And lots of storage space!

[Gerard]

Along with plenty of dead bodies in and around Collinwood, one thing that always puzzled me was the maze of secret passage ways in Collinwood.  Other than David, few seemed to have known about them; maybe suspected, but really didn't know until stumbled upon.  I'm not talking about the closed-off wings, but the corridors found behind walls.  People, especially governesses, would occasionally get lost in them, or end up locked in a room until eventually rescued.  Now, what puzzles me is why those hallways and chambers were so filled with tons of stuff.  Unused, broken or discarded furniture, picture frames (some with pictures), bric-a-bracs, boxes, crates and trunks galore overflowing with books, papers and probably a few unwanted Christmas presents.  I'm curious how so many cast-offs ended up in there, considering that only about five generations of Collinses lived in the Great House.  What did those people do?  Redecorate every couple years?  And if so few knew of the existence of the passage ways, just who filled it all with enough items to end all garage sales?

Gerard

[Patti Feinberg]

Gerard, I was going to post about this same peculiarity.

Early ep [spoiler](it's when Roger goes through a secret passage in the drawing room to rescue locked up Vicki).[/spoiler] He seems to go on and on and on BEFORE getting to the closed off wing.

In c. 1795, were there really that many builders/laborers to make these extravagances?? Think about the actual building of secret passage ways; they would at some point have to be on at least some of the blue prints/builders notes.

I don't think there were many built.

But, it's fun!!

Patti

[MagnusTrask]

It was for the Revolutionary War.   In Britain, passageways with "priestholes" were common, for banned priests to sneak in and out of houses after the government didn't like people to be Catholics anymore.

[D_Friedlander]

In New England and probably elsewhere in the early USA, there were small hiding places for shelter against Indians, then the British during the Revolution, then some were later used as stops on the Underground Railroad, and storage of valuables.  However, in VERY few cases were these as large or extensive as the DS secret passages!  Otherwise, they'd hardly be SECRET for very long.  Since most ordinary homes were built by the families themselves, the location would vary and thus, never OFFICIALLY appear on blueprints--- and they didn't have to be large, as most people weren't expected to stay in there more than a few hours.

There was a narrow upstairs hidden room in a 1700s house in my Conn. town, which had been sealed off for many years and forgotten until the house was renovated in the late 1800s--- while the room, hardly more than a space behind a closet, wasn't marked on the house plans, there was a discrepancy in the dimensions that tipped off the new owner.  Old letters of the family that built the place revealed that they had made preparations in anxiety over the local tribes, though whatever they feared never actually came to pass.  Few worries from the Revolution either (our town has been rather boring, history-wise.)

The biggest hidden room I've seen personally was in a 1600s house in Sandwich, Mass., which ran behind the huge main fireplace, disguised as a cupboard.  Now THAT must have been uncomfortable if a fire was actually burning at the time--- hopefully they didn't need to actually use it--- or not very often, anyway.

I would imagine though, that filling one's unused house wings and passages with rubbish and unused antiques would be QUITE a fire hazard....

[Josette]

Along with plenty of dead bodies in and around Collinwood, one thing that always puzzled me was the maze of secret passage ways in Collinwood.  Other than David, few seemed to have known about them; maybe suspected, but really didn't know until stumbled upon.  I'm not talking about the closed-off wings, but the corridors found behind walls.  People, especially governesses, would occasionally get lost in them, or end up locked in a room until eventually rescued.  Now, what puzzles me is why those hallways and chambers were so filled with tons of stuff.

And, don't forget, the candles would be burning in those corridors!!!!

[Brandon Collins]

Here's a wild thought--maybe those passages were used for the war, or the Underground Railroad, and maybe, just maybe, there was another generation of Collinses that nobody knew about, and these generations lived in those secret passageways, which would explain why there was so much stuff housed within them--it was the belongings of this generation we never knew about.

Okay, so that's a bit of a longshot.

Maybe that's where the Collinses put their servants when they went insane or knew too much, or just plain bugged them--you are doomed to wander the maze of corridors and passageways forever!

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Actually, revising a bit of what Brandon said and building upon it, maybe the passageways were where the rich family members that we saw secretly allowed their poor relations to live.    Can't you just see Edward (pre the reading of Edith's will, of course) explaining to Judith that he'd received a letter from Cousin Liam from South Boston begging to come to live at Collinwood because thing's had gotten very hard for him and his family, with Edward then telling Judith that he'd agreed, but then Edward laughing that little did Cousin Liam know that he and his family would have to live in the secret passageways and have nothing to do with the rich family? And if by chance anyone from the rich family and/or their servants happened upon the secret passageways and entered them, the poor family members would all have to hide to avoid being seen or risk being tossed out. And that's why the candles were always left burning - because none of the poor relations ever had the time to put them out because they might risk being caught. It would all be very Dickensesque. 

Mystery solved. 

[loril54]

I really liked what said before. One of the reasons that there were hidden passagesays was for servents to use. Also the hidden ways could have been used for secret purposes. To go places that they shouldn't or see people. Hidden places were also used to store the wealth.  For a long time there was no such things a dependable banks.

In some houses the secret places where put there as challanges and status symbols in a house, or there is also the places that where used to spy on people and their guest. That is how you could find peoples secrets and use it against them.

How about a new history of the Collins.  Lives of the Rich and Living and Dead.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

or there is also the places that where used to spy on people and their guest. That is how you could find peoples secrets and use it against them.

That's definitely an oft used plot device. It's surprising it wasn't used to great advantage on DS because almost everyone had so many secrets to hide. 

[MagnusTrask]

Joshua had them built for the War, he said so, but I prefer the other theory.  Anyway, he talked about the passage from Josette's Collinwood room to the outside, yet didn't place a guard or lock or something at whatever point where the passage reaches the outside.   ??   Barnabas got in, got Josette, went out unimpeded.