Open Fireplace.

 

The Old Hearth

© Copyright Control

 

Fire Irons

© Copyright Control

 

The fresh cake of bread from the oven

© Gerry Costello

The Hearth:

Before we heard of the range, the Rayburn, the Aga and the Stanley 9 and the modern kitchen, a lifestyle that would be alien to young people today existed on and around the hearth. For the older people, the hearth was traditionally the focal point of domestic and social activity in the home. Unlike modern fireplaces, the traditional hearth usually had stone seats built into its sides called the hobs. The fire was lit on the hearth, protected by the built-up hob each side. A large stone flat flag stood at the rear to absorb the heat of the fire and to more or less protect the wall behind. This Stone would be replaced as and when the fire “burned it out” and it began to crumble. The fire irons were also a very important with the tongs and the poker being super important. Each side of the fire place they usually had a “keeping hole”, with the left hand one for the woman of the house. Typically, this would contain the bag of flour, meal, tea, sugar and maybe even the knitting. The heat from the fire kept the flour and meal dry and moisture free. The keeping hole on the right hand side of the hearth was for the man of the house. It might contain a clay pipe and tobacco and often his socks to keep them warm and dry as houses in those days had no other form of heating.

The Crane

The crane was the item that could be moved out and in like a gate operates and on which the pots were hung over the fire usually pivoted to the left side. This was made by the local Blacksmith of quality iron. Strength was most important as it would have had pots with up to 10 gallons capacity suspended from it – maybe a few at a time and, again, it too had to stand up to the heat from the fire. A few adjustable pot-hangers would be hooked onto the arm of the crane. They were usually covered in black soot. The crane and all the fire irons were regarded with superstitious reverence because of their association with the fire. One superstition related to the hearth was that it was unlucky to throw the ashes out after dark and should never be taken out through the front door, another was that soot carried in a person’s pocket gave protection to a traveller on a journey, while yet another had it that a floor should always be swept towards the hearth so as not to give away good luck. Of course it was logical to sweep the floor towards the hearth because underneath there was a pit that accepted the ash that fell from the fire and the floor sweepings were also conveniently swept in there as well. It was also considered bad luck to let the fire go out completely, and the last task before going to bed at night was to “rake the fire”. This was done by taking ashes from the pit and covering the live burning turf with the ashes. When the ashes was removed in the morning the turf would not have burned itself out so it could be easily rekindled in the morning. It was always “an offence” to accidentally bring ashes “up around the house” on your shoes if you were standing near the hearth.

Cooking

The most important pots were the potato pot for boiling the potatoes, a smaller pot for water and the oven for baking. They were all cast iron and heavy – even when empty. Potatoes were boiled in huge quantities as they were also used to feed hens, chickens and the pigs so the big pot was necessary. The oven was a large flat-bottomed, three legged circular pot with a handle or “pot hooks” for suspending it above the flames. They kneaded dough from flour, butter milk and bran meal and with bread-soda as a raising agent was placed in the pot, the lid put on, and then heaped with glowing coals when it was safely suspended from the crane. It could also rest on a trivet – a triangle made from iron bars with three legs – on the floor of the hearth.

Around the Fire

The fire on the hearth was the heart of the house. Everything revolved around the hearth. Apart from just heating and cooking there was tremendous activity that took place just sitting around the hearth. Conversations were had, stories were told, knitting and patchwork was done, the wireless was listened to, friends and neighbours were greeted and entertained, plans were made and problems solved. Whether it be listening to the match on the wireless, the unplanned afternoon nap or reading the newspaper – it all took place around the fire. It was the hive of household activity as well as the hub of relaxation. Many a delicate lamb was bottle fed and kept in a tea chest near the hearth as well as the day old chicks that arrived annually on the Roscommon Bus. The fire never went out and if or when it finally did go out in a house it usually meant the end of an era for that family.