THE KITCHEN - HEART OF THE HOME

ARTHUR AND DOROTHY WHITE of 'Whiteworth'

Most early settlers first erected temporary dwellings – either tents or humpy’s made of galvanized iron and or local bush timber, so cooking was usually done in a ‘camp oven’ which was a large iron pot with a lid.

An oven outdoors could be made from a kerosene tin used over an open fire. Cooking indoors or semi-indoors in humpy’s could be achieved by erecting a fireplace which was usually made of corrugated iron and rocks. Bricks could be made of mud from a dam bank and used to build fireplaces. These bricks were referred to as ‘bats’, thus many an early settler spoke of ‘mud-bat ovens’. (“History of the Gnowangerup District A. Allardyce)

A long Tradition was often adhered to - allocating each weekday to a certain task, for example - washing on a Monday, ironing on a Tuesday, etc.

Dorothy and Arthur always went into town shopping on a Thursday when the children were young, Nancy was left in charge when she was old enough.

Food preparation took up a major part of the day. All of the cooking was done on a Metters No 2 stove, which Arthur had purchased some time before her arrival, which he said was ‘topping’.

Even in summer the fire would be required for food preparation and heating water for cups of tea or bathing etc. A much used phrase of Dorothy’s was - “I’ll just put a few chips on”.

The Coolgardie safe in the kitchen kept meat fresh for around three days. This was an ingenious cooler. Hessian was fastened to the four sides of a zinc frame and was kept wet by water dripping from a zinc reservoir on the top. The cooling action arising from evaporation was so efficient that it could keep butter hard on the hottest day.

Hessian was also used for door mats, aprons, and handkerchiefs (Mrs Freegard, their neighbour, even used a hessian handkerchief-Joy) Dorothy’s first refrigerator was purchased around 1945.

There was also a ‘kitchen safe’ which was a hanging metal cupboard with a door. The metal had holes or perforations in it to allow air through, but small enough not to allow flies in. This would be hung in a cool place, sometimes outside in a tree, and used to store items that did not need refrigerating in the Coolgardie cooler, such as perishables which would be used within a short space of time. My parents used a kitchen safe up until their deaths in 2010 and 2012 respectively.

Prior to the purchase of a separator, Dorothy would have strained the cream and then ‘scalded’ it by bringing it almost to the boil in an enamel dish, then simmering it on the stove. A thick disc of white corrugated ceramic would be used to place in the pan and prevented the milk boiling over.

Cream was put in a jug and covered with a lace doily that had beads attached around the outside to keep it in place on the jug so as not to allow flies in.

Dorothy had a hand operated meat mincer, which attached to the table top. Dorothy also made jam, marmalade, chutney and pickles.

Her Genoa cakes were very popular; her daughter in law Edith White kept a recipe for ‘Jello Cakes’ which are similar.

As there was no ‘self-raising flour’ available then, the rising agent for cakes was made by mixing bi carb soda and cream of tartar with plain flour.

Home-made bread was a favourite, and Dorothy made delicious bread buns cooked in tobacco tins.

Most local housewives used a home-made potato and hop yeast. Toast was made using a long handled toasting fork.

Dorothy had a little hand operated grinder and would make wheat meal for porridge and ingredients for biscuits etc.

Several bags of wheat harvested on the farm would be sent to the Katanning Flour Mill, and in return they would receive in varying amounts - flour, bran, wheat meal and pollard.

Other farmers did the same, especially during the Depression: ‘we took 10 bags of wheat and they’d give us about 6 bags of flour and a bag of semolina’ (Nelson Lemmon Oral History Notes, Battye Library)

Occasionally weevils would appear in the flour if it was kept for too long, and Dorothy would then sieve the flour to remove them.

Mutton was the mainstay of meals, occasionally home produced chicken or turkey or pork graced the table. A sheep would be killed for meat as necessary. The kidneys, tongue heart and brains would be cooked for the family.

The liver and kidneys would be sliced, fried with butter and onion, and usually eaten with eggs for breakfast. The brain would also be fried, and the tongue would be boiled, sliced and eaten cold. Brawn was a popular item during summer. Some families boiled the sheep’s head for the tongue, meat and eyes, but not at Whiteworth!

An interesting piece from “Bread Jam and Hidings by Joyce Reid Shiner:

"Dad could never kill an animal in cold blood. He would sharpen the knives and sit there smoking saying ‘Poor brute’ until Mum nagged him out of the house and off to do it in a rage. He said he could never slaughter a poor innocent sheep until he got his blood up. Mum would be waiting for the heart and liver of the sheep to cook for tea and sometimes, she said, it was still jumping when it went into the pan. The head would be the first thing used the next day; skinned, cleaned and boiled. The tongue and brains were usually Mum’s delicacy but getting the eyes out was her dilemma. She would shudder as she gouged them out with a strong table fork, saying, ‘Oh isn’t it awful!’

Due to the expense, bacon was something which was hardly ever bought, and when they did it was considered a real treat. Breakfast usually consisted of oaten porridge, but sometimes it was wheat meal or semolina porridge.

Weeties and other brands of cereal, which began appearing in the 40’s and was not purchased by Dorothy as they were on a strict budget.

Dripping on bread or toast was a regular food, for any meal. For Dorothy’s family it would have been produced on the farm; however it could also be bought at the store.

Dripping could also be sold; although Dorothy did not sell dripping she did regularly sell eggs and butter.

Dorothy always loved apples, in those days there were fewer varieties, but Arthur always made sure if he was collecting the groceries from town to include apples. Groceries, like most items, were bought in bulk by the stores and wrapped for each customer in brown paper and tied with string which would be saved and re-used.

My mother, Joy: "Common items in the pantry would have included: flour, sugar, tea, salt, baking powder, tinned meat, rice, sago, tapioca, split peas, pearl barley, condensed milk, custard powder, cornflour, Arnotts biscuits (a rare treat) and Horlicks Sauce".

Nestles chocolates were one penny each, and on Sundays the children would have one each, very nice between Milk Arrowroot biscuits!” (Joy) These biscuits were also used for a snack for babies, mixed with warm milk.

String was a kitchen necessity, used on an everyday basis, as there was ‘no such thing’ as sellotape. All the string was saved and reused. Everything was wrapped in brown paper, bread etc. and tied with string if necessary.

Items for pest control in the house were minimal.

Occasionally fleas would be found in the house, and a sprinkle of salt was the only answer until later years when the first sprays were introduced. There was a Flytox metal spray pump available in the 1950’s.

The kerosene lamps were glass ones, with wicks to burn the kerosene, and the glass needed washing each day. Candles were also used each night.

Torches were not used in the house until the late 1940’s. Instead, the family used the blue storm lanterns; these were kerosene also and blew out frequently in windy conditions. They were always used at night when giving the horses their late feed.

All of the water was caught off the roof and directed into tanks. Originally there was only one tank and no running water to the kitchen. Rain water was always treated carefully. Occasionally mice, rats possums or birds could drown in the tank, these needed to be removed, a jam tin attached to the end of a pole was a common tool for this task.

When the level dropped, mud and debris also needed to be removed. Dorothy had to carry every drop of water in and once used for dishes, baths or washing, the water needed to be carried back out again.

Another tank was later placed on the west side of the house and a pipe was run through into the kitchen. Due to the position of the tank in the summer the water was always hot. The tank on the south side which was more protected from the sun and was also closer to the ground (6 inches or 150 mm). This tank was always used for cool drinking water.

“The water in summer was always hot and we used the South tank for drinking water - a nice cool drink when it came home from school. This tank was only 6 inches (150 mm) off the ground.” (Joy)

Dorothy had arranged for china and other items to be shipped from England. This included crockery and linen, along with many other household items, including wedding gifts. One of the gifts was an eighteenth century set of china, a gift from her late grandfather. Dorothy would have been excited about the arrival of the boxes, which the breakable items such as crockery had been carefully packed and sent by ship. This consignment travelled safely from her home in Gloucestershire, then the entire sea voyage, the arrival at Fremantle Harbour, and by train to be collected by the local transport operator in Gnowangerup. It then survived the trip from Gnowangerup to Whiteworth.

However, upon unloading and bringing them into the house, one large box of crockery was dropped, and many pieces were broken.

In those days good China and other quality items were not only difficult to purchase due to their price but also their availability; they were not only prized for sentimental value but also as a reflection of social standing.

Meals were eaten at the pine kitchen table with turned legs and a cutlery drawer at one end.

“I must mention the stools we sat on at the table. Dad made these in the early days. We sat beside the wall so we would not fall or get pushed off. We were told repeatedly to “sit up and be quiet and behave” if we misbehaved – well, small children should be seen not heard!”- Joy

Like most women of her time, Dorothy treasured her best linen. A beautiful linen tablecloth was especially well-cared for, always kept starched and ironed. Their son John would have been about four and tinkered with his knife at the table. When Dorothy looked again she was devastated to see he had cut a hole in the cloth! There were tears shed, it had been a much valued wedding gift.

The tablecloth is still in existence to this day, and the tiny little mending stitches are testimony to the family story and Dorothy's sewing abilities nearly a hundred years ago!

Dorothy would separate the milk after morning and evening milking, using their ‘Lister’ separator which was located on a small table in the hallway.

It was important to get the speed of turning just right, and a bell would ring until the correct speed was attained.

The cream come out of a pipe into a waiting cream jug or bowl and separated milk would come out of the larger pipe into a bucket.

One of the less pleasant tasks of the day was washing the separator, but cleanliness was essential. Soap was not used for this task, rather the metal bowl of the separator would be half-filled with hot water and each piece cleaned in turn. In later years Nancy and Joy would take on this job before and after school. “Joy and I used to milk the cows and help with the separating and washing up” (Nancy)

Joyce Shiner in Bread, Jam and Hidings tells of “one family who only washed it when it became clogged....At another farm the separator would be taken apart and put out in the yard for the chooks to peck clean.

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Copyright : Gordon Freegard 2023