This has been a rather uncomfortable summer, weather-wise, although the past couple days have been more bearable and we received some much-needed rain. The heat is bad enough, but is worse when combined with high humidity.
It’s not the heat, it’s the humidity.
Heat and humidity seem to go together here in Ohio in the summertime, making it very uncomfortable to be outdoors.
I’m glad it’s finally hot enough to complain about how hot it is.
Air-conditioning is a wonderful way to stay comfortable in the summer, but I remember the time before air-conditioning was widely used.
When I grew up we did not have air-conditioning. Not at home, not at school, not at church, not in our vehicles. We still don’t have air-conditioning at church, but a ceiling fan moves the air pretty well.
How did we tolerate the heat and humidity in those days before air-conditioning?
How did our ancestors tolerate the heat?
They had many clever tricks.
Trees were strategically placed around their homes to block the sunshine. Homes were equipped with awnings and external shutters to block the sun. My Schumm grandparents had external shutters on their home.
Homes were built with airflow in mind, windows and doors situated to allow breezes to flow through the house. Homes had high ceilings and there were often transoms above the doors for even more airflow.
Grandma Schumm kept their house cool by keeping it closed up and keeping the window shades pulled down. That worked very well, but as a result her house was also rather dark inside. The pulled shades gave the house an eerie amber tint.
Many homes back then had a summer kitchen, a separate building where they cooked meals and canned their produce, keeping the heat away from the main house. Grandma Schumm had a summer kitchen, Grandma Miller did not.
If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.
People worked smart, if they could. They did most of their outdoor work in the a.m., when it was cooler. This principle usually did not pertain to baling hay and farming in general. It seems they pick the hottest day to bale hay.
If people were able to get their work done before noon, they would sit on the porch in the afternoon, probably with a glass of cold water or lemonade. Some families even ate their evening meal on the porch.
It’s a sure sign of summer if the chair gets up when you do.
Grandpa Miller spent hot summer afternoons sitting under a shade tree or reclining in his hammock which was strung between two weeping willow trees.
People used hand fans to move the air close to them. Fans were made of silk or paper and some paper fans later had advertising on them. We still have a few paper stick hand fans at church, complements of local funeral homes.
Fan from Wendel Motor Sales, Chatt, Ohio
Fan from Wendel Motor Sales, Chatt, Ohio
Eventually floor and ceiling fans were run by electricity. One of the first ceiling fans, in the late 1880s, had fan blades connected to a sewing machine motor. The Millers had a fan shaped like a round metal ottoman that you could sit on or put your feet on. I was always careful to keep my fingers away from the blades of that fan.
Vintage ottoman fan
Placing a block of ice in front of a fan was another cooling technique.
People dressed for the weather and wore clothing made from natural fibers in light colors. Men wore straw hats, while women wore bonnets and used parasols to shade them from the sun. Grandma Miller always wore a bonnet with a wide brim, but I don’t ever remember seeing Grandma Schumm wear a bonnet.
As a last resort, some people went away to the mountains or to the beach to beat the heat. Swimming is always cooling.
I guess the bottom line is that years ago people accepted the heat and did their best to deal with it, using means that were available to them during their time period.
Fan from Fisher Hardware, Chatt, Ohio
Fan from Fisher Hardware, Chatt, Ohio
Thirty years ago, in July 1995, Chicago had a deadly heat wave. There were 739 heat-related deaths in the city. And we were there on vacation, to visit the museums and parts of the city. It was very hot when we toured the German U-505 submarine at the Museum of Science and Industry. At that time the submarine was outside the museum and it was not air-conditioned. The guide told us that the 100 degree plus temperature inside the submarine was about the same temperature the vessel would have been when it was under the water. That would have been very uncomfortable.
I am just glad someone created air-conditioning.
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That’s a wonderful story, a lovely window into a time I remember, before AC was widely used too. My house was built on or before 1883 and still doesn’t have it, except for one small window unit that we really appreciate on the hottest Chicago days.
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You house sounds wonderful and hopefully some of the methods to cool it were included when it was built. We have some relief from the heat today. It almost feels, dare I say, chilly! Thanks for writing.
Great subject Karen, I also grew up with no A.C. in any family members homes or at Parkway High, Honestly how did we survive because today I just melt when I go outside lol. Happy August 1st, Take care and God Bless You.
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I guess we just didn’t know any different and accepted the heat as something we had to bear. We sure are spoiled today, but I am very appreciative of AC and take advantage of it. Thanks for writing!
My wife and I were just talking about this. Nothing was air conditioned. The stores, churches, job places, schools, cars, none of them had air conditioning. My grandparents had a similar round electric fan that they used in their living room. I can remember then they paid a lot of money to have air conditioning added to their car. It was a luxury item in those days. I work with a lot of younger people and they have never known a time when every place wasn’t air conditioned. They would never be able to handle what we accepted as normal. Thanks for the article. It brought back a lot of memories. Alas not all memories are cool haha!
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We had a window air conditioner for a time in the 60s in our TV room, but it was pretty noisy and made it difficult to hear the TV. I also remember that AC in a car was quite a luxury. I agree that young people today don’t realize how comfortable they have it. Thanks for writing!
I found your post because Linda at Empty Branches on the Family Tree highlighted it on Friday in her Friday’s Family History Finds (https://emptybranchesonthefamilytree.com/2025/08/fridays-family-history-finds-418/), along with my post on the same topic. Though we have the same topic, our content is a little different.
This was a great post, especially because you have so many memories of your ancestors dealing with the heat.
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Thanks for the head-up. How special that both of our posts were featured. I enjoyed reading your post and I especially like your idea of ice cream as a method of beating the heat. I am glad to report that Ohio has cooled down and the past couple days have been very pleasant. Great to hear from you and thanks for writing!