Never a Wrong Turn (Ever): Behind the Scenes

I have had a couple of opportunities to go upstairs in the "Big House" at Hopewell Furnace. The upstairs is not open to the public because the floors are not strong enough to support thousands of people a year walking over the boards. There are two floors above the main floor. The first upstairs housed the Iron Master's family. It has six bedrooms, one of which has a bathroom with a bathtub and toilet in it. There was no indoor plumbing, so I am sure that the servants hauled the water up the stairs and the excretions down the stairs. The third floor was servant's quarters. There is a front staircase and a back staircase. The third floor/attic has two sections that are accessed by the separte staircases. In one window bay in the servant's quarters is a picture of a man, and a woman's name dated 1893. Hopewell Furnace stopped making iron in 1883. Family members of the owner would have been living in the house at the time. These floors are used mostly for storing items owned by the park, but not currently displayed .

Ceramic pitcher.

Cradle - long enough for a year old baby.

Graffiti.

Household items.

Child's chair with doll.

Looking through the wavy glass.

Upstairs hallway.

Hat boxes.

More wavy glass.

Kitchen.

Bathtub and toilet.

Tea anyone?

I am astonished at how steep the stairs are. I try to imagine ladys in long skirts running up and down these stairs, including the servants dumping honey pots and carrying water for the bathtub. I have trouble navigating the stairs in pants and practical shoes.