Life before electricity

I came along in the middle of the 1900s so most everyone had or was getting electricity. The only person I knew who had electricity before this lived 2 to 3 miles east of us. Lester had some kind of generator with a fan blade or windmill kind of blade to run it. Seems like it was mounted on a kind of windmill frame. It must not have worked real well because when public power electric came along Lester went to it.

The only people who didn't have electricity that I knew of was my Mom's sister and her family. They lived about 5 or 6 miles from where we lived, so we'd visit. That is we'd visit when Mom and her sister were getting along. For some reason Mom and her sister would get teed off at each other and then not speak for weeks or even a month. And then poof they'd make up, and we'd be back to normal. Part of the problem between them stemmed from the party line phones. You could pretty well figure when you got a phone call most everyone on the party line would be listening. Made some of the old ladies on the line mad. Dad didn't mind at all.

So anyway we'd go visit Mom's sister's family. They had I'll bet eight or 10 of those old kerosene lamps spread throughout the house, and the house smelled like kerosene. Usually the lamps in the kitchen and front room were lit. Mom and Dad and Johanna and Bertie would sit at the kitchen table and visit. I can't remember but I'd almost guarantee they were drinking coffee and having a cookie or something. Mom wouldn't have gone without taking some kind of sweet. I always wondered if this was the Danish coming out of her.

I don't think they had a real ice box like some did in the Sandhills. Some would cut ice in the winter and store the ice in holes in the ground and use to cool an old ice box during the summer. My Grandma Piihl did have an old ice box, but she relied on her refrigerator. Uncle Bertie probably built a box down by the barn and had the windmill pump fresh water in the box. It was in this box that they stored their butter and cream and milk and other perishables. Ground water was somewhere around 50 degrees year round.

Of course there was no indoor plumbing, so when nature called you went to the little one- or two-holer out back. Most of the time it was about 150 feet from the house, so you either had to take a lamp or go in the dark. Hated going out there in the dark. There were flashlights, but they weren't real reliable. Wasn't bad in the summer but no fun at all during the winter. I remember growing up I'd always look down the holes if I could see and make sure there weren't any critters down there. There was a bucket of ashes or lime sitting there so every now and then you'd sprinkle the ashes or lime down the hole. Killed some of the smell. I'm not sure when Aunt Johanna and Bertie got an indoor privy. Mom and Dad got an indoor privy when I was in the eighth grade.

Aunt Johanna and Bertie and Mom and Dad didn't have running water either. There was a hand pump by the kitchen sink, and you'd pump you a drink. Most of the time we'd pump until the water got cold and then get a glass full. Once a week we'd pump enough for the old ringer washer and rinse tubs. And usually once a week we'd pump enough for all of us to take a bath. Usually the women would heat the water on the old kitchen gas stove for the wash water and bath water.

Marge and I could go back to those days and live. We'd miss the ice and the hot water and the lights, but we could live. I'm not sure many in the younger generation could.