There is a historic district in my hometown that has the most amazing homes built by lumber barons, oil and gas men, lawyers, doctors, and government officials in the latter half of the 1800’s. Every summer, the Julia-Ann District holds a garden tour and every Christmas they hold a tea and tours of these magnificent mansions. I have a close family friend who owns a house that is like living in a museum. It is stunning, truly. I have always wanted to volunteer for the Christmas Tour and this year it worked out. I led tours through a home that once belonged to a family in the oil field machinery business and now houses the offices of the WV Baptist Convention. It is a three story home built in 1880 and was really quite modern for its time. I climbed up and down steps for five hours this afternoon so I not only had the fun of leading tours, I also got my exercise. By 5:30 last evening I had climbed three stories…24 times! Wowza…and that was in cowboy boots! It was great fun. I’m thinking I really need an entire Victorian wardrobe. I love the fashions of that era. But…it depended on where you stood on the social ladder whether you sat in the lap of luxury or served those that did.
One of the interesting tidbits of information I learned before the tour involved the reasoning behind floor to ceiling windows in Victorian homes. There was an old superstition in the Victorian Era to never bring a casket through the door of a house that was used by the occupants. It invited spirits into your home. Since funeral homes were not common in those times, either a false door or floor to ceiling windows were built into the front formal parlor or sitting room to allow a casket to be brought into the home. Communities had groups of women who took it upon themselves to attend to the dead and “lay out the body”. The departed would lay in state for 3-4 days to allow time for family to arrive. Since this was before embalming was common, the practice of placing flowers around the room was a practical solution to any bad odors.
So, there’s your “I learn something new every day” moment. ❤️
“My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest.”
Isaiah 32:18 NIV