Rosedale Cottage

Whenever I thought of the place Lizzie was sent to live, I thought of my parents' cottage in Rosedale on the North York Moors. I imagined Lizzie climbing the steep staircase to the front bedroom and looking out of the window to watch the sheep grazing by the road below. I imagined her warming herself by the stove in the small kitchen and helping set the table using dishes from the dresser. In Lizzie's day there would have been no indoor toilet - she would have had to use an outhouse. Baths would have taken place in front of the kitchen stove probably once a week. Here are a few photographs of my parents' cottage which was the model for Elsie's cottage. The coal house has been converted into an indoor bathroom!