They say a picture is worth a thousand words. This one may not do quite a thousand, but it says a lot.
This man may or may not still be alive. The picture was taken 47 years ago. I never knew his name but he was kind enough to pose for a photo because he had his unique working outfit on.
His job was to clean the chimneys.
So what do you see (anywhere) in the photo?
Some of what I see horrifies me, so please don’t be afraid to say what you see. You won’t hurt my feelings.
I’m looking forward to hearing your observations.
wordsfromanneli 
September 16, 2024 at 12:04 pm
Wow! I remember seeing them in the UK when I was a child. It’s an important job to prevent chimney fires but other than his brushes, he has no safety/breathing equipment of any kind and he’s not even wearing any socks! Bare feet up on those roofs? Yikes. It’s important for him to wear a black outfit but not important enough for him to be at all protected. Crazy.
Is that a farm? Or rural area? It looks like there’s manure(?) on the left side of the photo at the neighbouring house. An interesting photo, Anneli. It’s shocking to think that chimney sweeps were still working like that as late as 1977.
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September 16, 2024 at 1:07 pm
Small town. Very rural. But in those days, no one thought about all those safety issues. I wondered if anyone would notice he wasn’t wearing socks, and he couldn’t safely wear those slip-on shoes on the roof. Shudders!
And yes, the manure pile with the bedding “airing” out right nearby!
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September 16, 2024 at 12:14 pm
When we lived in Michigan, we hired chimney sweeps. They came in their old-fashioned chimney sweep outfits. It was quite fun. But there was never just one of them. Not safe! is that a chain saw poking out upstairs hahaha?
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September 16, 2024 at 1:08 pm
Haha. Not a chainsaw, but I’m not sure what it is.
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September 17, 2024 at 11:55 am
It kind of looks like one, doesn’t it?!
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September 16, 2024 at 1:31 pm
Hi fellow Michigander!
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September 17, 2024 at 11:54 am
Hah hi John!
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September 17, 2024 at 1:04 pm
👍🏻😂
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September 16, 2024 at 12:26 pm
I think the chimney sweeper is you. But the chainsaw doesn´t fit into this time also, so I am not sure.
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September 16, 2024 at 1:10 pm
No, there is no chainsaw. That’s a wire brush for the chimney.
And it’s not me! I don’t have a mustache! But thanks for your thoughts, Ursula.
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September 16, 2024 at 12:37 pm
Looks nothing like I expected.
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September 16, 2024 at 1:12 pm
I’m horrified by the bedding being hung out by the manure pile, but I guess they don’t smell it anymore, with it being there under their noses all the time.
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September 16, 2024 at 1:23 pm
Was this in Canada? I’ve only read about chimney sweeps. I did notice the poor guy wasn’t wearing proper shoes for work like that.
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September 16, 2024 at 1:35 pm
I didn’t see that he isn’t wearing socks, but the pile is obvious and I wonder why the linen or sheets are hanging out the window? I owned a home in the 90s that had a dangerous chimney. It was condemned until a steel sleeve was installed inside the chimney. Creosote is very dangerous.
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September 16, 2024 at 2:39 pm
Always good to hang the bedding outside by the byre. Not exactly April Fresh. Happy Monday Anneli. Allan
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September 16, 2024 at 2:55 pm
You’ve got that right!
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September 16, 2024 at 3:51 pm
I see the chimney sweep and the laundry. Our chimney never goes on the roof. He does it all inside with a video camera and all. I don’t see any manure? What am I missing? People used to air their bedding on nice days.
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September 16, 2024 at 7:15 pm
The manure pile is on the left.
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September 16, 2024 at 4:04 pm
I don’t see any manure, although the piles on the left side might be bedding straw from a barn. I wonder if the thing poking out the narrow slit in the wall on the left is part of a guttering system. It looks like the sort of ‘downspout’ that sometimes was used in farm buildings some decades ago.
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September 16, 2024 at 4:05 pm
Oh — and airing bedding in a window like that used to be common in my grandmother’s town. I didn’t give that a second thought, since it seemed so familiar.
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September 16, 2024 at 9:39 pm
Yes, and beating a carpet that’s hanging over a railing or out a window….
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September 16, 2024 at 7:16 pm
Good eye, Linda. So maybe you and Cindy are right and it’s bedding straw. Still not very aromatic.
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September 16, 2024 at 7:35 pm
Depends. If it’s new straw waiting to be used, it might have that nice, earthy scent.
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September 16, 2024 at 9:39 pm
Okay … maybe….
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September 17, 2024 at 6:08 am
Dear Anneli
In Germany it is believed that to see a chimneysweep brings luck.
We see bedding airing, a heap of manure and a nondescript wall of a house. And there are wet (?) patches on the wall and the yard.
Our chimneysweep does the cleaning from inside using his brush and a strong vacuum cleaner. He is still dressed like an old fashioned chimneysweep.
All the best
The Fab Four of Cley
🙂 🙂 :-):-)
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September 17, 2024 at 10:40 pm
Interesting that you noticed the wet patches too. I wondered what that might be from. Also, the window frames need some work. I didn’t know that about the chimney sweeps bringing good luck.
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September 17, 2024 at 1:52 pm
Great question, Anneli. I see a man who enjoyed his job and never worked a day in his life.
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September 17, 2024 at 10:42 pm
That’s how it should be. Thanks, Grant.
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September 17, 2024 at 3:42 pm
Also coming from Germany, I concur with Klausbernd this is the classical chimney sweep who is supposed to bring luck and expects to collect a large tip at year’s end from the house owners. Horrible, not in my view, is perhaps the bedding and other night time paraphernalia. They might be a bit smelly. Haha!
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