Mangling Laundry

February 12, 1936  Was 12° cold [5° F.] in the morning.  Warmed up only to 11° [7° F.].  Had strong northwest wind.  We went to Meade and to mangle.

Mangling the laundry sounds like you tore it all to pieces.  But mangling was no such thing.  The day after doing laundry, the Siemens usually went to Margaret’s mother, Katharina (Barkman) Reimer, who lived a mile and a quarter to the east, to mangle.  Nearly all things that were washed had to be ironed, and a box mangle is a device used to iron flat items, such as sheets, towels, and pillowcases.  It cannot be used on shirts, pants, dresses, and skirts, and other things that have buttons or zippers – instead these were ironed with a metal hand iron.  By the way, institutions continue to use mangles to this day.

The flat item is spritzed with water to dampen it and then wrapped tightly and smoothly around a wooden roller.  Rocks are put in a sort of trolley with a smooth, flay bottom.  The trolley is then rocked back and forth, rolling the wooden rollers back and forth with the clothes on it.  The pressure from the rocks produces beautifully crisp sheets, towels, and pillowcases.

In August 1936, the Siemens bought a used mangle from Mrs. John Harder, probably at her farm auction, so then they had their own and did not go to the Reimers to mangle anymore.  But until then it was a weekly ritual to go there for a pleasant evening of mangling and visiting.

The Siemens’ mangle can be seen in the Meade County Historical Museum, so be sure to stop to see it next time you are in Meade.  And imagine the Siemens doing their ironing with it.