CLAYVILLE RIIRAL LIFE CENTER & MIISEUM Pleasant Plains, IL 62677
Publications Series I1 Research Report #8 MIDWEST FOODWAYS AND THEIR ROOTS: REPORTS FOR THE CLAYVILLE FOOD PROGRAM
bp Linda Oelheirn Graduate Assistant, 19 77- 78
IBROIVN~SCORN PLANTEE
Sangamon + state $@ University 4 Springfield, Illinois 67208 CLAYVILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER & MUSEUM
Pleasant Plains, IL 62677
Publications Series I1
Research Report #8
MIDWEST FOODWAYS AND THEIR ROOTS:
REPORTS FOR THE CLAYVILLE FOOD PROGRAM
by Linda Oelneim Graduate Assistant, 1977-78
Sangamon State University Springfield, ILlinois 6270E TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Broadwell Food Traditions and Central Illinois Food Habits ...... 1
2. Kitchen Utensils and Equipment of the 1800sinCentralIllinois ...... 7
3. Vegetables and the Garden ...... 16
4. Staples in Central Illinois: i'ood Habits of the Mid-19th Century ...... 20
5. Beverages in Central Illinois and the Broadwell Food Traditions ...... 25
6. Herbs, Spices and Extracts in Rural Illinois Foodways ...... 29
7. Fruits and Nuts in Central Illinois ...... 33
8. Menu Planning for Broadwell ' s Kitchen, Clayville Inn and Farmhouse ...... 37 CLAYVILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER & MUSEUM
Linda Oelheim, Graduate Assistant, 1978
1. Broadwell Food Traditions and Central Illinois Food Habits
I. BROADWELL ROOTS AND THEIR FOOD TRADITIONS:
The Broadwell family folk background is to be found partly in Union and Morris
Counties in Northern New Jersey. They started in and near Elizabeth, a town founded by Puritans from various parts of New England. Moses and Jane's great- grandfather, William Broadwell came directly to Elizabeth from England in 1677.
He was part of a group of artisans who settled in Elizabeth, to help meet the needs of the farmers and other settlers. His second wife, Mary Morse, was the daughter of Robert Morse, one of the founders of the "Elizabethtown Associates". Therefore, she came from a family with strong Puritan beliefs. Mary was the mother of William
Broadwell 11, Moses and Jane's grandfather.
It is reasonable to suppose that the Broadwell foodways traditions were strongly of New England, with some foodways possibly more directly coming from English food traditions. It is interesting to speculate on how much William Broadwell's English foodways influenced his wife's New England food traditions. The environment of New
Jersey would have influenced their traditional foodways. What the Broadwells could successfully raise and grow for meat, grain, vegetables and fruit in that soil and climate obviously had an impact.
11. NEW ENGLAND FOODWAYS:
The common meals of New England usually included boiled salt beef or pork with cabbage and turnips, chicken and wild game varied the meat dishes.
In the early spring and summer, greens were eaten as well as "salads of cucumbers". The greens eaten were milkweed, marsh marigolds, nettle and dandelions.
The most popular desserts were puddings, pies and cakes. Baked Indian Pudding was very commonly served as well as pumpkin and apple pies or gingerbread for dessert. These desserts contained ingredients that were usually found in New England homes: cornmeal, molasses, milk, pumpkins and apples. As people moved into the midwestern states these ingredients were to remain as common staples.
The following is a sampling of New England foods: brick oven baked beans with pork, bean porridge, fish stews, fish chowders, fried meats, boiled dinners, brown bread, made of cornmeal and rye, johnny cake, griddle cakes, corn mush, hasty pudding with maple syrup, Indian pudding, blueberry slump, pumpkin pie, apple pie eaten with cheese, baked apple dumplings, cranberry sauce, horseradish, doughnuts and cider eaten in October, blackberry cordial and pound cake at weddings.
A meal in New England during the week might include clam chowder or Red Flannel
Hash, made with beets and served with sour milk biscuits and maybe curd cheese with tansy. Dessert might be apple sauce with butter and nutmeg or gooseberry pie.
Fish would probably be served on Saturday, also usually the baking day. Sunday dinner would be baked beans with brown bread; Sunday night supper, johnny cake and milk Sth baked apple cut up and put in with the cake and milk.
111. COMMON MEALS OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS:
The following meat, fish and seafood were advertised in Springfield stores in the years 1848 and 1851:
1. Mackarel in barrels in May and November
2. Whitefish
3. Codfish
4. Salmon
5. Shad
6. Herring, in quarters, halves and barrels
7. Fresh lobsters
8. Clams
9. Fresh cove oysters in winter
10. Tin cans of oysters, clams, salmon and sardines 11. Dried beef
12. Bacon
13. Hams, city cured
14. Sausage and spare ribs from Bunn's Pork House
15. Pork
There seems to have been an abundance of fish and seafood as well as pork
and beef. It is likely that urban people bought more meat than those who lived
in rural areas. W. A. Tunnell's Journal shows purchases of bacon and beef, 23 pounds
each, in 1849, while he was still farming. He did not purchase meat in 1850, but butchered hogs and sold his pork to supplement his crop income from corn, wheat and
oats, and also income from selling butter and cloth called linsey. When he again
purchased meat it was more bacon than beef. In the spring and summer of 1851, he
bought 604 pounds of bacon and 23 pounds of Beef of Tinly. In 1852, he sold pork
in the form of bacon, buying only beef that year. Therefore, pork, especially bacon,
would seem to be the dominate meat consumed by the Tunnel1 family with beef being
the second kind of meat eaten.
Pork was also a major food item for people who settled around Peoria, Illinois,
at least as seen by Sarah Aiken. Miss Aiken came to Peoria in 1832, when she was
fifteen years old. She wrote letters to her friend in New York, describing her new
life in Illinois. In September of 1835 she wrote of the settler's diet; "and here
they can spend their days in ease and eat pork and hominy." But pork does not
seem to be the only meat eaten, for she tells of eating prairie hens and roast
venison, which she describes as "quite common". She also writes of missing the
apples and blue plums of New York, instead they "ate only melons". She also
tells of making bread and butter, but no cheese of which she expressed much relief.
Meat that was listed in the estate inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties
was usually listed as pork and sometimes bacon. Therefore, it would seem that
pork was the main meat consumed at least by people living in rural areas even by
the 1850s. Pork, however, could be supplemented by beef and fish acquired from farmers or stores in towns such as Springfield.
IV. IMPLICATIONS FOR THE CLAYVILLE FOOD PROGRAM:
Since pork seems to have been the main meat consumed, then meals prepared in the kitchen should reflect this. However, more research would have to be done as to whether the Broadwells raised or bought most of their meat as well as staples.
It probably can be assumed that the Broadwells grew most herbs and vegetables that they consumed. If the Broadwells were mainly farmers or raised most of their meat, then pork was probably the main kind of meat consumed. A Foodways Exercise
Holiday or Special Occasion Meals
W. A. Tunnell supplied the following food and utensils for a Mason's dinner in November, 1852. This was perhaps a Thanksgiving or even Christmas dinner.
Food Utensils
Flour 6 pie plates 19 dozen eggs 2 dozen little pans 2 lb. raisins 4 pie pans 3 bushels apples 2 molasses cans 1 lb. pepper 2 butter knives allspice 2 tea trays 4 oz. nutmeg 1 carving knife 5 lb. loaf sugar 2 oz. cinnamon 10 lb. butter 92 lb. beef and mutton 3 lb. sugar plums 5 turkeys 24 dozen lozenges 15 lb. cheese 4 geese 1%bushel sweet potatoes Irish potatoes
11. WHAT DO YOU THINK WAS COOKED:
Food served at the dinner might have been roast or baked beef, mutton, turkey or goose, baked sweet potates, baked or mashed Irish potatoes, with desserts of apple pie and plum pudding.
The sugar plums listed by W. A. Tunnell were small round or oval sweetmeats, made of boiled sugar and variously flavored and colored. Sweetmeats were cakes, preserved or candied fruits, sugar nuts, globules, lozenges, drops or sticks. SOURCES USED
1. Aiken, Sarah. Letters, 1833-1836, to Julia Keese, Keeseville, N. Y. (Manuscript, ISHL) from Peoria, Illinois.
2. Carson, Gerald, "The Yankee Kitchen", American Heritage Cookbook.
3. Crayon, J. Percy. Rackaway Records of Morris City, New Jersey Families. Rackaway, N. J.: Rackaway, 1902.
4. Illinois Daily Journal, Vol. 1, 1848.
5. Illinois Daily Journal, Jan. 2, 1851.
6. Spackling, Helen. Customs on the Table Top. Sturbridge, Mass.: Old Sturbridge, 1958.
7. Tunnell, W. A. Journal, 1847-1852. Greene Co., Illinois. (~anuscriptat ISHL)
8. Thirty-one Estate Inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties. (Clayville Office Research Files)
9. Wertenbaker, Thomas J. The Founding of American Civilization, The Middle Colonies. New York: Cooper Square, 1963. CLAYVILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER & MUSEUM
Linda Oelheim, Graduate Assistant, July, 1978
2. Kitchen Utensils and Equipment of the 1800s in Central Illinois.
This report on kitchen utensils and equipment contains information on dishes, glassware, knives, forks and spoons, tablecloths and napkins and cooking equipment, as well as a list of utensils and equipment that could be bought in 1848 and 1851.
Also included is a section on the cleaning and care of wooden and iron kitchenware.
The section on comments and recommendations contains a diagram of the kitchen with recommended changes in furniture and work areas and topics needing further research.
The last section contains copies of photographs and drawings of Queen's Ware designs by Wedgwood.
I. Dishes:
In New England before the late 1700s, pewter, treenware and red or brown glazed pottery was used in the kitchen. Treenware was usually wooden dishes, bowls, noggins, and trenchers. The glazed pottery was available in the form of milk pans, jugs, bowls, mugs, cups and saucers, pitchers and plates.
However, by 1750, newspapers of Boston, New York and Philadelphia were ad- vertising white stoneware tea cups, saucers, bowls, plates, salt and milk pots.
The white stoneware was known as salt-glazing, which became established along with
Queen's Ware, copper plated and plain, Tortoise Shell and "Agate Ware" by 1771.
By 1790, plain and blue and green edged creamware was replacing pottery and pewter in New England, the creamware being produced by Leeds and Wedgwood of
England. From 1816 until the 1830s, "Blue printed" ware, an imitation of Canton China, was popular. After the 1830s, China and earthenware of light blue, black, brown, pink and green were becoming popular.
The type of dishes most frequently advertised in the Springfield and Buffalo,
Illinois, stores was Queen's Ware by 1848. It was usually advertised with glassware and other kinds of dishes, such as flowing blue, white granite and blueware.
Queen's Ware was developed by Josiah Wedgwood in England during the late 1700s.
It was improved creamware that was usually left plain or decorated with enamelled borders or raised bands of leaves called Jasperware. In the middle 1800s, Queen's
Ware was stained new colors, sky blue called "lavender", sage-green called "caladan" and "buff cane". A new type of Queen's Ware called "Parian Ware" was developed that had a fine white body resembling marble.
While the estate inventories do not list creamware dishes, they do list plates made of tin and china. One inventory listed six lots of dishes. Therefore, more research needs to be done into how many people actually purchased Queen's Ware, although ads in the Illinois Daily Journal seem to indicate it was very popular and less expensive since it was not china.
11. Glassware :
Glassware appeared in New England after 1825, especially for the average person's table. It was produced more cheaply and in greater quantities by the middle 1820s.
The stores in Springfield, IL., usually advertised glassware with Queen's Ware.
J. Bunn Groceries in Jan. 2, 1851, advertised glassware tumblers, pint and half flasks, quart and half gallon jars and tie-over jars.
Glasses and glass tumblers were listed in the estate inventories, so they would appear to be fairly common in homes of Sangamon County. Since tumblers, cups of china, tin and even silver were also listed, it would seem that a variety of containers were used by the 1850s for beverages.
111. Knives, Forks and Spoons:
Knives, forks and spoons were in common use in New England by 1770. Two and three tined forks, with handles of wood, bone, bone stained green and ivory were used into the 1800s. The forks were usually made of steel, since silver was very expensive. Knives were used for cutting as well as for eating food into the 1820s.
Knives and forks were usually listed together in the estate inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties, while spoons were listed separateJy as were plates. Tablespoons and teaspoons were listed. Some were even made of German
Silver which was really nickel, zinc and copper used together to resemble silver.
German Silver was used for forks, knives, spoons and jewelry in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Since knives were listed together with forks,and spoons were separate in the inventories, perhaps this was also true for tables when they were set. Spoons may have been used only when really needed as with tea; thus the name teaspoons, and with soup or vegetable bowls, thus the name tablespoons.
IV. Tablecloths and Napkins:
Tablecloths were more commonly used than napkins before the late 1820s. Cloth used for tablecloths was white damask, diaper or basketweave.
The estate inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties listed linen and oil tablecloths; napkins were not listedjat least not separately.
Oilcloth, table and stand covers could be bought at J. M. Burkharat's store in Springfield in 1848.
V. Miscellaneous Utensils:
Other utensils that were found in the estate inventories or mentioned in cookbooks were wooden mashers, sometimes referred to as "potato beetles", rolling pins, mortars and pestles, steelyards, seives and strainers.
Wooden mashers or "potato beetles" were used throughout the 1800s. By the
1850s potato mashers could be bought with wooden handles and wire heads. (See the following photographs for both kinds of mashers.)
Mortars and pestles were used for grinding and crushing spices, herbs, sugar, salt and soda. They were probably one of the most useful utensils for preparing meals.
The oldest known rolling pins were made from a solid piece of wood and were called knob-end pins. They were used before those with rotating barrels.
Grooved rolling pins were used for making cookies and hardtack.
Steelyards were the only kind of scales listed in the estate inventories.
The following photographs show a wrought iron steelyard used in the 1750s and one made of iron.
Since the Broadwell Inn kitchen included potato beetles, mortars and pestles, as well as rolling pins, these should be incorporated in food preparation as much as possible.
The following is a list of utensils and equipment that were advertised in the
Springfield stores in 1848, 1850 and 1851.
1. Boston refrigerators
2. China, glassware, Queen's Ware from St. Louis
3. Stoves
A. Resor's double oven cooking - 3 sizes B. Resor's phoenix oven cooking - 3 sizes C. Resor's improved premium cooking - 3 sizes D. Ball's patented air tight cooking - 2 sizes E. Davis improved premium cooking - 4 sizes F. St. Louis victory premium Cooking - 4 sizes
4. Tinware and woodenware
5. Sperm and mold candles
6. Molasses cans, earthen and stoneware
7. Knives, forks and teaspoons
8. Cedar churns, wooden churns
9. Brass kettles
10. Half bushel measure Well buckets, painted and Beaver (wooden), covered wooden buckets
Meal sifters (nos. 14 & 16)
Wooden bread trays
Wooden nest boxes
Wooden mop handles
Coffee mills, waffle irons
Mincing knives, corn brooms
Tea Trays
Brit-A-Ware from St. Louis, This metal was made of tin, antimony, zinc,
brass and copper. It was harder than pewter and looked like silver when
it was polished. In the 1800s it was used for tea and coffee sets, trays,
tureens, vegetable dishes and candlesticks.
VI. Cleaning and Care of Kitchenware:
For general cleaning of kitchen and kitchenware, these soaps could be bought by 1848; yellow soap, fancy soap, castile soap, rosin and toilet soap. Castile soap along with brown soap was advertised in 1851. Castile soap may have been used to wash glassware and dishes, since nice white soap was usually used. Mt. Eagle
Tripoli was advertised as a cleaning and polishing material for glass and metal.
Chloride lime could be purchased for use as a disinfectant.
The following procedures on care of treenware and iron utensils were taken from a modern source and hopefully, will help interpreters to care for wooden and iron utensils properly, at least until more research can be done on the methods used during the 1800s for disinfecting and caring for wood and iron ware.
Daily care of ironware includes washing, drying thoroughly and lightly coating the utensil with oil. Pots should not be stored with lids on top. For storage during long periods, the iron utensils should be thickly coated with salad oil, boiled linseed oil, petroleum jelly, unsalted fat or paraffin, wrapped in paper and stored in a dry place. General care of iron forks and mincing knives includes sharpening and lightly oiling tines of forks and blades of the knives.
Daily care of treenware or woodenware includes wiping clean or washing quickly in warm water. If the utensil is scrubbed then it should be reoiled or rewaxed. Putting baking soda in water used to clean woodenware will remove odors.
The following procedures are recommended to sterilize old wooden utensils: scrub with a brush and warm sudsy water with a few drops of disinfectant added.
Place on racks, pour boiling water over and dry in the sun or open air. When completely dry, rub salad oil into wooden utensils, wait ten minutes, repeat, and wipe off any excess oil. Wooden bowls maybe finished with a thin coat of paraffin wax or beeswax. Heat wax in a tin can that is set in a pan of boiling water, carefully pour wax over bowls.
The following solutions to two common kitchen problems encountered at Clayvill were taken from Old Old Western Recipes Used Before 1867 by Joseph B. Mickey.
1. To prevent mice damage: scatter cloves in drawers and cupboards.
2. To remove burned foods. cover burned area with baking soda, add hot
water, let set awhile. Then pour off and remove loose pieces. Cover
with a small amount of soda and water, boil for ten minutes, scour
off remaining pieces.
More research needs to be done into the 1850s methods for dealing with common
kitchen problems of clean up, disinfecting and getting rid of pests such as flies
and mice. CLAWILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER AND MUSEUM
FOOD AND KITCHEN UTENSILS IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS IN THE 1850's
SOME RESEARCH TIDBITS
I. Reproduction: Acquiring
Although Clayville at present does not need to buy expensive reproductions, many living history sites find themselves in the position of needing to. It can be very costly. Plimoth Plantation paid $500.00 for a hard-to-locate 17th century cast iron kettle. After this was acquired and the mold made, the cost of the reproduction kettle was but $20.00.
11. Utensils
A. Creamware, which was not China but earthenware, was replacing pewter and pottery in American homes as early as 1790. Queen's Ware by Josiah Wedgwood, which is still made today in England, was very popular in Springfield. It was usually plain or edged with borders of blue and green. Ads carried in the Illinois Daily Journal by Springfield stores always listed Queen's Ware as the main kind of dishes available for sale.
B. Stores. Springfield stores in the early 1850's placed ads in the Illinois Daily Journal for -six different kinds of cookstoves with as many
as four sizes listed for an individual stove model. Many- stoves were listed in the estate inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties; with half of them described as cookstoves.
111. Food
A. The typical Central Illinois farmer might have subscribed to the -Prairie Farmer, tasted his first roasting corn+ and consumed large amounts of coffee and pork in the 1850's. W. A. Tunnel1 of Green County, Illinois, in his "Journal" for 1850 wrote about these new activities and he was probably typical.
B. Farm families could purchase from Springfield stores many kinds of staples including five kinds of white and brown sugar, molasses, syrup and honey, cocoa and chocolate and even yeast powder. Fruits such as fresh lemons, raisins, dates, prunes and figs were also for sale in the 1850's.
C. A family going to Springfield for supplies could buy bottled soda water if it was summer or Newark Cider if it was winter at Gray's Bakery.
D. Pork and beef, with some veal and poultry,were the main kinds of meat, but fish and seafood were also available. Stores in Springfield advertised fresh lobster and oysters and cans of clams, salmon and sardines.
% This diary reference probably indicates the first roasted corn of the season rather than first experience with roasted corn in his life. ELH Note.
Linda Oelheim Graduate Assistant 4/78 Recommendations for Furniture, Equipment and Work Area Changes for Kitchen:
1 have these recommendations to make concerning work space changes in the kitchen. These recommendations came as a result of reviewing the kitchen organization of last season and from studying the estate inventories of Sangamon and Menard
Counties.
I recommend that:
1. the cupboard be moved into the kitchen, if meals will continue to be
eaten there. It can be used to store dishes, utensils and linens.
2. if the pie safe cannot be moved out of the kitchen, then it can be
relocated by the window. (See diagram) I found no evidence of pie
safes in the estate inventories, while cupboards were quite common
in the inventories.
3. the clock will remain in the kitchen, since clocks were also frequently
listed in the inventories.
4. the area below the dry sink will be cleared out and used for storage
of utensils and equipment. I recommend that things to be hidden from
the public be moved out of the kitchen.
5. a wash up area be provided either outside or in the kitchen itself.
The area will be provided with pan, soap and towel. I hope the use
of this area will discourage use of the modern sink.
6. use of the well and cellar for cool storage be encouraged at least on
experimental basis, especially for storage of eggs, cheese and butter
This would follow preservation methods of the 1800s for these foods. Sources Used:
1. Fischer, Stanley. British Pottery and Porcelain. New York: Bell
2. Graham, John M. Wedgwood. New York: John B. Watkins, 1948, pp. 70-71.
3. Illinois Daily Journal, 1848 and 1851.
4. Lantz, Louise. Old American Kitchenware, 1725-1925. New York: Thomas Nelson, 1972.
5. Sprackling, Helen. Customs on the Table Top, How New England Housewives Set Out Their Tables. Sturbridge, Mass.: Old Sturbridge Village, 1958.
6. Thirty-one Estate Inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties. (Clayville Office Research Files)
7. Wedgwood, Josiah. Staffordshire Pottery. New York: Robert M. McBride, 1947. pp. 105, 107-108. CLAYVILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER & MUSEUM
3. VEGETABLES AND THE GARDEN:
Few vegetables were advertised in Springfield, IL., stores during the late 1840s and early 1850s. "The Cottage Garden and Nursery" advertised the following vegetables and herbs in 1851: Irish potatoes, parsnips, cabbage, celery, best winter squashes, cucumbers for pickling, sweet potatoes and sage.
Therefore, it would seem that people in the Springfield area during the 1850s still grew a lot of their own vegetables or perhaps bought or traded with local
farmers. W. A. Tunnell from Greene County bought the following fruits and vegetables,
1/3 bushel of potatoes and 1/2 bushel of apples after moving his family from his
farm to the town of Greenfield. However, even though the Tunnell family had moved
in town, three and seven-eights acres had been bought near the house for a garden.
The following is a list of vegetables planted in 1859 in the Tunnell garden:
May, 1859 planted:
1. common yellow corn, paper king, Philips
2. Saint Paul potatoes
3. Irish potatoes from Buchanan
4. Cornfield beans
Fourth week of May planted:
5. White Yankee beans
6. Chinese sugar cane
7. pumpkins, squash, melons
8. one paper of white Poland oats
9. white globe onions
10. mixed nasturtiums
11. Danish Ovaurki and Champion of England peas 12. French sugar beets
13. squash
14. carrots
June 1 and 2 planted:
1. French sugar beets
2. carrots
3. long Dutch parsnips
4. bush squash
5. peas from Henry Jaynio
6. Yankee beans
The results of his garden were as follows: those that did poorly were oats, onions, peas, beets and parsnips, while pumpkins, squash, melons planted in with the corn did well.
W. A. Tunnell did not record other common vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, okra or turnips. He had raised turnips in 1850 perhaps to sell or for fodder. He had his "first roasting corn" in August, 1850. Therefore, it is possible another garden was planted for other common vegetables and herbs, since he had grown corn, cabbage and turnips in earlier years. The sugar cane I assume was planted to supply sugar for his family as well as molasses. I do not know whether the oats were used for his family or his stock, however, he seems to have grown them quite frequently.
W. A. Tunnell recorded buying garden seed in 1851 and it would appear that he also bought most of his seed in 1859. The Prairie Farmer in 1850 listed a variety of vegetables, both traditional Northern and Southern vegetables, for a year's supply for one family. The list included the following: asparagus, beans, beets, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, celery, cress, cucumber, carrots, early corn, egg plant, endive, leek, lima beans, lettuce, mustard, melons, okra, onions, parsley, parsnips, peppers, pumpkins, peas, radishes, salsify, spinach, tomatoes, turnips, pot and sweet herbs.
The Prairie Farmer called carrots, parsnips, and pumpkins "commonly grown",
while tomatoes were considered a new vegetable, although it must have been grown
quite frequently since the Prairie Farmer had many recipes on tomato preservation
and preparation.
Vegetable recipes from Hannah Glasses' cookbook The Art of Cookery Made Plain
and Easy, published originally in the late 1700s in England, included spinach,
cabbage, carrots, parsnips, turnips, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, and
artichokes. These were usually recommended to be boiled and seasoned with butter,
except for turnips which she suggested be cooked with meat. By the 1830s, Mrs.
Child in The American Frugal Housewife had recipes for cabbage and turnips that were
found in Hannah Glasses' book. However, Mrs. Child's book included the following
vegetables not found in the English cookbook: potatoes, onions, squash, asparagus,
green peas, dandelions cultivated as well as wild, beets and beet tops, tomatoes,
celery and lettuce.
More research needs to be done into how much wild greens played in the meals
of early spring for settlers in the 1850s. I would also recommend that a bed of
asparagus be started and that corn be planted in the garden. When a decision has
been made as to what kinds of meals will be served, whether just Northern traditional
meals or a combination of Northern and Southern foods, then it can be determined
how many of the vegetables planted each year will be needed. It is possible that
some vegetables that have previously been planted will be used very little or
perhaps more frequently. Sources Used
1. Child, Lydia (Mrs.). The American Frugal Housewife. New York: Harper & Row, 1972.
2. Glasse, Hannah. The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy. (1st published in 1796, London) Hamden, Conn.: Archon, 1971.
3. Illinois Daily Journal, 1851.
4. Prai~ieFarmer, 1850 and 1849.
5. Tunnell, W. A. Journal, 1847-1852. Greene County, Ill. (Manuscript at ISHL). CLAYVILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER & MUSEUM
Linda Oelheim, Graduate Assistant, July, 1978
4. STAPLES IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS: FOOD HABITS OF THE MID-19th CENTURY
I. Evidence from the Popular Culture:
The following staples were advertised in Springfield, IL., stores during the years of 1848 and 1851:
1. Vinegar, wine and cider
2. Salt, Liverpool, ground alum and kenawba
3. Rice
4. Flour
5. Mustard and ketchup
6. Cocoa and chocolate
7. Macaroni and vermicelli
8. Pearl barley
9. Oatmeal
10. Cornmeal
11. Buckwheat flour
12. Hominy
13. Preston Merrill yeast powder
14. Boston saleratus in casks
15. Sugar - Prime New Orleans Double refined loaf Clarified Crushed White and brown Havanna 16. Molasses - Sugarhouse and Plantation
17. Golden syrup
18. Honey
19. Lard, corn oil, olive oil 11. Evidence from Personal Diaries, etc.
The stores in Springfield advertised a variety of staples, but more research
needs to be done as to how much of each the people in the Springfield area purchased.
The Journal of W. A. Tunnell gives a good record of his purchases of staples
for a period of two years. There is a table of the total staples purchased, how much and how often, found below. After studying his purchases, it is quite clear
that while he was farming, the staples purchased were those he did not grow. He
grew corn, so probably provided cornmeal for his own family himself. He also kept bees, so possibly used the honey, although he purchased large amounts of sugar as well as molasses.
In 1852, he moved into the town of Greenfield, and as can be seen from his
purchases, his family no longer produced as many of the staples such as eggs,
cheese, and butter.
The estate inventories list staples that were common to the W. A. Tunnell
family, such as flour, molasses, butter, coffee, sugar, tea, salaratus, and salt.
Vinegar, lard and Spring Wheat were also listed in the inventories of Sangamon
and Menard Counties.
Farmers of Sangamon County grew crops of corn, oats, wheat and rye, as well
as buckwheat. W. A. Tunnell, in Greene County grew wheat, corn and oats. There-
fore, it can be assumed that the farmers used their crops to supply staples of
flour and cornmeal for their families.
111. Related Utensils:
Staples and other foods were ktored in the following containers:
Container
1. Wooden barrels meal, flour, wine, vinegar 2. Hooped wooden buckets sugar, butter, apple butter 3. Glass preserves, jellies, vinegar 4. Tin canisters (square or round) coffee, tea 5. Tin round boxes spices and grater 6. Wooden boxes (round or oval) coffee, tea 7. Earthen pot or pan crusts, pieces of bread, yeast Container Food
8. Tin vessels fresh lard, suet 9. Glazed earthenware salt pork fat 10. China, stoneware jellies, preserves 11. Cellar ice wrapped in flannel, vegetables, fruits, staples 12. Wood, pottery, pewter, copper boxes or salt containers
Lids were usually linen stretched across the top and tied with a string.
Storage containers that were listed in the estate inventories of Sangamon
County and Menard County included meat barrels, jugs, bottles, glass bottles, jars,
one and two gallon crocks and molasses cans.
IV. Implications for Clayville Food Program
The kitchen at Clayville needs containers for herbs, spices, eggs, cheese
and butter storage. The grains, flours and meal seem to be properly stored for
the present. There needs to be more research done into reproduction of containers that
were used for staples in the 1850s.
W. A. Tunnell's purchases of staples at stores in Greenfield and Fayette, Illinois:
I. Purchases from spring, 1850, through spring, 1851:
Item Least amount No. of times
sugar 114 lbs. coffee 50 lbs. rice 15 lbs. molasses 1 gal. fish oil unknown flour 1 barrel tea unknown pepper box (?) salaratus edging(?) 11. Purchases from summer, 1851, through summer, 1852:
Item Least amount No. of times
salaratus 2 lbs. fish oil 1 qt. molasses 1?1 gal. salt 1 sack rice 27 lbs. coffee 8 lbs. tea 2% lbs. butter 12-3/4 lbs flour 130 lbs. nutmeg 1 02. eggs 18 doz. hominy unknown sugar unknown potatoes 1/3 bushel mustard unknown soda unknown maple sugar unknown cream of tartar unknown cheese 12 lbs. pepper unknown Sources Used
1. Hale, Mrs. Sara J. The Good Housekeeper. Boston, 1839.
2. Haynes, Judith A. Sanqamon County Foodways, 1840-1860." Sangamon State University, Dec., 1976, unpublished paper in SSU archives: Clayville Student Papers.
3. Illinois Daily Journal, Vol. 1, 1848.
4. Illinois Daily Journal, 1851.
5. Lantz, Louise K. Old American Kitchenware, 1725-1925. New York: Thomas Nelson 1972.
6. Thirty-one Estate Inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties (Clayville Office Research Files).
7. Tunnell, W. A. Journal, 1847-1852. Greene County, Illinois. (Manuscript at ISHL CLAYVILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER & MUSEUM
Linda Oelheim, Graduate Assistant, July, 1978
5. BEVERAGES IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS AND THE BROADWELL FOOD TRADITIONS
The two main beverages advertised in Springfield stores during the early
1850s were tea and coffee. Rio, Java, Havanna and Laguira were the brand names advertised for coffee. Tea was available through the New York Canton Tea Company, which claimed to be the oldest tea company in America. Green teas such as Imperial,
Gun Powder, Hyson and Young Hyson could be purchased, as well as black teas such as Souchong, Powchong, Congo, Oolong, Ningyong, English Breakfast, orange pekoe and pekoe flower. The tea was sold in boxes, caddies and chests.
If a family traveled to Springfield for supplies, they could purchase bottled soda water if it was summer or Newark Cider if it was winter at Gray's Bakery.
Alcoholic beverages such as whisky, gin, rum, brandies, wines, and cordials could be bought from the J. Bunn store.
It would seem that tea and coffee were common beverages in the 1850s, since the estate inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties listed coffee and tea and
W. A. Tunnel1 recorded purchases of tea and coffee in his journal. Tunnell's purchases were made from 1850 through 1852 and included at least 58 pounds of coffee bought during five trips to the stores and at least 2+ pounds of tea bought during six trips to the stores. It would appear that he bought about % pound of tea each time he purchased tea, although coffee evidently was the beverage most greatly consumed.
In New England, by the early 1800s, tea was part of social events at supper- time in rural areas. In the cities, wealthy families served tea following dinner in the afternoon. Hot tea was drunk from the saucer, not the cup, at first. Black and green teas were served at meal time and during evening parties. Lemonade was also a popular beverage along with tea in New England.
Traditional beverages of New England were cider, sometimes served with doughnuts in October, fruit cordials and wines. New England farmers favored spruce beer, elderberry and dandelion wine, metheglin and applejack.
Cider was possibly a favorite beverage in Central Illinois, since apples were a common fruit and the estate inventories did list one apple mill and press and one cider mill. Cider could be purchased at Gray's Bakery in Springfield.
Hard cider was connected with and part of Christmas, Easter and midsummer festivals in many areas of England. Cider was drunk at fesitval times, to give thanks for bountiful crops or as part of a ritual to insure bountiful crops of grain or fruit. The production of cider greatly increased from the 1700s to the
1850s. It was usually produced on farms, with farmers consuming it on a regular basis and during rituals that started harvest time. In the 1800s cider was believed to cure vomiting, gout, urinary tract and rheumatic diseases.
Cider was served with bread and cheese and sometimes during festivals with cake or toast.
Moses and Jane's great-grandfather, William Broadwel1,was a direct immigrant from England in the 1600s, so it is more than likely cider would have been a beverage in the family food traditions. Although William Broadwell was an artisan and not a farmer, he would at least have drunk cider during holidays or to prevent or cure diseases and perhaps even as a common beverage. Furthermore, the family lived in an area (Morris and Union Counties) in New Jersey known for hard cider production
(note: E. L. Hawes).
One beverage that seemed to be gaining popularity by the 1850s was sasaparilla.
W. A. Tunnel1 bought it twice In the summer of 1852 and the Illinois Daily Journal of 1851 carried an ad for extract of Sarsaparilla. However, it may have been used more as a medicine than as a common beverage.
I recommend that lemonade and tea continue to be served with meals in the kitchen. Coffee should be added since this seemed to have been consumed in great quantities. But this would require a coffee pot and if possible purchased freshly ground coffee or a coffee mill for use in the kitchen. Since apple trees are part of the Clayville property, I feel we should try to make cider in the fall. Cider seems to have been a part of the Broadwell family tradition. Sources Used
1. Carson, Gerald, "The Yankee Kitchen", American Heritage Cookbook.
2. Illinois Daily Journal, Vol. 1, 1848.
3. Illinois Daily Journal, Jan. 2, 1851
4. Minchinton, Walter, "Cider and Folklore", Folk-Life, 13(1975), pp. 66-79.
5. Spackling, Helen. Customs on the Table Top. Sturbridge, Mass., Old Sturbridge Village, 1958.
6. Tunnell, W. A. Journal, 1847-1852. Green County, Ill. (Manuscript at ISHL)
7. Thirty-one Estate Inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties. CLAYVILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER & MUSEUM
Linda Oelheim, Graduate Assistant, July, 1978
6. HERBS, SPICES AND EXTRACTS IN RURAL ILLINOIS FOODWAYS
I. Evidence of the Popular Culture:
The following is a list of spices and extracts that were advertised by Spring- field stores in 1848 and 1851:
Rosewater Lemon extract, Underwood's Lemon Syrup Pimento in bags Vanilla extract Nutmeg extract Ground pepper, cayenne pepper Mustard Alum Cinnamon (ground and bark) and cassia Mace Nutmeg Cloves Allspice Ginger (ground and raw)
The only herb advertised in the Illinois Daily Journal was sage, at least for the early 1850s. So it can be assumed that many herbs were grown at home in the
Sangamon County area.
The Prairie Farmer of 1843 and 1850 gave a list of herbs recommended for cooking and also methods for preserving them. The herbs recommended for cooking were called "sweet herbs"; they included basil, marjoram, winter and summer savory, thyme, mint, sage, tarragon, burnet, parsley, chervil, fennel, elder flowers and orange flowers.
The following herbs were thought to be good for making soup: garlic, peppercorns, parsley, celery leaves, bay leaves, winter savory, lemon thyme, sweet basil and celery seed. Mint, sage and celery seed were recommended for pea soup; sage for stuffing; summer savory for soups, broths and sausages; some cookbooks recommended marjoram as the best herb for broth and stuffing.
The Prairie Farmer in 1843 suggested two methods for drying herbs. One method was to put them in paper bags to dry on a shelf, the other was to dry herbs in an oven. When the herbs are completely dry, pound them in a mortar, put through a seive and put into well-stopped bottles.
Besides suggesting methods for drying and storing herbs, the Prairie Farmer gave a time table for gathering herbs. But perhaps the simplest formula for gathering herbs was recommended by Mrs. Child in The American Frugal Housewife.
According to Mrs. Child herbs should be gathered when they are in bloom, if allowed to go to seed the herbs will not be of full strength when gathered.
Prairie Farmer's Chart for Gathering Herbs for Drying:
May June July parsley parsley parsley chevil lemon thyme chevil elderflowers mint elderflowers tarragon winter savory burnet lemon thyme chevil tarragon elderflowers burnet sweet marjoram
August September sweet basil sage sage burnet tarragon winter savory sweet marjoram
11. Related Utensils:
For storing herbs, to keep them from the air, glass bottles, well-stopped, were used as well as containers made of wood. Wooden spice cabinets, made for hanging on the wall and having small labeled drawers for the spices, and round and oblong tin boxes containing six or seven small spice containers were used to hold spices and herbs. Round and oval wooden boxes called nested or Shaker boxes could also be used to store herbs or spices. 111. Implications for Clayville Food Program:
I recommend the following herbs be added to the Clayville Herb Garden:
1. sweet basil 2. parsley 3. savory, winter and/or summer 4. thyme 5. marjoram
If these herbs are added to the garden, then more storage containers such as glass bottles and round or oval wooden boxes will be needed. -32-
Sources Used
1. Child, Lydia Maria (Mrs.). The American Frugal Housewife. New York: Harper and Row, 1972.
2. Illinois Daily Journal, Vol. 1, 1848.
3. Illinois Daily Journal, 1851, Date,
4. Lantz, Louise K. Old American Kitchenware, 1725-1925. New York: Thomas Nelson, 1972.
5. Prairie Farmer, 1843, p.
6. Prairie Farmer, 1850, p. CLAYVILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER & MUSEUM
Linda Oelheim, Graduate Assistant, July, 1978
7. Fruits and Nuts in Central Illinois
The following fruits and nuts were advertised in springfield, Ill., in 1848 and 1851:
Fruits: M. R. Raisins in quarter boxes Elme Figs in small drums Zante currants Citrons Fresh lemons received in July from St. Louis Dried peaches and apples Bunch raisins Prunes Dates
Nuts: Almonds Filberts Walnuts Peanuts Cream nuts
It would be difficult at present without doing further research to determine how much of the fruits and nuts were actually purchased in the 1850s for use in meals.
However, W. A. Tunnell does list purchased fruits in his Journal. They in- cluded 1 pound of prunes, watermelon and 5 bushel of apples. These were purchased
in the summer of 1852, while he was moving from his farm to his new house in
Greenfield. Before and even after that time, it appears he grew his own fruit or picked wild fruits.
He planted apple trees in the spring of 1851 and later in 1853 and 1859, developed his orchards where he planted more apple, quince, gooseberry, raspberry, black cherry, wild mulberry, peach and nectarine. See the following diagram of his orchard in 1859.
In August, 1849, he recorded picking blackberries and plums. Therefore, it would appear that the Tunnell family used a variety of fruit that they grew and gathered wild or traded/purchased from other farmers.
The only fruit I found in the estate inventories of Sangamon and Menard
Counties was a sack of dried apples. Therefore, I feel we should continue to use apples as part of the meals cooked in the kitchen as well as drying apples.
The use of other fruits and even nuts will depend on the menus developed to represent common meals. Wild fruits that grow near the Inn can be gathered) such as strawberries, raspberries and blackberries and incorporated into the meals served in the kitchen.
W. A. Tunnell's Orchard in 1859 Greene County
I. Orchard Plans:
4 = planted in 1859 11. Kinds of Fruit Planted: KEY:
a = Jenette b = Winesap c = Rho. Greening d = Red Pryor e= ? f = Quince g = Yellow June h = White July i = Lady's Finger k = Biner's seedling gooseberries (5 plants, 4-5 roots) 1 = River's Red Antwing raspberries (3 plants) m = Large fruited monthly raspberries (2 plants) Q = Night's Early Black Cherry p = Crawford's Early Peach q = Crawford's Late Peach r = Stanwick Nectarines s = Pond's Seedlings t = Bradshaw %= not listed Sources Used
1. Illinois Daily Journal, Vol. 1, 1848.
2. Illinois Daily Journal, 1851.
3. Thirty-one Estate Inventories of Sangamon and Menard Counties (Clayville Office Research File)
4. Funnell, W. A. Journal, 1847-1852. Greene County, Ill. (Manuscript at ISHL) CLAYVILLE RURAL LIFE CENTER & MUSEUM
Linda Oelheim
8. Menu Planning for Broadwell's Kitchen, Clayville Inn and Farmhouse
The meals planned for the living history foodways program at the Broadwell's
Inn and Farmhouse will be discussed in this report. I will include historic and
non-historic realities of a living history foodways program that must meet the
needs and expectations of visitors as well as interpreters. I will discuss the
non-historic realities that limit the foodways program for the Broadwell's Kitchen
first, and then give three examples of menus prepared in the kitchen and discuss
historic as well as non-historic reasons why these meals are prepared.
When the foodways program for the Broadwell's Kitchen began in May, 1977, it
was severely limited by lack of foodways research, money and historically accurate
equipment. Now, a year later, the program has gained strength through some barely
sufficient research. Much more needs to be done, however, especially the acquisition
of some reproductions for the kitchen and other equipment that is closer to being
historically accurate. However, money is still a very limiting factor to the
foodways program and is likely to stay the major limiting factor.
The meals prepared in the kitchen must reflect the realities of foodways for
Central Illinois in the 1850s, but on a budget. This means the foodways of the
Sangamon County area must be demonstrated to visitors as inexpensively as possible.
All foods needed to prepare the meals are purchased,at least until the gardens
start producing. However, the gardens only supply vegetables; milk, cream, flour,
cornmeal, molasses, eggs, coffee, tea and meat must be bought throughout the season.
When a farm is developed at Clayville with chickens, milk cows and crops, then the
foodways budget will be supplemented more fully. Until this time when less food
supplies can be purchased, compromises will have to be made, such as only making butter once or twice a month because of the high cost of cream. Coffee and pork
were consumed in large quantities during the 1800s in Illinois, but because of the high cost of these items, the living history foodways program does not show a dominance
of these foods.
Another non-historic reality that must be dealt with when planning meals is the
responsibilities of the kitchen interpreters. Not only are they sharing knowledge
of Illinois foodways in the 1800s with visitors, but are preparing a meal or doing
kitchen clean-up at the same time. The weekly menu planning must take into consider-
ation times when kitchen interpreters will be very busy with visitors. Plan the menu to make the meal preparation easier for interpreters during these times.
Sarah Aikens, a young Illinois settler of 1835, writing to her friend in New
York, said this of Illinois foodways: "Here they can spend their days in ease and
eat pork and hominy." Bacon seems to have been the main type of pork eaten by people
in Illinois; W. A. Tunnell's journal shows purchases of bacon during the years he
farmed and also after the move into the town of Greenfield, Illinois. Rebecca Burlend
in her book, A True Picture of Emigration, (p. 73), wrote that bread, butter, coffee
and bacon were usual foods in Illinois.
I do not know what the Broadwell family's foodways were by the 1800s. I can
only conclude what foods they may have eaten in Illinois from studying cookbooks
of the 1800~~in both published and manuscript form, letters, journals, newspapers,
and secondary sources written about traditional foods and recipes. The menus that
are listed below reflect the conclusions I have made from researching primary and
secondary foodway sources.
I. Baking Day Menu: Bake in Brick Oven: Baked Beans Anadama Bread Gingersnaps and Rice Pudding
Meal: Pea Soup with Ham Tomato/Cucurnber Salad Biscuits Cold Tea Sarah Hale in her cookbook of 1857 described the brick bake oven as superior
to others when heated with wood, "being more economical and easier to regulate than an iron oven." I do not know if the interpreters at Clayville would agree with this statement or not. However, Anadama bread, which is frequently prepared on baking day, seems to do well in the brick oven, even with inexperienced bakers.
The baking of Anadama bread in the brick oven originated with the "Mornings at
Clayville" program and is an excellent demonstration bread, because the recipe calls for common staples of the 1800s: molasses, cornmeal, lard and flour. It
also seems to be failure-proof and may have origins in the brown bread of New
England described in The American Frugal Housewife, pp. 76-77.
In my research I came across a bread described as "Illinois Bread," at least in 1823. This was a salt-rising bread baked in a Dutch Oven and eaten while warm.
The recipe was included in a letter written by Dr. Horatio Newhall of Greenville,
Illinois, in 1823.
Baked beans are usually included in the baking activities because they are
inexpensive to serve and easy to prepare when using the brick oven. There was at
least one baked bean or pork and bean recipe in each of the 1800s cookbooks I studied
The American Heritage Cookbook and other secondary sources call them a traditional
New England dish. W. A. Tunnell, in 1859, recorded planting "yankee beans" in his
garden, so perhaps his family also ate baked beans with salt pork.
Puddings and gingersnap cookies appear to be two common desserts of the 1800s.
I found gingersnaps to be a frequent cookie recipe in the manuscript cookbooks in
Illinois and published cookbooks of the nineteenth century. Ginger was advertised
by stores in The Illinois Daily Journal, so was readily available for purchasing.
Various kinds of puddings were listed in the cookbooks. They were baked or boiled
using an oven or kettle. Pudding recipes in Illinois cookbooks usually contained
apples, which may indicate they were a favorite or common fruit. Pea soup was usually found in New England as well as English cookbooks. The
Prairie Farmer of 1850 contains a pea soup recipe that is seasoned with mint, sage and celery seed. Lettuce and fresh peas in season were included in the soup by the 1850s. This soup, which uses pork for seasoning, is easy to prepare and inex- pensive to serve.
Tomatoes were called a "relatively new vegetableuin the Prairie Farmer of 1849, but seem to have been a very popular vegetable of the mid-nineteenth century. Various tomato recipes can be found in the Prairie Farmer of the late 1840s and early 1850s.
The raw cucumber and tomato salad is easy to prepare for a busy kitchen interpreter and uses two vegetables that are abundant in the garden. Cucumbers are, of course, used for pickling as well as for salads. They were advertised for sale at "The
Cottage Garden and Nursery" of Springfield, Illinois, in 1851.
Warm bread was common to Illinois cooking, at least according to one writer in the Prairie Farmer of 1846, who wrote that "Westerners . . . live almost wholly on warm bread, strong coffee and fried meats." Biscuits are a warm bread and recipes for making them by using yeast, saleratus or cream of tartar and soda are commonly found in cookbooks of the 1800s. 1850 biscuit recipes usually called for soda and cream of tartar. W. A. Tunnel1 records cream of tartar purchases and the manuscript cookbooks contain soda biscuit recipes which use cream of tartar as an ingredient.
Biscuits are easily prepared and demonstrate the use of the Dutch Oven for baking.
Although tea was not as popular as coffee, it was a favorite beverage of the
1850s and was drunkhot or cold. There are numerous recipes for preparing tea and it makes a refreshing cold drink, served, however, without ice cubes, in the summer.
11. Vegetable Beef Soup Lettuce Salad Corn Bread Coffee
Vegetable beef soup is an excellent soup to show seasonal changes in foodways,
Cellar vegetables, stored during winter, such as potatoes, cabbages, turnips and carrots can be used in spring, and vegetables from the garden can be used in the summer. The herbs used in soups during the 1800~~such as thyme, bay leaf, basil, parsley and the most popular herb, marjoram, can be used for seasoning this soup. It can be quite inexpensive to serve to a large group and uses the second most common meat eaten in the 1800s, beef. This soup can even be served meatless as in the recipe entitled, "Winter Soup" found in Mrs. Owen's Illinois
Cook Book, p. 29.
Lettuce is an abundant vegetable in the garden and is an ingredient in the summer salad described in Mrs. Hale's New Cook Book. Other ingredients of the salad include radishes, onions, red cabbage, sorrel and boiled beet slices. The salad is served either with vinegar and oil dressing or one of mayonnaise. These dressing recipes are also included in Sarah Hale's cookbook.
Corn bread seems to have been a common warm bread in Illinois. Corn was a dominate crop, so therefore, cornmeal would have been a staple. The 1800s cook- books usually listed at least one cornbread or Indian Cake recipe, usually with molasses or sugar. Cornbread, like biscuits, is excellent for demonstrating the use of the Dutch Oven for baking.
Coffee, as has been stated before, was the most common beverage and was con- sumed in large quantities, so therefore, should be served at least once a week in the foodway program.
111. Roast Beef or Chicken Baked Potatoes Corn Bread Lemonade
Roasted meat on this menu provides an opportunity to demonstrate use of the spit jack, which is usually of special interest to visitors. Roasting was one method of preparing meat, other methods included boiling, frying and broiling. W. A. Tunnell, in his journal, wrote of tasting his "first roasting corn" iC in August of 1850. By the 1850s, corn was eaten on the cob or scraped from the
cob and prepared as a separate vegetable dish. Dried green corn was considered
an excellent preserved vegetable. A recipe was found in an Illinois manuscript,
Elizabeth Smith's "Recipe Book." Corn was also used to make green corn pudding.
Potatoes are grown in the gardens, and therefore, can be used to supplement
the foodway program budget. Potatoes by the mid-nineteenth century were prepared
by boiling, baking, frying and mashing. They can be used in various ways: as a
single vegetable dish, as part of a soup or to make potato yeast for bread.
The Illinois Daily Journal carried ads for lemons as early as 1848, so it
would seem likely that lemonade was a popular drink during warm weather. During the
early 1800s it had become a popular drink in New England. Cookbooks of the 1800s
contain recipes for making lemonade.
I hope this discussion of the three samples of the menus prepared in the
Broadwell's Kitchen gives a clear idea of how menus may be planned for the living
history foodway program at Clayville. The meals prepared in the kitchen as well as
the baking activities represent my conclusions, after researching foodway sources,
as to what were some of the typical foods of Central Illinois in the 1800s. However,
more research needs to be done so the menus can be expanded and become more historically
accurate.
' See note p. 13. SOURCES USED :
Aiken, Sarah. Letters, 1833-1836, to Julia Keese, Kesseville, New York. ISHL Manuscript no. SC - 1925.
Buckeye Cookery and Practical Housekeeping. (1st published in Minnesota, 1879.) Lawndale, CA: Willson, 1971.
Burlend, Rebecca. A True Picture of Emigration. (1830s) Chicago: Lakeside, R. R. Donnelley, 1936.
Carter, Susannah. The Frugal Housewife or Complete Woman Cook. (1st published in London, 1972) Boston, 1792.
Child, Lydia M. The American Frugal Housewife. (1st published in New York. 1836) New York: Harper and Row, 1972.
Duncan-Kirby Family Collection Papers, 1814-1937, Elizabeth Smith's Recipe Book, (1828-1884) . ISHL Manuscript no. SC-2312.
Hale, Sarah J. Mrs. Hale's New Cook Book. Philadelphia: 1857.
Illinois Daily Journal, 1848 and 1851.
Owen, Mrs. R. J. V. Mrs. Owen's Illinois Cook Book. Springfield, IL: J. H. Johnson, 1871.
Parson's Family. Manuscript Cookbook, Illinois, 1800s. ISHL Manuscript no. Box 23.
The Prairie Farmer. Chicago: 1842, 1843, 1846, 1849, 1850.
Tunnell, W. A. (Greene Co., IL) Journal and Record of Business Transactions, 1847-1852. ISHL Manuscript no. not listed.
Whitehall, Jane. Food, Drink and Recipes of Early New England. Sturbridge, Mass.: Old Sturbridge Village, 1971.