Head Kitchen-maid

Inverforth House (The Hill), Hampstead Heath
(www.shellguides.freeserve.co.uk/Thm/THM.htm)

 

The second kitchen maid brought me tea in bed at 8am - I didn't have to get up so early now I was head kitchen-maid. I used to help the two younger maids out when they got behind with their jobs - I could remember what it was like - but Cook used to tell me off for that.

There were four of us in the kitchen, and in the pantry there were the butler and 3 maids. They looked after the silver and the dining-room. They used to wash up the dining-room washing-up (from the Family's meals) in special sinks. We kitchen-maids used to do all the servants' washing-up.

There were meals going on all over the house. The kitchen people, like me, ate in the kitchen, except for Cook. Cook (or Cook-Housekeeper as she was really), the butler and the lady's maid all ate in Cook's sitting-room. Her sitting-room was where the Lady (one of the daughters) came down each day to give her the menus and any instructions.

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