In 1769, fall for ordinary folks was a time to gather family and community to butcher animals, preserve the harvest, and to make useful goods, like soap. The 18th Century could use a little. It was a time of work, but alsoa fun time to divide chores and socialize. Making soap isa good example of how women usually would spend a day.

Nothing went to waste.

After the men hunted and cleaned the animals, the women took the fat. In a big cast iron kettle over a blazing fire, the fat would cook down, to cracklings and liquid. The cracklings -- the solid crunchy fat remains -- would be used in cornbread. The liquid fat would be set aside for cooking and soap-making.

A natural cleaning agent.

The next step was to make lye water, which is the natural chemical leached from wood ashes, strong enough to burn your skin.

     1. Cold water was poured through an ash "hopper" -- a square wooden box.

     2. Wood ashes were laid over a layer of straw inside the hopper. The water would pass through the ashes and straw , flowing through small holes in the bottom.

     3. The wood ash "juice" would collect in the conatiner below. Once all the water had passed through, the bucket would be dumped in the hopper again to repeat the process.

     4. The lye was ready when an egg dropped in it floated in the middle. If it floated on top, it was too strong, and more water was mixed in, if it sank, the mix was too weak, so it was sent back through the hopper again until it was just right.

Making the Soap.

The lye and fat need to be in the right proportions. Too much lye will give you a nasty sting. The following ingredients ewnt into the batch:

• Melted fat (3 pounds)
• Lye water (12 ounces)
• 1 bucket of water