If the Blanchet family had been able to afford an electric washing machine it would have been like this one from the collection of the National Museum of Man. Given the large number of children in the family this machine was a wise investment. It was not unusual for girls to be kept home from school to help with the care of the younger children. The many domestic tasks were arduous due to the lack of mechanization in most turn of the century homes. The laundry, alone, would have taken a full day, especially if the family had only a scrub board like the one pictured on the box of starch. It is interesting that the rosy-cheeked child on the package appears to be washing her doll's clothes in imitation of her mother doing the family laun dry. The reality of Marie's life was much harsher.
Courtesy: National Museum of Man, National Museums of Canada
