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Civil War | Lighthouses | Diaries | Wickie

Early Rise: In the 19th century, families were often up by 5:00am, as soon as there was enough light outside to work by. Without the luxury of electricity, all work and chores for the day had to get done before dark. Women were expected to do the sewing and mending, keeping the house clean and doing laundry. The women of the family were also expected to cook all the meals, which Wickie helped with whenever it was needed. She also spent afternoons helping her grandmother with similar chores. As an assistant lighthouse keeper, Wickie was also responsible for helping to clean the lighthouse. Everything in the tower had to be kept spotless and that meant polishing the brass and cleaning the lens and glass in the lighthouse so the light could be seen miles out at sea.

Off to School: Schools in the 19th century were very different from what they are now. Education in the northern states was already opened to almost anyone who could attend. Schools were small, often only one room, and had only one teacher. Boys and girls of different ages and education were taught in the same room, either working on projects together or learning in groups by age. Wickie was a big help to Mr. Warner at the school, working as a pupil teacher. She taught the younger children, while learning on her own. School usually began mid-morning and continued until the early afternoon. Students at a school like the Bayville School studied many of the same subjects students do today, including arithmetic, basic sciences, literature and history (Wickie's favorite).

First Watch: After visiting with Grandmother and helping her with chores, Wickie returned to the lighthouse for the first watch. Wickie's watch started at 4pm and ended at 9pm. Each watch was five hours long, the next from 9pm until 2am and then 2am until 7am when the light could go out for the day. During the watch, all activity on the sea must me recorded in the log, including any ships that pass by, the weather and wind direction. During her watch, Wickie had to stay alert and watch the sea for any activity. If a ship was in trouble, it was her responsibility to wake up the keeper and her father and rescue the passengers. Wickie used her time on watch to write in her journal and think about the state of the world around her.

Romance: Wickie is sixteen at the time of this story. In the 19th century, sixteen was the age when girls would start being courted by young men. Daniel's daily visits were a form of dating. People at the time of the Civil War got married at a much younger age than most people do today. When Daniel went off to fight with the Union Army, he asked Wickie to wait for him. He meant that he wanted her to marry him when he returned, which she did.