The 1850s Workroom was restored to the early Victorian era, when Ruth Ireland and her daughter, Mary Ireland, would have spent a lot of time in the basement workroom preparing food and spinning yarn.
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Basement
1850s Workroom, 1850s Kitchen
1850s Workroom
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1850s Workroom - Brick floor
The brick floor in the basement was dropped about 8 inches to raise the ceiling height and make the rooms more open for guests.
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Oakridge Farm Property - Volunteers moving bricks back into the Ireland House basement
This meant that all of the bricks had to be totally removed from the house and then put back.
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1850s Workroom
The two large tables in the workroom were built right in the room during the Victorian era. These tables are so large that they have never been moved out of the basement.
1850s Kitchen
The 1850s Kitchen was the original and only kitchen in the house when Ruth and Joseph Ireland finished building the home in 1837.
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1850s Kitchen - Rebuilding Basement Stairs
The stairs leading down to the basement kitchen from the dining room were completely rebuilt.
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View of 1850s Kitchen - Including Stairs, Furnace Room, and Root Cellar
A modern furnace room was built into the basement to help keep future guests and artifacts safe.
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View of Furnace Room
The new furnace room was likely part of the original basement root cellar.
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1850s Kitchen - Rumford Cooking Hearth
The Ireland’s bricked up their Rumford cooking hearth, likely at some time in the early 20th century. It was re-opened and restored during the restoration
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1850s Kitchen - Rumford Cooking Hearth and Entrance to Root Cellar
The basement walls were limewashed during the restoration. This type of paint was historically used to stop mould growth and as a disinfectant.
Basement Walls
When temperature fluctuates, moisture in the concrete tends to expand and create internal pressure. Spalling occurs when concrete has cracked and delaminated from the surface.
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Workroom Bare Walls
The Workroom concrete spalling being removed.
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Bare Walls vs. First Coat of Limewash
Similar to the restoration completed at the hearth, the basement walls were limewashed. The paint is ideal as it is fire retardant, antiseptic, antifungal, and odourless.