These basic instructions for making a barrel smokehouse come from 1897. The smokehouse was intended for smoking small batches of meat for the family.
Barrel Smokehouse
For Smoking Small Quantities of Meat
The illustration shows a simple plan for smoking a small quantity of meat, without any expense whatever for a smokehouse. The lower barrel has a small door through which to replenish the smoldering fire in the iron kettle on the inside. The bottom of the box has holes in it similar to those in the top, the upper barrel being raised to show these. The front of the box is hinged to admit the meat. The upper barrel has neither top nor bottom and serves merely as a chimney to provide some little draft and to carry off the smoke. Two small holes in the lower barrel admit air to feed the smoldering fire.
Source: The Bourbon news. (Paris, Ky.), 31 Dec. 1897.
