Mangle
Ullapol Museum

The mangle was a tool designed for removing water from laundry by squeezing the fabrics. Later designs also pressed and smoothed.

The first known instance of using a mangle was in the mid-1400s but they were still widely used up into the twentieth century.

In most Victorian and early twentieth-century households, Monday was washday. It must have been gruelling and exhausting, especially in winter. Women would have risen early to fetch and heat water. Soaps bars would have been grated to make flakes. Then clothing would have been washed by plunging into a dolly tub and scrubbing. The mangle was used for the final stage.

Monday’s evening meal would have generally consisted of cold leftovers from the previous day due to the range or fire being in use for heating water.