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You Think
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Have it Tough?
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Wikipedia
hen it was finished in 1835, Dundurn Castle in Hamilton, Ont., was as modern and up-to-date as could be. (The owner, Sir Allan Napier Macnab, simply called it “Dundurn,” Gaelic for “strong fort.” Local people tacked on the “Castle” nickname.) With 40 rooms and 12 servants for just four people, you might think it would be a luxurious place to live. But when Macnab’s daughters Minnie and Sophia were young, they likely weren’t nearly as comfortable as you would be in an ordinary Canadian home today. There was no main furnace, so heat came from the 24 fireplaces, and rooms had very hot parts and very chilly parts. Instead of electrical lights, the Macnabs had dim candles and smoky whale oil lamps. And there was no indoor plumbing meaning — you guessed it — they’d have to go to the bathroom outside, or maybe use a chamber pot kept under the bed. They’d wash their hands in porcelain bowls with water poured from jugs the servants had filled.
Uncomfortable Splendour
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ou probably take your comfy house for granted, but just stop and look around. Chances are that your home has what’s known as central heating, a system where a furnace that burns oil or gas heats air and blows it all over the house. And your house is likely quite well insulated, so there aren’t a lot of cracks where cold air can get in. When you need light at any time of day, you just flip a switch and you can make things as bright as you need without having to hunt for matches and read by the flickering light of a candle. The electricity that powers those lights also runs a refrigerator to keep your food from going bad, as well as your computer and television. And any time nature calls, well, you can just go. You don’t have to worry about making your way to an outhouse in middle of winter or late at night, and you can just wash your hands with water from the tap.
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