Happy Birthday.......Washing Machine?!?!

The first United States Patent titled "Clothes Washing" was granted to Nathaniel Briggs of New Hampshire on March 27, 1797. Fire destroyed the patent office and no description of the device exists so it is not known what kind of washing device Briggs "invented."

When I was a little girl, I remember helping my Grandmother Hazlett with the laundry when I would visit at her house. She had an old wringer washer. There was a big open tub that the clothes would go into, and I would stand on a stool and watch them swish around. As soon as they were done, we would reach in and pull those heavy wet clothes out of the washer. There were two wooden rollers that we would feed the clothes through. My grandmother would constantly warn me about not getting my fingers caught in those rollers. The clothes would come out in long flat pieces all mashed together, and we would put them in the clothes basket to take outside to hang on the line. We would hang the shirts first, then the towels, and then my grandpa's work pants. Then she would take a long pole and hook it to the clothesline and raise the line high in the air. We would go back in and start the next load. I remember looking out the window from the breezeway and watch the clothes flap around in the wind.

When my own daughter was small, we used to hang the clothes out on the line. We no longer had the wringer washer, but she would lean her whole body into our modern washing machine and throw the clothes out to me. She would see how fast she could throw them out and giggle as they piled up on the floor while I pretended I couldn't keep up with her. We would take them outside, and she would hand me the clothespins while I would hang the clothes on the line. When we would take the clothes down, she would bury her face in them and remark at how good they smelled.

It's been a long winter. I am looking forward to hanging the clothes out and watching them flap in the wind. I sit here and close my eyes.........and I think I can smell the smell of spring on freshly washed clothes. Close your eyes and see if you can smell it too...............hmmmmm!!