W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 1994 Colonial Virginia's Cooking Dynasty: Women's Spheres and Culinary Arts Katharine E. Harbury College of William & Mary - Arts & Sciences Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the American Studies Commons, Food Science Commons, Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons, and the Women's Studies Commons Recommended Citation Harbury, Katharine E., "Colonial Virginia's Cooking Dynasty: Women's Spheres and Culinary Arts" (1994). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539625865. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-taba-qw54 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. COLONIAL VIRGINIA’S COOKING DYNASTY: Women's Spheres and Culinary Arts A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Anthropology The College of William and Mary in Virginia In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts by Katharine E. Harbury April 1994 APPROVAL SHEET This thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Author Approved, April 1994 ffqtyH*- tcf Dr. Kathleen J. Bragdon Dr. Joanne Bowen Dr. Virginia Kerns Cookery means the knowledge of Medea, and of Circe, and of Calypso, and of Helen, and of Rebekah, and of the Queen of Sheba...of all herbs, and fruits, and balms and spices; and all that is healing and sweet in the fields and groves, and savoury in meats... [Wolf 1991:130] TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................... v LIST OF GENEALOGICAL TABLES............................................. vi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.......................................................... vii ABSTRACT..................................................................................... viii INTRODUCTION........................................................................... 2 CHAPTER I. REVIEW OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL LITERATURE 5 CHAPTER II. TIDEWATER SOCIETY IN COLONIAL TIMES 15 CHAPTER III. MENS’ PUBLIC SPHERE IN THE CHESAPEAKE 21 CHAPTER IV. WOMEN'S PRIVATE SPHERE: THE ENGLISH AND COLONIAL VIRGINIA PRESCRIPTION................... 24 CHAPTER V. WOMEN'S PUBLIC SPHERE IN THE CHESAPEAKE.... 39 CHAPTER VI. HISTORY OF FOODS AND STATUS...................... 56 CHAPTER VII. MEAT CUISINE AND CHANGES IN VIRGINIA COOKERY THROUGH TIME.................................. 79 CHAPTER VIII. THE DINNER TABLE......................................... 99 CHAPTER IX. FINDINGS............................................................ 112 CHAPTER X. CONCLUSIONS..................................................... 117 APPENDIXES I-XIV...................................................................... 134 BIBLIOGRAPHY.............................................................................. 164 -iv- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to thank the owner of the Jane (Bolling) Randolph manuscript and the Virginia Historical Society for their great generosity in granting me permission to publish two previously unpublished documents, and to use them in my thesis. I also wish to express my appreciation to my three thesis advisors: professors Kathleen J. Bragdon, Joanne Bowen and Virginia Kerns. Their expertise and thoughtful guidance have been invaluable. Special thanks go as well to those individuals who helped me resolve specific issues: Mr. E. Lee Shepard and Miss Stacy Rusch of the Virginia Historical Society, who greatly assisted in the dating analysis of the "ca. 1700" manuscript; classmate Neil Kennedy for sharing the McKean letterbook; Mrs. Marion E Briggs of Briggs and Associates, Inc.,Troy, Michigan, handwriting specialist, for her analysis; Dr. Helen Rountree of Old Dominion University, for her assessment of "Kipscacuanna"; Mr. Roger Goodbum of Oxford, England for locating the elusive term, "chawdron" ; and Mrs. Ernest Goodbum of Winterton, England for sharing her culinary knowledge. LIST OF GENEALOGICAL TABLES Table Page 1. William Randolph I and Mary Isham........................... 122 2. Robert Bolling I and Jane Rolfe................................... 123 3. Richard Kidder Meade and Mary Grymes.................... 124 4. Col. Wilson Cary and Sarah (Pate?).............................. 124 -vi- LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Illustration Page 1. Mary (Isham) Randolph.................................................. 125 2. Richard Randolph of Curies Neck Plantation.................. 126 3. Jane (Bolling) Randolph................................................. 127 4. Jane ("Jenny") Randolph Walke.................................... 128 5. Mary (Randolph) Cary................................................... 129 6. Mary (Kennon) Bolling .......................................... 130 7. John Bolling .......................................................... 131 8. First and Second Courses,Table ..................................6 132 9. First and Second Courses,Table .................................25 133 -vii- ABSTRACT More than six years ago, while examining various historical documents, I came across the Unidentified Cookbook, c. 1700 by Anonymous (1700) and lane Randolph her Cookery Book. 1743. by Jane (Bolling) Randolph. It was immediately recognized that these two were related not only to each other but also to the 1824 classic, The Virginia Housewife by Mary Randolph. The discovery of such unusually early and historical collection of cookbooks is an exciting one for Chesapeake studies. For centuries, men and women in complex societies have occupied what anthropologists call "public and private spheres." This thesis concerns a study of these spheres within colonial American society. Cookbooks, published or written mostly between 1654 and 1824, are utilized for research. These cookbooks reflect an influential seventeenth century English "prescription" for outlining women's private sphere. Men were aware of this prescription and enforced it. It is concluded that distinctions between the two spheres shifted over time. The degree of separation diminished as a result of women's responsibilities in formal entertaining. A woman's sphere was linked to the status of her husband (public sphere) and, in turn, his social standing depended on her abilities as a cook and hostess. This last fact was not acknowledged by men. Contrary to popular belief, women were not passive about their circumstances. They were ready to assume a broader role in society, and increasingly took advantage of opportunities which presented themselves to -viii- begin to move beyond the boundaries assigned to them. By choosing to express themselves through cookery, they not only eventually cooked their way out of their homes but also improved their own status. These efforts mark an early period of change which ultimately led to the current position of American women today. KATHARINE EDITH HARBURY DEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY THE COLLEGE OF WILLIAM AND MARY IN VIRGINIA COLONIAL VIRGINIA’S COOKING DYNASTY: WOMEN'S SPHERES THROUGH CULINARY ARTS 2 INTRODUCTION The consensus of most historians and anthropologists until recently states that men and women occupied separate spheres within their complex societies. During most of the three hundred years of Chesapeake history, the public dictum also considered male and female activities separate. Men functioned in the public world, while women were assigned to the private sector. Such a public perception persisted, even though women were often active in colonial and personal affairs. Contrary to earlier historical and anthropological literature and to received historical opinion, I have come to a somewhat different conclusion, with significant theoretical implications. I believe that in colonial Virginia, (1) the private and public spheres for men and women, closely related to status, overlapped; (2) many upper-class women engaged in activities that helped to define and maintain the social status of their families in the public sphere; and (3) many women attempted to improve their own status at every opportunity. The activities of women in the domestic niche were both extensive and demanding, and were vital to the well-being of their families. Most women recognized the importance of their role, and derived considerable satisfaction from it (Scott and Lebsock 1988:15-16). At the same time, however, there was a desire to be able to become involved in activities beyond those traditionally reserved from women. Many women, like Rachel Wells and Abigail Adams (pp. 51-52), wished that they could pursue interests in the public sphere on 3 at least a somewhat more equal footing with men than the prevailing customs allowed. Among the responsibilities which women traditionally were expected to fulfill, there was one which brought them closer to the public sphere than any other in which they were engaged: the provision of hospitality. Most entertaining occurred around the dinner table, where the wife, as hostess, functioned in what was in effect a partly private and partly public sphere. Her performance in this capacity often set the tone for after-dinner discussion of public or political topics, and could over time, do much to enhance or detract from her husband's standing and effectiveness in the public sphere. Not surprisingly, women