To make a birch broom, a small birch tree was harvested, the bark was removed, and by making small slices along the length at one end, the broommaker could peel back thin ribbons of wood. Once enough had been peeled, the thin center core of the tree was cut off and the ribbons were folded away from the handle (the tree trunk) and tied together in a bundle. This broom was one of the first objects gathered for the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association’s Memorial Hall Museum in Deerfield, Massachusetts.
Field, Deacon Phineas. Split Birch Broom. 1875. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/1878-11-02/. Accessed on December 5, 2024.
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