SAUER-BECKMANN LIVING HISTORY FARM
With plans to meet the Patricias (my daughter and her Godmother/namesake) in Fredericksburg for a fun couple of days, I headed out early so I could stop by the LBJ National Park and the attached Sauer-Beckmann Living History Farm. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was so happy to find more than I could have imagined.
The farm is a living history farm in that the volunteers dress and live daily life as it was lived in the early 20th century. As I walked up a woman in a long skirt and long sleeved blouse was sweeping the porch. She waved at me and continued her chores. I stopped to offer sympathy to this little guy who was hollering for his mommy.
She was on the other side of the barn trying to reassure him that breakfast was almost ready and to be patient. Poor little guy didn't believe her, but from the looks of things, she wasn't telling fibs.
I poked around a bit and by the time I got back, all was good.
The farm is a living history farm in that the volunteers dress and live daily life as it was lived in the early 20th century. As I walked up a woman in a long skirt and long sleeved blouse was sweeping the porch. She waved at me and continued her chores. I stopped to offer sympathy to this little guy who was hollering for his mommy.
She was on the other side of the barn trying to reassure him that breakfast was almost ready and to be patient. Poor little guy didn't believe her, but from the looks of things, she wasn't telling fibs.
I poked around a bit and by the time I got back, all was good.
This is not a replica of what a farm back in the old days looked like, this an authentic farm built by Johann and Christine Sauer when they settled here in 1869 with their four children. They eventually had 10 children, one of whom served as the midwife for the birth of President Johnson.
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The original cabin and the addition built when the family began to grow. Look closely and you can see my friendly hostess.
Over the years the Sauers added buildings, and when the Beckmann family acquired the property in 1900 they were able to continue adding buildings and improve those that existed. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department bought the site in 1966 from Edna Beckmann Hightower and restoration and archeological studies were done. It was opened to the public in 1976.
While the calf was having breakfast I wandered around the grounds a bit, waved at his daddy, and kept going...he was big and the fence didn't look that strong. :)
Anyway...here is some of what I saw on my amble.
Flower bed edging using bottles for the material. Nothing got wasted back then.
Even small branches were collected next to the log pile for kindling.
This is where they normally make lye soap, but because of the drought conditions when I was there they weren't able to have open fires.
OK, time for a break.....and this is what there is folks, it is a living history farm after all...don't be shy, experience some history!
Time to go in and snoop around the houses....
They say the heart of the home is the kitchen, so lets start there.
First you will need to wash your hands.
The cooks corner, a nice place to iron, shell peas, any of the countless other chores that needed to be done.
The stove was really a nice one for back in the day. My grandmother could make the best bread, cakes, pies and cookies in her wood burning stove.
Fresh butter from the cream that floated on top of the milk. Grandma had another type with the blades that turned, maybe a Daisy? I always wanted to be the cream skimmer but she never trusted me with the job. Guess she was smarter than I thought :)
My new friend was fishing around in a big ole crock when I went into the kitchen. I was surprised at what she pulled out.
The sausage was preserved in the lard. I assume the lard formed an air tight coating and therefore prevented spoilage. Interesting concept.
The milk in the dish above is clabbering, and will end up as raw curds in the picture on the right. The clabbering is the first step in making curds and whey. The curds will be either firm or soft depending on the temperature as they were being separated from the whey. You can use the soft like cream cheese or the firm more like a feta to sprinkle on salads and such.
In the dish below the curds have been cooked. I'm not sure what that does for them, if anything. I'll put that on my to-do list to find out the next time I go up there.
No handy Trader Joe's, HEB, or Safeway for these folks. They grew and preserved all their own food. I asked the volunteer what they did with the food,thinking Food Bank, homeless shelter, or other such organization. Nope, they eat it. Every day they make a noon meal and the volunteers and park employees from LBJ's ranch sit down for a good lunch.
Nothing goes to waste either around here. This I know from my grandparents too...
The pig gets the slop (kitchen garbage aptly named)
The chickens get their eggs returned - washed, dried and crumbled - in their chicken feed to increase their calcium levels making better and stronger eggs.
Guess it works for turkeys too.
Some of the other residents of the farm, I'm sure they got an equal share of the spoils from the kitchen. I think that poor little sheep needs a coat! Although I didn't seem to get a picture of a spinning wheel there is no doubt one in the house to put the wool to good use.
Loved this guys horns. I don't think I would want to be on the receiving end of them though.
With the cooking and canning well underway, the cows milked, the chickens fed, and the butter churned, it is time to do the laundry. Soap was made in the big iron pot outside over an open fire and waiting in the wash house. The wash house was a separate building for some reason. This one was the little bitty one in the middle of the picture.
There isn't much ventilation but it is close to the cistern so the lady of the house wouldn't have to carry water far. If she was lucky in love her husband would have made her a yoke to balance the weight.
Not only did this fortunate woman have a washing machine, she also had a place to pre-treat her clothes to help get out the stains, and look at the different wash boards she had. Gosh I am impressed!
Finally the chores are done and it is time to relax.
Light the light....
Listen to some music
or
Make your own
Perhaps you would rather view the world in 3-D?
Or is reading more your style?
But all too soon it would be time to say your prayers....
memorize your Bible verse for the night....
"I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help."
and crawl under the quilts for a good nights sleep.
Sweet dreams....
From all appearances the Sauers and Beckmanns were well to do. Their home and outbuildings were substantial and built with function but also with aesthetic value in mind. The inside was decorated simply but with an eye for taste.
Peacock feathers in a vase in the corner of the living room, and a wreath made from human hair shows the resourcefulness of the housewife, using materials at hand to decorate her home.
Crockery was kept, not in a china cabinet but on shelves in the window.
The head of the household had his own window for storing what was important to him :)
Clothes were simple and few. A couple of everyday dresses for the women and a Sunday outfit for church.
The men had the same with a suit for Sunday and a couple of pair of work clothes.
Life was simple, but complex too.
Plants were harvested for their seeds and hung in the rafters to dry.
Right next to the sheep bladders!
My thanks to the Sauers
and to the Beckmanns
for leaving behind a place to stop and reflect on life without all the things we think we need.
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/state-parks/lyndon-b-johnson
