A 130-year-old notebook compiled by Margaret Pimlott of Bowden, Cheshire, has been unearthed from a trunk in a Cheshire attic, laying out an 11-step procedure for cleaning a bedroom that would exhaust most modern housekeepers. the handbook, described as a 'fine piece of social history' by auctioneers Trevanion Auctioneers, includes everything from linoleum selection to infant feeding formulas—and a sobering statistic that one in three babies died before age one, which Mrs Pimlott blamed on 'ignorant and careless mothers.' The document offers a stark window into Victorian gender roles and domestic expectations, now set to fetch around £100 at auction.

The 11-step bedroom clean that began with rolled-up mats

According to the notebook discovered by a descendant during a recent clear-out, a proper Victorian bedroom cleaning started by rolling up all mats and removing them from the room . The procedure, as outlined by Mrs Pimlott , then required stripping the bed to air, attending to the washstand waters, brushing the mattress, dusting the bedstead, and making the bed before covering it with a dust sheet... The process continued with washing or dusting ornaments, taking down pictures to clean with a wash leather, polishing all small and large furniture (each covered with a dust sheet after), sweeping the walls with a soft broom, sweeping the floor toward the fireplace, cleaning the fireplace, and finally cleaning the windows.

Why light-colored linoleum was the Victorian bedroom ideal

Mrs Pimlott devoted a section to 'Choice, Care and Cleaning of Linoleum,' advising that light-colored patterns were best for halls and kitchens—and that a light-colored linleum was ideal for a bedroom because it was 'cleaner, more cheerful looking' and did not 'show dust so easily.' The notebook includes diagrams and instructions for cleaning lavatory drains, baking cakes, and infant feeding, reflecting the comprehensive scope of Victorian housewifery.. Simon Grover, vaaluer at Trevanion Auctioneers, noted that the notebook demonstrates 'a job for everything' and that women made their own boot cream and furniture cream, with 'very high standards expected to fulfil the housewife's role.'

One in three babies died: the sobering statistic in the notebook

The handbook, which would likely horrify modern feminists , contains Mrs Pimlott's sobering observation that one in three babies died before the age of one, adding that 'the high death rate shows how ignorant and careless mothers are with children.' This stark judgment appears alongside recipes for Everton Toffee (boiling syrup, sugar, butter, and almonds) and illustrations of four different brushes, including a 'domestic brush' for sweeping floors. The document captures not only domestic tasks but also the era's harsh social attitudes toward maternal responsibility.

A trunk in a Cheshire attic — and a £100 auction estimate

The notebook was found with family papers in a trunk in an attic of a Cheshire home by a descendant, according to the auctioneers. Simon Grover called it 'really unusual and beautifully written,' adding that the care put into it is evident. The notebook is expected to sell for £100 at auction. In March 2007,a similar 280-year-old book called The Compleat Housewife or Accomplish'd Gentlewoman's Companion by Eliza Smith was discovered, offering remedies for boils and baldness—including a recipe involving boar's grease, ash of burnt bees, and ash of Southernwood. That earlier tome, revised 18 times, shows that such domestic manuals were popular for centuries.