Not all cooking in the 19th century was done in a kitchen. About once a week, the outdoor brick bake oven was fired up to bake loaves of bread, cakes, and pies.

The baker would build a fire in the oven, which would then burn down. This would heat the bricks to a suitable temperature.

The coals and ashes were then shoveled out and the food was put inside.

The proximity to the door and the time since the fire burned down would allow the cook to determine the temperature.

In the mid-19th century, the baking at the John Fox House was done by the head cook, an enslaved woman named Ellen who was around 40 years old in 1862.

JR Fennell is Lexington County Museum director.