Antiques and The Windy Knoll

Here at the Windy Knoll, antiques it is — residents and furnishings as well.  When I started to appreciate antiques is more than I can remember, but now as I look back I’m reminded of how much I let get away.  As I’ve said to you before, hind sight is a marvelous thing to have.

An old ice box is one thing I remember and I let it slip through my hands.  We had no electricity and, therefore, no ice.  Now and then somebody would pass by the ice house located about 12 miles from the farm and bring a 50 lb. chunk of the wonderful cold stuff and we protected it as best we could to keep it from melting.  We put it in the icebox and wrapped it with tow sacks, an ole worn out oil cloth from the kitchen table and anything else to help save it.  There was a pan underneath to catch the water as the ice melted and it had to be emptied periodically or it would run over in the floor.  We would have milk we could enjoy as long as we had ice, but many days without ice the milk would ruin and we couldn’t drink it —  we’d even try to draw fresh water from the well to set a pitcher of milk in and still lose it.

Daddy sold Mother’s treadle sewing machine for $10 and it was done before I knew it!  Grieve, I have.  She made all my clothes on it when I was growing up.  Oh my!

I did manage to get the iron bedstead I slept on when I was growing up; however, there was a beautiful dresser in that room that I lost.  It was a very low dresser with a large mirror.. My daddy married again after Mother died and that’s where much of our belongings went.  One Sunday afternoon, we came by here after Daddy died and nobody was home.  The bottom part of that dresser was sitting in the car shed.  Why didn’t I manage to get that when I had a chance?  My sister had the large mirror and she gave it to me. Then we had it re-silvered when we still lived in Georgia and it’s hangs over a chest that belonged to my grandfather McDaniel.  The chest is one of my prized possessions.  Early on there was a small mirror with a drawer under that stood on the left corner — it was here that he stood to shave — or so I’m told.   I vaguely remember seeing the mirror/drawer and I wonder what happened to it.  The legs of this piece of furniture are one piece from top to floor.

My mother was a telephone operator in Chattanooga in the early 1900’s, living there with her two brothers, and I have the iron bedstead and trunk she bought during that time.  How I wish I had asked more questions!! (and saved more belongings).

Antiques are very much a part of our style of country living.