7.1 Wash on Monday: A History of Your Laundry

Laundry has been on the household chore list ever since people first learned to spin plant and animal fibers into fabric. This episode traces its history from the days when a rinse in the stream was all you could do, to Romans pounding it with their feet, to Victorian women hauling and boiling 400 pounds of water for it. Until the 20th century when the automatic washer and dryer miraculuously relieved some (but not all) women of what one advice writer called the "most trying department of housekeeping." See sources and pictures on the website.  Visit the website (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. Support the show on my Patreon page for bonus episodes, polls, and a general feeling of self-satisfaction. Join Into History for a community of ad-free history podcasts plus bonus content. Follow me on Twitter as @her_half. Or on Facebook or Instagram as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices