Weights and Measures Part 3

I know you would all like to read about what I'm doing on the house but I'm back to stripping paint off window and door frames this week and I wouldn't want to bore you with that. So I will bore you with this instead.......

A cord of wood is a pile of cut wood that is 8 feet long, 4 feet wide and 4 feet high. It contains 128 cubic feet. A cord foot is 4 feet long, 4 feet wide and 1 foot high.

See, this is much more interesting than hearing about me stripping paint off of wood, isn't it?

Liquid measure

Soon after the discovery of America in 1492 the English established a standard gallon measure that held 8 pounds of wheat of 12 ounces troy each. This was determined by statute to contain 268.8 cu. inches of water at 62 degrees F and was called the Winchester gallon. This was readily adopted in America and it became necessary to establish a national standard for customhouse purposes. On May 1, 1830 a resolution of the U.S. senate procured the construction of a set of uniform standard weights and measures to be supplied to all customhouses. For this purpose a Winchester gallon of water at a temperature of 39.83 degrees F., was taken as the standard and afterwards legalized by Congress. Hence the legal capacity was fixed at 231 cubic inches of water. As a result there was a considerable discrepancy between the English and American Winchester gallon.In the meantime, by an act of Parliament effective January 1, 1826, the capacity of a British gallon was made such to contain 10 pounds avoirdupois of distilled water at 62 degrees F. or nearly 277.5 cubic inches. This is the Imperial gallon and the only legal gallon in Britain for liquid or dry measure.

Confused yet?

Here is a table of United States standard measures for liquid or wine.

4 gills - 1 pint(pt.) 28 7/8 cu.in.
2 pints - 1 quart(qt.) 57 3/4 cu. in.
4 quarts - 1 gallon(gal.) 231 cu. in.
31.5 gal - 1 barrel(bbl.)
2 barrels - 1 hogshead(hhd.) 63 gallons
2 hogsheads - 1 pipe or butt
2 pipes - 1 tun
282 cu.in. - 1 beer gallon
36 beer gallons - 1 barrel

Here is the Imperial table

5 ounces avoirdupois of water = 1 gill
4 gills - 1 pint 34.66 cu.in
2 pints - 1 quart 69.5 cu. in
4 quarts - 1 gallon 277.25 cu.in
31.5 gals. - 1 barrel
42 gals. - 1 tierce
63 gals - 1 hogshead
2 hogsheads - 1 pipe or butt
2 pipes - 1 tun

Now for that info you have been waiting for!

7.5 English gallons = 1 firkin of beer
4 firkins = 1 barrel of beer

Now you know exactly what a firkin is!
See, I knew I could fit beer into a houseblog some how!