Were cabinets and counters deeper?

[jkbff]

I keep seeing vintage kitchen posts where kitchen sinks are free standing or hanging on the wall and the cabinets/counters seem so much deeper than normal?

Are we just pushing things closer and closer to the walls?

 

[yogitunes]

I grew up in a house where the sink was mounted to the wall, yet a metal and all the cabinets were larger/deeper, but then again, they were custom made cabinets....

the counters were either true butcher block or Formica with the metal trimmed edges..

full use of all available space, no filler blocks used for gaps and such.....

I think the idea today is smaller pieces make the area appear larger, plus with the ready-made cabinets you find today...you could put together a shake-n-bake kitchen in days...

I prefer base cabinets to be placed about 4 inches higher than standard setups....and especially bathroom vanities seem too low

for really tall ceiling heights, I rather see either tall upper cabinets, or double stacked for extra storage....most kitchens above those cabinets is left open or bare...always seems like the kitchen is not complete

 

[tomturbomatic]

That solid fuel stove might stick out to allow clearance for the flue that goes into a chimney and to keep the stove away from the wall for safety reasons. I don't think that this is an illustration of a planned kitchen with standardized cabinetry.

 

[fan-of-fans]

I think it all depended on the house. I have seen lots of old houses where the countertops were shallow. And have heard that they aren't deep enough to put in dishwashers.

Kitchens back then weren't the standardized 24" deep counters, 12" deep upper cabinets that we see now.

What is strange to me is in older houses, the stove will be on one wall by itself and the cabinets on the wall next to it, run past it, so you'd have trouble getting items out of them it would seem, and to use the counter top there, you'd have to stand with your back to the stove.

Also for some reason, it seems weird to me when the stove is next to a doorway with no cabinet between it and the traffic path, seems it would be easy to get burned with it being there if you weren't careful.

 

[tomturbomatic]

In both of my parents' houses, one built in 1955 and one built in 1965, the kitchen cabinets were stick built on site, not factory made and installed, so there was room for variation. My brother lived in a house built in the 1920s that had 12 inch deep counters in part of the kitchen. It was custom built for a woman who was a little over 4 feet tall, by her father as a wedding present.

 

[launderess]

If you look at pictures of older homes

Most kitchens had lots of shelves, but not cabinets. You stored things in a pantry or larder. Indeed IIRC the idea of kitchen full of standard sized cabinets is rather a modern invention (post WWII). Prior to the last century and for a good part of it, things were to some extent custom made.

Also consider the ways of housekeeping have evolved since prior to the 20th century and for a good part of that period. Simply put not only do housewives (and others) have more stuff which must go somewhere, the idea of "efficiency" in the kitchen and housework is another modern construct (from the 1920's).

Remember it really wasn't until post WWII that mass consumerism took off and with it came things like supermarkets, packaged goods (frozen or otherwise). Our grandmothers or great grandmothers may have stocked *some* canned and other packaged goods (such things were introduced during the Victorian era), but nothing like what many of us have in our kitchens today.

Back then you shopped nearly almost daily or every other day. You had a larder or pantry for keeping "dry goods" and or other things, but the idea of laying in supplies for the duration as most of us do today was just an alien concept. For one thing many couldn't afford to purchase so much at one go for a start.

As the "servant problem" became more acute, middle-class and even some lower upper class women had to learn how to manage their own domestic affairs. This meant kitchens that were efficient and orderly.

Post WWII with the mass housing boom (or rebuilding boom in Europe) it is easier to have things mass produced to standard sizes.

Growing up in the 1970's knew of many homes where things like dishwashers couldn't be had because of issues involving counters and or cabinet heights/depths. In extreme instances entire kitchen were simply ripped out and redecorated (grandmamma did this), which solved that problem. Others made do with portable dishwashers which solved the "built in" issue.

 

[ea56]

Both my Grandmothers went grocery shopping once a week,not daily. And I know from what my parents told me that this was the way they both shopped both during the Depression and the War. My paternal Grandma in particular really stocked up. She always had at least 3 or 4 3 lb. cans of coffee, likewise 5 lb bags of flour and sugar. and 3 lb cans of either Crisco or Fluffo. Not to mention lots and lots of canned food, both home canned and store bought. I asked her once why she kept so much extra food on hand? She said that since my Grandpa had worked on the railroad since they married in 1922 and much of the time the lived in rural areas she got into the habit of always being prepared, because it wasn't always possible to travel the long distances to go shopping. Also, since money could often be tight during the Depression it was good planning to keep supplies on hand for the lean times.

I once was rummaging through their basement and I found a stock pile of ration stamps from WW2. She was even frugal with the use of ration stamps. Since the only adult that smoked in their home during the war was Grandpa and all adults received ration stamps for tobacco she would trade with neighbors the extra tobacco stamps for sugar or butter ration stamps.

My Mom always shopped this way, and so do I although I usually only keep 1 or 2 extras as backup.
The concept of daily grocery shopping is something completely foreign to me. But one of my Mom's sister always shopped daily, go figure?
Eddie

 

[launderess]

Properly prepared and kept

Canned goods will last the duration. Flours, grains and some other things tend to get buggy if kept too long. If space allows one can stick things in the freezer however.

When in Europe tend to do the whole daily or every other day shopping thing. Most of the places one stays (house sitting and or with guests) don't have the space kitchen wise for storing large amounts of goods. Those small under counter fridges fill up fast. A few homes have larger fridges which is more inline with what one is used to; but still since one is not moving in don't want to lay in supplies for duration.

 

[wayupnorth]

Growing up, my mother could call the corner grocer with her order for the day to get delivered and once a month my father would settle up the bill, but still went to the downtown supermarket once a week. I just go once a week and keep a grocery list going so I never run out of what I need. I had to go once a week to my grandmothers as a kid and take her grocery list and go to the IGA down the street and get her stuff. She always had a molasses cookie topped with her homemade applesauce when I got back. I miss those days. Grammy's cabinets in her pantry could never be over 12" counter space, but this was an 1850ish house

 

[launderess]

Keep in mind in regard to picture in OP; many kitchens in older homes were fitted out as things (and money to pay for them) became available.

Late as the 1940's and 1950's plenty of American housewives and others were dealing with kitchens in homes built early in the century if not long before. As such things were updated as sanitary and other standards evolved. If you've seen older kitchens from say the 1880's you often had a stove/range and sink, that along with perhaps shelves was it far as mod cons were concerned.

Where once was an old wood/coal range that modern one was installed. That cabinet to right of housewife could be a larder or ice box.

http://littleredchair.blogspot.com/2012/05/1920s-kitchen-tour.html

https://www.cabinetcorp.com/2015/02/09/100-yrs-kitchen-style-whats-popular-today/

https://20thcenturyhome.wordpress.com/2012/11/07/kitchens-1920s-and-1930s/

Think what throws many of us off is those large "farm house" type sinks that aren't fitted into cabinets like today.

 

[circlew]

I'm not sure when factory-built cabinet sizes were standardized, but it was by the mid 30's. My dad's aunt and uncle built their new house in 1936, and it has Whitehead steel cabinets with Monel sinks and tops. The base cabinets are all 24" deep, with a top depth of 25". Height of countertop is 36". I must say these were very nice cabinets and sink top, and still looked almost new when we sold the house in 1991 after he passed away in 1990.

Link is to the 1937 Whitehead Metal Products kitchen catalog. Many of the specialized cabinets & accessories common today were available then.

http://https//archive.org/details/WhiteheadWorkSavingKitchens_667