!

  11. I had no idea of all the steps to wash clothes in the 1800s. I do remember using a wringer washer and tubs to rinse clothes in and then hanging on the clothesline. I have to agree with one of the other ladies, I’m glad for my washer and dryer.

    • Welcome, Bonnie. When we were first married, our landlady offered us the use of a wringer washer in the basement. Once I learned how to operate it, it wasn’t so bad. However, when we were expecting our first baby, my father-in-law bought us a new washer. Thanks for stopping by P&P today.

  12. Not all of the steps. I remember my mother buying bluing for diapers. My sister and I would hang our laundry on the line. It was my job to later iron my baby sister’s dresses with all the ruffles. I remember my mother sprinkling the clothes, rolling them up, put in a bag and sticking them in the fridge.

    • Welcome! I don’t remember the bluing so much, but I certainly remember hanging laundry on the line (my mother never had a dryer) and we lived in New England. As I stated in the blog, I remember her sprinkling what I thought was water on my dad’s shirts (maybe it was starch) rolling them up and sticking them in the refrigerator. Thanks for stopping by today.

  13. I have heard of all of these steps. They also had to make the soap usually in the fall when pigs were slaughtered. Wash day involved carrying multiple buckets of water and chopping wood!
    If I remember correctly, on wagon trains “wash day” often waited until they came to a suitable stream of water and was done in the stream itself skipping the boiling.

    • Welcome, Emily. These pioneers certainly had several steps to complete even before they could begin washing clothes. No wonder it took all day! Thanks for stopping by P&P to comment today.

  14. I’ve never heard of blueing before, what an interesting tidbit! I also didn’t realize there were so many steps, here I would have thought washing both right side and inside out would have been enough, but then to boil them in soapy water too. No wonder they had a day dedicated for washing! 🙂

    • Welcome, Sabrina. And to think, wash day was only one of the chores. Not to mention, making soap, planting, harvesting, and child-rearing. When I stop to think about it, my life is one of luxury. Thanks for stopping by P&P and commenting today.

  15. Yes, I was aware of the steps. Like you, I’m a long-time history buff, and I especially like to study folk customs and ways.

    • Welcome, Janice. I love discovering how, what, where, and why our ancestors did what they did. Some of it makes perfect sense to me, others not so much. We especially like visiting living museums. Thanks for stopping by P&P today to comment.

  17. I did know these steps from watching the women at a reenactment venue. My Mom had a wringer washer when I was growing up. She finally got an “regular” washing machine in 1961 when I was 13. That’s when I began doing laundry. She never had a dryer and we hung the laundry on the clotheslines in our back yard. I still like hanging laundry outside, especially sheets and towels.

    • Welcome, Karin. We never had a dryer in the house when I was growing up (and we lived in New England). I can’t tell you how often the clothes came in frozen. We’d have to put them next to the radiators to thaw out and dry. I love putting clothes on the line. Unfortunately, we live in a development that doesn’t allow clothes lines. Thanks for stopping by P&P to comment today.

    • Welcome, Alisa. I agree with you…and that was only one of the chores. Not to mention, making soap, planting, harvesting, and child-rearing. When I stop to think about it, my life is one of luxury. Thanks for commenting today.

  19. I was aware of a lot of the steps, but not all. Our washer is on the fritz currently and I think it’s a lot of extra work just to carry buckets of water from the tub faucet to dump into the washer so it’ll wash! I’m very thankful for the modern inventions that make these tasks easier and faster!

    • Welcome, Bridget. I feel your pain when our washer or dryer wasn’t working. We’ve lived in our home for less than 6 years, and we’ve had to replace both already. Thanks for stopping by and commenting today.

    • Welcome, Anne. I agree with you…and that was only one of the chores. Not to mention, making soap, planting, harvesting, and child-rearing. When I stop to think about it, my life is one of luxury. Thanks for commenting today.

  21. I knew that women in the olden days had days for certain household chores. Even when I grew up that was normal. The steps are certainly very tiring and involved.

    • Welcome, Sharon. Tiring and involved is right! Not to mention, making soap, planting, harvesting, and child-rearing. When I stop to think about it, my life is one of luxury. Thanks for stopping by P&P and commenting today.

  22. I have read about wash tubs and the board for scrubbing them. I wasn’t aware of the starching process thought. I can recall a starch solution my mother used, but I do not remember how she got it on the clothes. We ironed all the time, after we sprinkled the clothes with a bottle, usually a soda bottle, with a bottle cap which had holes in it. Then each piece was rolled up and put into a bushel basket lined with oil cloth (in other words – similar to the table clothes we used in those day for everyday use. It was specially made to fit inside the bushel basket.) Ironing day was always NOT my favorite day. It is still fresh in my memory.

    • Welcome, Judy. As I stated in the blog, I remember her sprinkling what I thought was water on my dad’s shirts (maybe it was starch) rolling them up and sticking them in the refrigerator. My ironing job was to iron the “flat pieces”, pillowcases, and handkerchiefs. Today, I iron very little. But I am a quilter, so I still do quite a bit of ironing. Thanks for stopping by today.

  23. My Grandmother had a schedule similar to the one you listed.. And she had a dish towel that was embroidered with that day and action on it. That was before paper towels.
    She also wore a different apron everyday.

    • Welcome, Joye. Instead of aprons, my mother, grandmother, and aunts wore smocks over their clothes while they were doing housework, cooking, or baking. Thanks for stopping by P&P and leaving a comment today.

    • Welcome, Kathy. It was interesting to dissect the reasons why each day was dedicated to a different task and after researching Wash Day Monday I can understand why. It took all day for the women to accomplish just one task! How much easier our lives are now!!! Thanks for stopping by today.

    • Welcome, Bridgette. So many of the readers had never heard of “blueing” either. Maybe I should do a blog on that component of Wash Day Monday!!! I doubt many people today would know about it. Thanks for commenting today.

  26. Hi, wow, just reading this gets me exhausted! I knew of some of the steps, but I was not aware of all of the steps it took to get clothes clean. Thank you so much for sharing this. A Sleigh Ride for Claire sounds and looks like a great read! Have a great day.

    • Welcome, Alicia. As much as I like history, I’m not sure I could have endured what these women had to deal with every day. Thanks for stopping by and commenting today. Thanks also for the kind words for A Sleigh Ride for Claire.

  27. I was aware of some of the wash process steps but not all. I remember a hand wringer machine my grandmother still had. Also, I grew up helping to boil that starch (can’t remember brand) on the stove and then put things in the freezer if we were delayed ironing. Ironing was one of my chores growing up.

    Thanks to you and all the authors for the interesting historical information y’all share!

    • Welcome, Catherine. Ironing was my job, as well. I first started out doing “straight” pieces as my mother called pillowcases and handkerchiefs. Soon, I was doing my brothers’ t-shirts, then pants and everything else. These days the only thing I iron is my quilting pieces when I’m making a quilt. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

  28. I knew washing was a torturous process in those days, but I did not realize exactly how torturous. I’m thankful we now have the machines we have ;o)

    • Welcome, Lynn. Until I did the research, I had no idea either. I had re-read my notes to make sure it wasn’t a typo. So thankful for our modern conveniences. Thanks for stopping by and commenting on P&P blog.

  29. I have heard of some of the steps but not all of them. We had a wringer washer when I was growing up but we didn’t go through all of those steps, but we did hang the clothes out on the line. So glad we have the automatic washers now.

    • Welcome! Until I did the research, I had no idea either. I had to re-read my notes to make sure it wasn’t a typo. We did hang clothes on the line even in winter. So thankful for our modern conveniences. Thanks for stopping by and commenting on the P&P blog.

  30. Whew! No, I was not aware of all those steps to washing. I am the youngest of 7 children and I do remember my mother washing using a wringer type washing machine. That was an innovation at the time but still a lot of hard work. It took all day to wash and hang the clothes to dry on the clothesline. Mother always made everything fun, I don’t remember her ever complaining about hard work. By the way, today would have been her birthday. She would have been 118. She was 40 when I was born. I still wash on Mondays. lol

    • Welcome, Sarah. Until I did the research, I had no idea either. I had to re-read my notes to make sure it wasn’t a typo. Growing up, we only had a washer, so we hung clothes on the line even in winter. So thankful for our modern conveniences. Thanks for stopping by and commenting on P&P blog.

  31. Wow! Sure makes you admire our ancestors. I remember my mother having to use a garden hose to fill the washer, because we had such bad water pressure (we were living in Taiwan at the time). I thought that was tough.

  32. I’ve read about some of them, but not all!! I can’t imagine going through all of these steps! I do remember that when I was 3 or 4 my maternal grandmother had a wringer washing machine, in the mid 60’s. I remember seeing it once, but she passed when I was four, so I don’t remember much about it.

    • Welcome, Trudy. While researching the information I had to read the steps twice to make sure it wasn’t a typo. So thankful for our modern conveniences. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

    • Welcome, Cherie. While researching the information I had to read the steps twice to make sure it wasn’t a typo. So thankful for our modern conveniences. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

    • Welcome, Colleen. While researching the information I had to read the steps twice to make sure it wasn’t a typo. So thankful for our modern conveniences. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

  35. I knew some of the steps but not all. I was exhausted just reading through the list. Thank goodness for our washing machine and dryer.

    • Welcome, Barbara. While researching the information I had to read the steps twice to make sure it wasn’t a typo. So thankful for our modern conveniences. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

  36. I remember reading some of the steps, but not all of them. Whewwww that was a day for sure. Yes I am grateful for our washing machines and dryers. Ours are now 37 years old and my husband really cant jurry rig them any longer, and they are rusting out which is starting to get on some of our clothes. We saw recently about a washer/dryer combo. Hmmmm. Some close friends recently got one and they have three children. Two of which are in high school. They love it so much. May be our next step

    • Welcome, Lori. You are lucky they last that long! The older brands were far more reliable. We’ve been in our home less than 6 years, and we’ve replaced both washer and dryer. However, if rust is starting to stain your clothes, perhaps it is time. Thanks for commenting today.

  37. I knew doing the wash back then was a lot of work, but I didn’t realize it had quite that many steps! It’s amazing to think about all those women accomplished while still taking care of their families.

  38. I have read books from that time period that talk of many of these steps in washing clothes, but I don’t think I have ever read a complete list like this. Those poor women, how hard they had to work.

  39. Oh that involved a lot of work! What especially catches my attention is building up the fire, filling the washtub and all that wringing stuff out! Man. I don’t use a dryer and I like to iron so it isn’t a chore because I enjoy it. I find it relaxing.

    I started ironing as a very young child and my mom told me to just iron the collar and front of my dad’s shirts because he wore suits. He was a teacher at a small Christian College with a dress code plus he was a minister and never took his jacket off but even then, I felt like I should iron the whole shirt. I started ironing by second grade because my favorite toy was a kid’s ironing board and iron and that sucker heated right up so my mom put me to work on the linens and I worked my way up to clothes. 🙂

    • Welcome, Rachel. I remember the play ironing board and iron. Like you, I started ironing at an early age with “straight” pieces as my mother called the pillowcases and handkerchiefs. Soon, I graduated to shirts, pants, and everything else. Though I don’t do much ironing today except for my quilting projects, I do like to iron. Thanks for your comments.

  40. I can imagine that laundry and other chores in olden days were very difficult and time consuming as the ladies didn’t have all the nice equipment to do their tasks as we have today.

    • Welcome, Jackie. Time consuming was right. That’s why the poem says they had a day to do different chores. Thank goodness for electricity and modern conveniences. Thanks for commenting.

  41. I remember starching certain clothes and sprinkling them before ironing. My mom used to lay out white clothes on the grass to whiten them. Not sure what the theory was behind that. I do remember when the washing machine had a drum for washing and rinsing the clothes and then you had to put them through the 2 roller ringer to squeeze out the water. My grandmother also had the two tub system that she had used many years prior. I did use a washboard to do my laundry for 3 years. That included heating the water and getting rinse water. It is much more time consuming than using a washing machine. I really didn’t mind that much. My clothes weren’t as dirty as work clothes or children’s clothes could get. It is actually a rather therapeutic and relaxing. Liked hanging them on the line, even when I was helping at home. Thanks for the walk down memory lane.

    • Welcome, Patricia. When I started researching for this blog, so many memories came flooding back. Sprinkling the clothes, pinning them on the line, and ironing “straight” pieces (pillow cases, handkerchiefs). Thanks for commenting on P&P blog.

  42. I thought they just washed them on the washboards and rinsed them and hung them to dry. I have heard of bluing before. My mom grew up in the Depression so she liked her wringer/washer machine so it was fill the buckets with water and haul to the machine. She also had a double metal tub for rinsing. Then everything was hung outside on the clothesline. In the winter clothes were hung inside on drying racks. I hated doing laundry as a kid, the clothes were stiff and there were generally bugs on them from being outside and if it started raining we had to run to get them off the line. I’m definitely a modern washer/dryer woman 🙂

    • Welcome, Naomi. Growing up, my parents only had a washer. She always hung the clothes outside, even in winter, and we lived in New England. Though I had a washer and dryer in our former homes, I liked putting the clothes on the line. Like you, I enjoy my modern conveniences. Thanks for commenting.

  43. I was very aware as I helped my grandmother in the 50’s as she heated water in the was house where stains were scrubbed on a washboard, the they were laundered in as gas powered wringer washer and put through hand powered wringers. I own a washboard my husband bought me as a joke on our honeymoon!

Comments are closed.