The flagstone floors of Orkney crofts were regularly scrubbe...
Track Information
Original Track ID
SA1969.051
Original Tape ID
Summary
The flagstone floors of Orkney crofts were regularly scrubbed.
House floors were covered with flagstones when Ethel Findlater was young but before that houses had earthen floors, as some barns still did. Flags were quarried locally and carted home by horse. Some flags were smooth and blue and others rough and grey. There were no floor coverings but the flags were washed often. Some people scrubbed the floors with sand and put sand on the floor. The byre was connected to the kitchen by a little dairy where milk was syed [sieved] and readied for churning. This area needed to be scrubbed to get the sharn [muck] off the floor. Scrubbing was done especially for Saturday nights, when there would be visitors.
Item Location
County - Orkney
Island - Orkney Mainland
Parish - Birsay
Village/Place - Breckan
Language
English, Scots
Genre
Collection
Source Type
Reel to reel
Audio Quality
Good