Daily life
Swtan represents a way of life now extinct. The people who lived in houses like this were mostly illiterate, and therefore little remains of a written history. Some, possibly those who lived here, attended the Charity Schools of the 18the century. These schools taught both adults and children to read, with a particular emphasis on reading the Bible in their own language (Welsh). But writing still eluded the majority, and parish records show that births, marriages and deaths were witnessed only with a cross, and not a signature.
Life was hard, and manual work tedious and demanding. Sometimes the man of the house would work all day labouring on someone's bigger farm, only to return and continue on his own smallholding. The woman's work was endless - looking after the children, washing, cooking, tending to the animals, and working in the fields with her husband when he returned home. People often accomplished physical tasks which would defeat the modern youngster! If, after sewing, spinning and reading the Bible, there was any spare time, it might be spent on fishing and winkling. Sundays would be observed strictly, with whole families going to church or chapel.
The diet was basic, but nourishing. Barley bread cooked on a griddle, milk, buttermilk and potatoes would be supplemented by meat and fish. Swcan gwyn (a type of gruel). Stwns (mash) was, and still is, a favourite meal in Anglesey - potatoes were mashed in with butter, buttermilk, and beans, turnips or carrots formed the main dish, sometimes with a slice of home-cured bacon. Possible sea-kale would have been harvested from the cove below Swtan, where it still grows. Scones and bara brith (fruit bread) would become more common as currants and dried fruit became more widely available.
