JACKSON HOUSE MUSEUM
KITCHEN
The kitchen was a place where the enslaved servants could gather without being constantly under the eye of the master and mistress. They not only did chores here such as cooking and laundry, but this is where they ate, and relaxed.
Welcome to the Home of Thomas and Anna Jackson! My name is Grace Abele, the site director of the Stonewall Jackson House, and I’ll be leading you on your tour today. Bringing a kitchen into the home is still a relatively new idea in the 1850s. Unlike today, where our kitchens are centers of entertainment and activities, the Jacksons would never have thought to bring their guest down to what was considered a working space. One of the innovations the Jacksons had installed in their home was the cooking stove. Amy, the enslaved cook, would have spent the majority of the day preparing meals here in the kitchen, and it may be the first time she’s learning how to use the cooking stove. The meals that Amy prepared would have used food from the Jacksons’ kitchen garden here on the property but also from the farm just outside of town. Jackson was very involved with his garden and even spent time canning food for the coming winter months. Although we know this information, it’s very unlikely that Thomas or Anna spent much time here in the kitchen. This is an area of the house that would have been dominated by the enslaved persons. It’s where they worked, took their meals, relaxed, and it’s also an area of the house where several of the slaves may have slept. When the meals were ready to be taken upstairs, Cyrus or George would have taken the food up to the dining room, and that’s where I’ll be seeing you next!
Jackson Family Items
Blue Plate
This plate belonged to Rebecca Jackson White, Thomas’s aunt. Maker’s marks on the reverse identify the plate as ironstone – a type of durable, white earthenware that resembles porcelain. It was made by the English and American potters W. Adams & Sons and bears a blue Tonquin pattern.
