The Cooper

A cooper was important in history, because he made crucial containers, such as wooden barrels, tubs, and buckets. The staves, or small wooden planks that ran vertically to form the sides of the container, was usually made of pine, cedar, or oak. A shaving horse held the wooden slat in place, while the cooper shaped it. A barrel was normally wider in the middle than on the ends. A bucket was usually narrow at the bottom and wider toward the rim.

The trussing ring held the staves in place to form a circle. These slats were heated to make them pliable, pulled tightly together by using a windlass, and several hoops were hammered into the container to make it hold its shape and not leak. Round lids were cut from wide boards for barrels, and these boards were usually joined together to get them wide enough. Sometimes a hole might be drilled into it and plugged, so liquids could be poured out.

Coopers favored white oak for wine; red oak for molasses or sugar; and willow for tubs, buckets, or churns. All of these came in different sizes. Barrels also stored things like salted meat, fish, pickles, rum, cider, beer, and water. Since goods were shipped and stored in barrels, and every household needed buckets and tubs, if not barrels, the cooper was an important part of a community.

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