The dining room was used more like a family room by today's standards. This is where most of the family's activities would take place, and since children were not allowed in the parlour, this was one of the busiest rooms in the whole house. The adults would involve themselves in recreation and domestic matters in this room. At the end of the day, it was common to find Mr. and Mrs. Roedde sitting at the table with a stein of beer and discussing the day's events. When the weather was pleasant, strong freshly-ground coffee was often served after supper on the verandah off the dining room located on the west side of the house. One of the nice features of this room is its accessibility to the outside decks.
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Bay Window |
If you look towards the bay windows, you can see how the room mimics the shape of the cupola upstairs. The grouping of bay windows here lets in a lot of light and is an interesting feature in the room. Does your house have anything like this? This area was most likely the play area for the children. The children would do homework in the dining room and play marbles on the carpet or house under the table. As you can see, the floor is littered with children's toys and all kinds of games that would have entertained the entire family. Many of the toys displayed are not that different from what children own today. Toys such as dolls, tea sets, teddy bears, jacks, and toy soldiers were among children's favorites.
Side Board Table
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This room was redecorated after the fire damage in 1913. During a family dinner, the family Christmas tree, which had candles clipped to its branches (as decoration) caught fire. The room quickly burst into flames, but the fire was eventually put out with a bucket brigade. Luckily, the house was saved, with damage only to the dining room. If you look closely, you can still see burn marks on some of the wood trim around the bay windows.
An interesting feature
about this room is the maroon coloured material used to cover the walls. Instead of wallpaper, a cloth material called buckram has been used. Buckram was commonly used as bookbinding material and would have been used to bind books by Mr. Roedde himself. It is evident that Gustav Roedde had put his personal mark on this house and made it his home.
Dining Table
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Many of the furnishings of the dining room are very characteristic of the late 1800s. The oak sideboard is a good example of the North American Arts and Crafts style. It serves as both an attractive ornament to the room as well as a functional serving piece that was used for both formal and casual visits.
The dining room table and chairs are American Gothic revival (called Eastlake) in style, which was another popular style during that era. Presently, the table is set for an afternoon tea service. Perhaps you'll like to have some tea after the tour is done? All the furniture in the dining room work together to create an almost "masculine" character.
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