Evening star., 1936-11-22
Scattered Family Returned Home
For Old Time Thanksgiving Day
By Walter K. Pufney.

day In the year. Often 1t re-
quired sacrifice Of time and
work to get home-a journey by train
part way. q long ride on the stage, q
halliday taken up just in travelling.
Usually, the folks came the day be-
fore and stayed over until the day
after Thanksgiving.
The reunion was happy one for all,
but happiest for the boys and girls
when they went into the kitchen and
pantry and saw what was in store for
them. The Thanksgiving family table
of that time is seldom seen today, with
half a dozen different kinds of des-
sert pies, chicken pies baked in great
milk pans. vegetables in generous
dishes, and cakes. cookies and fruits!
For days in advance, mother and
the girls who lived at home, or mem
bers of the family who lived nearby,
worked in preparation for the great
event. There were no modern con-
veniences for cooking, no gas or elec.
trio stoves, no refrigerators to keep
things preserved. The good things
to eat were all baked, broiled, stewed
or roasted the day before Thanksgiv-
ing, except the chickens and turkeys.
CAKEs and pies were the first to be
turned out, in numbers that would
make the modern housewife hold up
her hands in wonderment. These were
stored In the pantry. It was not un-
usual for mother to have at least 40
pies ready for consumption, q dozen
cakes, q crock full of cookies and
bread enough to almost I'LL q bakers
cart. Among the pies baked for the
occasion were apple, mince, squash,
cranberry. raisin. apricot, blueberry.
blackberry, and pumpkin. The last
named was the great home favorite,
known to the boys as "punker" pie.
The dining room table was extended
by using other tables, boards laid
across sawhorses, and small tables for
the grandchildren.
The morning Of Thanksgiving was
a busy one. At daylight, the women
folk got up and started in. Vegetables
were made ready for boiling. The
fruits were carefully wiped and put
into dishes. Nuts were cracked and
the little auxiliaries were all seen to
before breakfast.
THEN came the baking Of those
great chicken pies made in milk
pans. Turkeys were usually not
plentiful and if a family happened
to have one or two they were roasted
on the day before Thanksgiving and
warmed up" after the chicken pies
were done.
The family all attended church In
the morning, except one or two mem
bers who were putting the finishing
touches on the dinner Then, when
they returned from church everybody
got things up" for dinner. There
was hustle and hustle everywhere,
but no confusion. Finally the table
was literally loaded with the starters"
(there were no such things as courses
in grandmother time) and the fam
lily pitched in.
What did 1t matter If some had to
eat with kitchen knives and forks or
If broken cups had to be utilized?
Grandfather loaded up the first plate
with chicken pie, small slice of tur-
key, two potatoes, turnips, squash,
spoonful of beans or canned peas, a
dab of applesauce, and perhaps little
jelly. Then he passed the plate and
said, IF you want more, come back
for it!"
TO MOST folk, it would seem that
one plateful would be sufficient.
but every person present was urged to
be sure to eat enough, and if one
finished one of the "fixin's" there was
a great hullabaloe If the plate was
not passed for more.
The starters" having been cared
for, pies were brought in. If any
person baked at less than four diff
ferent kinds, grandfather made some
remark about city folks "havin'
mighty delicate appetites."
Following the pies came cakes
favorite cakes baked especially be-
cause grandmother had not forgotten
how John or Henry or Mary or Martha
always "tbok to" one particular kind.