The House That Gamble Built

DawnTreader your first guess was correct. this contraption is a Match, that is what the docent told us. She said it is a piece of lighter wood and it is wedged in this piece of iron, with wood to hold it with. In a home the size of this one, their would be many, many candles to light and this was the safest way to do it.
the homes were lit by candelabra and chandelier. think about how many matches it would use up to light just one. This was also used to light oil burning lamps.

by looking at this home, would you think it was made with bricks like the one below?

this is a Tabby brick and is what this lovely home is built from.

Tabby, a mixture of oyster shells, lime, sand, and water, was found throughout the southern Atlantic Coast plantations as an inexpensive building material

Original tabby was made from a mix of slurry of water, homemade lime, local sand, and oyster shells. Occasionally, aggregates of broken glass, brick or other similar products were added. The mixture was poured into a wooden form or rectangular bottomless cradle made of finished boards approximately two inches thick.  The sides were held in place by dovetailed braces. The tabby was tamped and leveled by hand.

Round pins set at regular intervals held the cradle in place during the entire process. The tabby air-dried in its cradle for two to three days. After it hardened, the form and pins were removed and placed atop the first pour or “round” for subsequent rounds, thus building a wall in a layer-like fashion. The finished wall was then brushed with a broom before stucco or whitewash was applied

It took six long years to build this mansion, but it still stands today after 167 years. I don't think the houses we build now will last that long, do you?

Can you guess what this is? it is the subject for tomorrows blog. Also made from Tabby. I must tell you, i said yesterday I only had one more blog from my day trip. WRONG. I think I have THREE more. We shall see what we shall SEE