2016: Homemade arch from old wood stove; 2 steam tray pans; 6 taps; 1.1 gal
2017: Same setup. 15 taps; 4.5 gal
2018: Same setup. Limited time. 12 taps and short season; 2.2 gal
2019: Very limited time. 7 taps and a short season; 1.8 gals
2020: New Mason 2x3 XL halfway through season; 9 taps 2 gals
2021: Same 2x3, 18 taps, 4.5 gals
2022: 23 taps, 5.9 gals
2023: 23 taps. Added AUF, 13.2 gals
2024: 17 taps, 5.3 gals
All on buckets
Friday, March 13, 1857
All Uncle Olivers family took supper and visited in the evening pleasant Received a letter from Mr Lewis giving another cent for lb for sugar
Morning 12F Noon 46F Evening 24F
Saturday, March 14, 1857
Finer weather. sap runs some. George tapped his trees at Uncle Olivers. made a storm tub for Daniel Aldermum. no regular sap weather for the last 16 days
Morning 17F Noon 50F Evening 32F
Sunday, March 15, 1857
Lousia and myself went to meeting with a sleigh. one third bare ground. Sap runs tolerably well
Morning 21F Noon 45F Evening 32F
Monday, March 16, 1857
Gathered 120 buckets sap old Fanny had a ewe lamb some rainy this afternoon
Morning 30F Noon 52F Evening 38F
Tuesday, March 17, 1857
Bored over the trees. gathered 65 buckets sap. Leap Can produced a fine ewe lamb.
Morning 29F Noon 43F Evening 26F
Wednesday, March 18, 1857
Sap runs well this after noon signs of rain gathered 45 buckets sap cut scions for grafting. Robins have come
Morning 27F Noon 52F Evening 42F
Thursday, March 19, 1857
Gathered 125 buckets sap. made 6 sap tubs. rained last night from southeast cloudy and some rainy to day. old close wool ewe had a pair of twin ewe lambs
Morning 42F Noon 52F Evening 40F
Bruce Treat
825 Sugar Maple Taps
3/16 w/ DSD .225 Spiles
H2O RO
H2O 2.5 X 8
Bow, New Hampshire
Friday, March 20, 1857
Cleared off in the night with some snow. froze a little sap run finely this afternoon. made 10 saptubs. Father and Cynthia sugared off. have now made 675 lbs
Morning 30F Noon 38F Evening 28F
Saturday, March 21, 1857
Gathered and boiled 70 buckets sap. had to cut it out with a stick made 20 new tubs and tapped the old trees in the woods. wind Northwest. squalls of snow to night. sap commenced running this evening and ran nearly all night.
Morning 27F Noon 39F Evening 37F
Sunday, March 22, 1857
Sap run powerfully. rather cool sunny with wind Northwest.
Morning 27F Noon 39F Evening 35F
Monday March 23, 1857
Gathered 150 buckets sap Calvin stacked with sugar for Pittsfield southeast wind cold and sour
Morning 27F Noon 39F Evening 35F
Tuesday, March 24, 1857
Gathered 120 buckets sap. Elden Burke was here to see about Apple trees for the Parsonage cloudy with a little rain sap run all last night
Morning 35F Noon 54F Evening 40F
Wednesday, March 25, 1857
Gathered 100 buckets sap Calvin arrived from Pittsfield got 15 cts for sugar washed all the tubs.
Morning 36F Noon 43F Evening 29F
Thursday, March 26, 1857
Sap ran finely bored over a few trees. Gathered 30 buckets sap drew some wood. too cold on the hills for sap
Morning 24F Noon 39F Evening 29F
Friday, March 27, 1857
Gathered 150 buckets sap boiled nearly all night
Morning 29F Noon 43F Evening 35F
Saturday, March 28, 1857
Gathered 120 buckets sap. sold Bowen of Peru 400 lbs sugar at 13 1/2 cents per lb. sirruped down about midnight.
Morning 32F Noon 46F Evening 34F
Sunday, March 29, 1857
Sap runs well. some cloudy
Morning 30F Noon 48F Evening 40F
Bruce Treat
825 Sugar Maple Taps
3/16 w/ DSD .225 Spiles
H2O RO
H2O 2.5 X 8
Bow, New Hampshire
I think they were re-drilling some of their tap holes, trying to "freshen" them.
Bruce Treat
825 Sugar Maple Taps
3/16 w/ DSD .225 Spiles
H2O RO
H2O 2.5 X 8
Bow, New Hampshire
Monday, March 30, 1857
Gathered 100 buckets sap the weather looks like spring. grafted the cherries.
Morning 30F Noon 50F Evening 36F
Tuesday, March 31, 1857
Beautiful sunny day. too warm for sugaring. sugared off in shop. have made 1353 lb sugar
Morning 32F Noon 54F Evening 38
Wednesday, April 1, 1857
Father went to Bowens with sugar. plowed a bed for peas. and stuck the brush. Elder Burke and Thomas Archibald called to see us. April showers.
Morning 32F Noon 54F Evening 40F
Thursday, April 2, 1857
Cleared off cold last night windy and blustering. drew some slabs from the mill bored over some trees.
Morning 9F Noon 24F Evening 16F
Friday, April 3, 1857
Sunny and still. signs of snow. bored the trees. Cynthia went to Worthington for money from Coit
Morning 12F Noon 43F Evening 28F
Saturday, April 4, 1857
sap run finely. gathered 100 buckets sap. beautiful moonlight this evening. Father went up to pay Albert this evening
Morning 29F Noon 60F Evening 56F
Sunday, April 5, 1857
Sap run fast all day. wind southwest, cloudy. boiled sap till 3 oclock this morning.
Morning 29F Noon 60F Evening 56F
Bruce Treat
825 Sugar Maple Taps
3/16 w/ DSD .225 Spiles
H2O RO
H2O 2.5 X 8
Bow, New Hampshire
Monday, April 6, 1857
Gathered 160 buckets sap. a powerful rain from the South. Wind shift to night to Northwest. grows colder
Morning 54F Noon 58F Evening 35F
Tuesday, April 7, 1857
Father Wright and Matilda visited to day and had a sugar eat. turned out the water from the tubs and washed them
Morning 20F Noon 40F Evening 25F
Wednesday, April 8, 1857
Olin & Clarke came up to day for a sugar eat. sap runs well
Morning 20F Noon 45F Evening 38F
Thursday, April 9, 1857
Gathered 130 buckets sap. warm day. this is the last of sugaring. sap begins to taste budily drew a load of hay from Hills
Morning 32F Noon 62F Evening 38F
Friday, April 10, 1857
Drew in the sap tubs grafs begins to grow. took Jenny Lind to Harry Root's Derby. Raining form Northeast.
Morning 45F Noon 56F Evening 41F
Saturday, April 11, 1857
Washed some of the tubs. have made 1650 lb sugar
Morning 40F Noon 56F Evening 41F
Sunday, April 12, 1857
Rainy to day some went to meeting with wagons very muddy
Morning 33F Noon 67F Evening 39F
Monday, April 13, 1857
Finished washing and storing tubs. Turned all the sheep to grass get a pretty good living Father went to society meeting a little rainy tonight.
Morning 33F Noon 55F Evening 43F
1650 lbs of sugar from 530 buckets is, I think, a little over a quart a tap? They averaged 14 cents and so grossed $231, 164 years ago, while birthing lambs and grafting fruit trees, keeping their focus on subsistence. It was clear they really had no idea what the weather would be like the next day, nor that in several short years their world would dramatically change.
"Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose"
Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr, 1849
Bruce Treat
825 Sugar Maple Taps
3/16 w/ DSD .225 Spiles
H2O RO
H2O 2.5 X 8
Bow, New Hampshire
Curious to know if there is information on what technology they had for boiling their sap? Was it cauldrons over an open fire? It must have taken them many, many hours to make that much sugar.
60ish taps on buckets
D&G Sportsman 18x63
Turbo RB15 RO Bucket