Trammels: A pioneer cook’s best friend
Discover the history of iron trammels, the adjustable pot hooks early Ohio settlers used to control hearth heat and master open-fire cooking.
Of coopers, hoopers, firkins, rundlets, swiglers, crozes, scorps and butts
The fourth member of the quartet of early craftsmen vital to the success of any frontier settlement in the Ohio Country was the cooper.
From stalk to shock to fodder, harvesting the corn crop required a myriad of...
Paul Locher explains how early settlers of Ohio country would have harvested corn, detailing the tools they would have used.
On the frontier, tallow candles were expensive to make and used sparingly
History writer Paul Locher delves into the expense of making tallow candles on the frontiers of Ohio Country in the 1800s.
You couldn’t pioneer without a felling axe
Paul Locher continues his "An American Tale" series by introducing readers to the most important tool used to open the American frontier — the felling axe.
A toast to toasters and roasters: Breakfast with Ohio pioneers
Discover why early American coffee roasters and wrought-iron toasters are rare finds today. Columnist and early American artifacts collector Paul Locher takes a deep dive into the decorative motifs and functions of pioneer tools.
The wheat harvest: To winnow, grind and bag
After flailing the wheat, early Ohio settlers processed it into flour.
Cabin fever and the surprising history of early American butter prints
Columnist Paul Locher how Ohio pioneers fought cabin fever by carving intricate butter prints, creating early American folk art and a clever way to brand farm goods.
From scalding trough to gambrels, butchering was a gruesome task
Paul Locher describes the beginning stages of butchering a hog on the frontiers of Ohio Country in the early 1800s.
Some trivia about trivets
Early Ohio cooks relied on iron trivets to control heat over open fires. These tools evolved from simple cookware to ornate cast-iron household staples.
