Eight people living together in a claustrophobic environment like the Secret Annex required well-organised housekeeping. There was little privacy, and things left lying around or dirty dishes could lead to unnecessary tension. The following is an overview of household chores as revealed in Anne Frank's diaries and stories. External sources are virtually absent for this. Points of interest are the division of labour between the Frank and Van Pels families - what was communal, what was private - and what changed over time, and why.

Division of labor

The two families came to the Secret Annex a week apart. So, although preparations had been underway for some time, the first furnishing work was done by the Franks. Anne writes how she and her father set to work unpacking all sorts of things and improvising curtains immediately upon arrival.^[1] Curtains were certainly important, as otherwise they wouldn't have been able to turn on lights at night because of the blackout requirement.

When the Van Pels family arrived a week later, some tasks were arranged between them. There are no explicit records of this, but it can be gathered from further notes. For instance, Mrs Van Pels was usually the one who cooked the food.^[2] In the course of time, scarcity and one-sided supply of food occurred. However, there were always potatoes - peeling them was a recurring activity for all.^[3]

Hermann van Pels got involved in domestic chores as little as possible. He thought it was nonsense that 'the gentlemen' had various chores, and argued about it with Edith Frank.^[4] However, he was also the one who, when sufficient meat was supplied, made sausages - to everyone's pleasure.^[5] Otto Frank was not used to much practical work, and made merry with his youngest daughter that, as a 55-year-old, he had had to scrape out a frying pan for the first time in his life.^[6] Little information emerges about Fritz Pfeffer's contribution to housekeeping duties. A narrative from February '44 indicates that he made beds on Sundays.^[7] From some other notes, he also appears to have washed dishes.^[8]

Peter's duties included lugging all sorts of things. He carried potatoes, beans and coal upstairs; he brought the rubbish downstairs.^[9] Warehouse manager Voskuijl made sure this went with the company waste. After the latter had to leave work due to illness in early '43, the rubbish from the Secret Annex was burned in the stoves.^[10] According to the 1943 St Nicholas poem, Peter was the one who took care of the cats.^[11] Also the warehouse cats that actually belonged to the companies' 'machinery'.

The stoves

On 1 November 1942, the stove was lit for the first time since the people in hiding arrived.^[12] It was customary to start heating from around that date. From late '43, the stove was lit on Sundays at 7:30 instead of 5:30.^[13] In connection with the waste, the stove naturally had to be lit occasionally even outside the heating season. According to a B note with the date 18 May 1943, the stoves were therefore lit every other day, regardless of the warm weather. A narrative from February '44 shows that then on Sundays, the stoves were lit at 9:30 in the morning.^[14] A few weeks later, several inedible potatoes ended up in the stove.^[15] A couple of weeks after that, Otto Frank burned a bucket of wood waste that Mouschi had used because of a dirty litter box.^[16] Of course, ash was left over from everything that was burnt, which then also had to go somewhere. Stoves played an important role in the household.

Washing and cleaning

Edith Frank and Auguste van Pels did the laundry for their own families, with Edith occasionally getting help from her daughters.^[14] The 'memory document' following the burglary stated that the 'laundry barrel' in the kitchen also contained laundry belonging to Bep and Miep.^[17] The office kitchen on the first floor was important for laundry, as there was a water heater mounted there.^[18] The attic was used for drying laundry.^[14] In the spring of 1944, Anne's chores included, at least on weekdays: "Housework: quarter to 1-1 o'clock. This meant cleaning the sink."^[19] According to Anne, Margot did the dishes twice a day for at least a year.^[4]

While Mrs Van Pels mainly cooked, Edith Frank was the one who washed and cleaned. Anne writes about this: "everything is as clean as it can be in the tiled rooms."^[20] Lack of cleaning materials made housework increasingly difficult.^[21] There was a general lack of soap. This then led to a nationwide plague of fleas,^[22] which was also apparent in the Secret Annex.^[23]

There was a vacuum cleaner in the Secret Annex. Who it belonged to and where it came from is not known, but Margot was already using it before the Van Pels family arrived.^[24] Mrs Van Pels also used the appliance later.^[25] In November '43, the vacuum cleaner was broken.^[26] Nothing is known about a repair, which would mean that vacuuming was no longer possible from then on. In a story set in February '44, Otto Frank scrubs the rug with a brush.^[14]

Major chores

In early July '44, in the last weeks in hiding, there were two major household chores. First, washing and macerating the large quantity of strawberries Johan Broks had brought in. In addition, nine kilos of fresh peas had to be shelled and the pods cleaned. Everyone cooperated in this.^[27]

There was a certain division of labour that seemed to remain unchanged over time. The various people in hiding performed their duties. External factors, such as Voskuijl's departure and the scarcity of available resources, did make running a regular household more difficult over time.