The Filson Historical Society Digital Projects

Browse Items (7 total)

  • https://filsonhistoricalimages.files.wordpress.com/2022/12/1926.1.jpg

    Sugar was an expensive and coveted luxury item in frontier households. The chest protected sugar from theft or flies, and was also a status symbol indicating a household's socio-economic status. This sugar chest belonged to Elizabeth Tyler Sturgeon (1791-1833). The Tylers were early colonists in Jefferson County who had a cluster of family farms near Floyd's Fork.
  • https://filsonhistoricalimages.files.wordpress.com/2022/12/1978_4_1.jpg

    This teakettle was brought to Bourbon County, Kentucky, by the Liter family before 1800. Tea isn't immediately thought of as an 'American' staple, but historically it was. Tea in the early 19th century was more popular than beer and teakettles were essential items for households.
  • https://filsonhistoricalimages.files.wordpress.com/2022/12/1978_4_72.jpg

    Basting spoons were used to baste (pour juices or melted fat over meat during cooking in order to keep it moist), as well as for stirring and serving. Basting spoons were used often because of the large amount of meat that was consumed on the frontier. Early Kentucky pioneers had a deep reliance on meat (especially wild game like turkeys or buffalos). They continued to eat wild game as a primary source of food until the pioneers learned to farm in their new environment. As Euro-merican settlers learned how to develop stable food sources through farming and domesticated livestock, they began to hunt buffalo for sport, nearly driving the population into extinction.
  • https://filsonhistoricalimages.files.wordpress.com/2022/12/1927_3_1_a-b.jpg

    The spider pot was brought to Bourbon County, Kentucky, from Frederick County, Maryland, by the Liter family before 1800. During this period, cooking was the second leading cause of death for women. Overheating, skirts catching on fire, exhaustion, and infected burns were causes for serious injury or even death. Some frontier appliances made the job a bit safer. Due to the 'three-legged' nature of spider pots, it allowed them to sit right on the hearth over a bed of hot coals. The cook then used its long handle to safely remove the pot from the coals.
  • https://filsonhistoricalimages.files.wordpress.com/2022/12/1927_3_2_a-b.jpg

    The Dutch oven and its hook were brought to Bourbon County, Kentucky, from Frederick County, Maryland, by the Liter family before 1800. In addition to many other household tasks, free and enslaved women prepared three meals a day for their household, working many hours over a cooking hearth without air conditioning or fans. They cultivated and prepared all ingredients themselves. Cooking was labor intensive and exhausting. The Dutch oven, despite its heavy weight, made cooking a bit easier. Dutch ovens were an important tool in the kitchen and were used similarly to ovens today. Dutch ovens were capable of baking, boiling, roasting, and frying, and good for cooking stews, breads, and cakes.
  • osu.32435068845445-seq_9.jpg

    An 18th-century cookbook including one hundred and fifty recipes and modes of cooking, as well as recipes for cosmetics and medicinal purposes.
  • https://filsonhistoricalimages.files.wordpress.com/2022/11/mssa_b877a_f99_1798-1800_001-copy.jpg

    Letter in which Rebecca Stoddert discusses women's fashion, cooking, and shopping. Discusses symptoms of a sickness and having blood drawn, ladies socializing, and vulgar dancing that reminded her of a "black woman dancing a jig".
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