The floors were covered with hay, later replaced with pine boards and covered with braided rugs. Some of the floors were dirt that had been swept several times to give it a smooth surface. The curtains were perhaps made of cheesecloth. The walls were covered with lime mortar. Sometimes there were bags of seed grain stacked along the walls. There may have been a wooden cupboard for the dishes.
The housekeeper had little equipment to work with. Most of the settlers had an iron range. Many pioneers used a trunk for a table, boxes and tree stumps for their chairs. A pole framework in a corner with ropes or thongs was set up as a bedspring and served as a bed. Ticks filled with grass or feathers provided the mattress.
The men slept in the barn or in the haystack if the weather was decent.
The ladies collected rainwater in a wood barrel to wash clothes. If she lived near a creek, she would carry her laundry there, heat the water on an open fire, and spread the clothes on the bushes to dry. She made soap by boiling meat scraps, lard, wooden ashes and water in a kettle. She rubbed the clothes on a corrugated board to get them clean. The clothes were ironed with an iron that weighed about 10-12 pounds that was heated on the stove.
Many times twisted hay and dried manure had to be used for fuel.
Christ Albus, Sr. built a small house to take the place of his sod-covered house. He built the small house himself of shiplap. He made mud bricks about a foot square and the inside was sealed with them. They were made according to the method used in the old country and kept the house warm. The house measured 14 x 28 and had two rooms. He shingled it and the sloping roof kept the house dry. It was snug and warm and was used for 12 years.
In 1897 Mr. Albus decided to build a new and larger house for his big family. His new house was a Broom structure built of good lumber, sealed with plaster, shingled and finished off well inside. Chris built the house himself at a cost of $750.
Source: A History of Foster County 1983 Page 52