4th of July Happy Independence Day

I've selected four addresses delivered during the first half of the 19th century regarding Independence Day. I find it fascinating to see what was said and thought of by those who were actually living during the time period I'm writing about. Even the choices of the language they use. Anyway, for those of us who are Americans, enjoy our Independence Day.

In 1810 an Oration was given by Dr. George Cumming at the Presbyterian church in East Rutger Street, New York.

In 1822 John Quincy Adams delivered this message in Washington, DC.

In 1833 Rev John Budd Pitkin delivered this address in Richmond, VA.

In 1854 David Ramsey delivered this message in Cincinnati, OH.

Hot Air Balloons

I've mentioned hot air balloons before on this blog but today I'm sharing the beginning of an excerpt that came out in 1822. The reason I'm posting this blog because of the science involved and the date of this publication. The 19th century is filled with science, which was built upon in the next century. The source of this excerpt is Elements of science and art: being a familiar introduction to...Vol. 1 pg 162. You can finish reading the excerpt here.

OF AIR BALLOONS.
The air-balloon is a machine, consisting of a bag i filled with air, so light, that it, together with the bag, forms a mass which is specifically lighter than the common air of the atmosphere. A cubic foot of common air is found to weigh above 554> grains, and to be expanded by every degree of heat marked on Fahrenheit's thermometers, about l-50th part of the whole. By heating a quantity of air, therefore, to 200 degrees Fahr., you will just double its bulk, when the thermometer stands at 54 in the open air, and in the same proportion you will diminish its weight; and if such a quantity of this hot air be inclosed in a bag, that the excess of the weight of an equal bulk of common air, weighs more than the bag with the air contained in it, both the bag and the air will rise into the atmosphere, and continue to do so till they arrive at a place where the external air is naturally so much rarefied, that the weight becomes equal, and here the whole will float.

The power by which hot air is impelled upwards, may be shown by the following experiment. RolL up a sheet of paper in a conical form, and by thrusting a pin into it near the apex, prevent it from ur rolling. Fasten it then by its apex, under one of the scales of a balance, by means of a thread; and having properly counterpoised it by weights put into the opposite scale, apply the flame of a candle underneath, and you will instantly see the cone rise; and it will not be brought into equilibrium with the other, but by a much greater weight than those who have never seen the experiment would believe.

If the magnitude of a balloon be increased, its power of ascension, or the difference between the weight of the included air and an equal bulk of common air, will be augmented in the same proportion. For its thickness being supposed the same, it is as the surface it covers, or only as the square of the diameter. This is the reason why balloons cannot be made to ascend, if under a given magnitude, when composed of cloth, or materials of the same thickness.

Shrimp Sauce

A secondary character in a novel I worked on, went shrimping. In Florida, shrimp go through canals, play in the shoals of the shore line and during the fall, they run in large groups. The fact that my character is fishing for shrimp, I was dwelling on what he would do with all that shrimp and how he'd eat it. Below are a couple of recipes from the 19th century for Shrimp Sauce.

Shrimp sauce is made as follows: make some melted butter, with which mix a little essence of anchovies; throw in the shrimps, some cavice, and send up in a sauce-boat. The French Cook by Louis Eustache Ude © 1822

Cavice is a traditional British recipe for a classic Victorian sauce of anchovies, and shallots with spices and lemon zest in a white wine and white wine vinegar base. 


SHRIMP SAUCE. Wash half a pint of shrimps very clean—mince and put them in a stew-pan, with a spoonful of anchovy liquor, and a pound of thick melted butter; boil it up for five minutes, and squeeze in half a lemon. Toss it up, and put it in a sauce-boat. 
The Virginia housewife: or, Methodical cook
By Mary Randolph ©1838


SHRIMP SAUCE, for Various Kinds of Fish
Ingredients.—1/3 pint of melted butter, 1/4 pint of picked shrimps, cayenne to taste. Mode.—Make the melted butter very smoothly, shell the shrimps (sufficient to make 1/4 pint when picked), and put them into the butter; season with cayenne, and let the sauce just simmer, but do not allow it to boil. When liked, a teaspoonful of anchovy sauce may be added. Time.—1 minute to simmer. Average cost, 6d. Sufficient for 3 or 4 persons. 
Mrs. Beeton's Dictionary of every-day cookery By Mrs. Beeton ©1865

Tin Can Timeline

In 1810 a British inventor invents the tin can. It's very thick at this time.

1813 the first canning factory is opened.
(early seals were made with lead, which we now knows led to lead poisoning.)

1822 William Underwood founded a canning company in Boston. You've probably seen the Underwood logo when you've purchased Deviled Ham. It wasn't until 1836 (another date I found was 1839) that he shifted from glass to steel cans coated with tin.

1846 a machine to make tin cans is invented. It produces sixty tin cans per hour. Prior to that the production of tin cans was 6 per hour.

1858 first can opener invented by Ezra Warner

1860 Baltimore canner Isaac Soloman added calcium chloride to the boiling water to sterilization and reduced the time from 5 to 6 hours to 30 minutes.

1861-1864 US military uses tin can during the Civil War

1866 patent for the tin can with a key opener is invented.

1870 an easier to use can opener is invented by William Lyman

1897 research found by Underwood's grandson and biologist from MIT that spores were contained in the meats canned and would cause the "swells" in the cans. They found that heat at 250 degrees for 10 minutes killed the spores. The process wasn't patented but worked.

Twas The Night Before Christmas

Clement Clarke Moore wrote the poem in 1822 and was first published 23rd of Dec 1823. And the reading of this poem on Christmas Eve has become of the most common traditions for Americans.

Below is a copy of the poem.

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar plums danced in their heads.
And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap.

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below.
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tinny reindeer.

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St Nic.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name!

"Now Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! On, Cupid! on, on Donder and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky.
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of Toys, and St Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot.
A bundle of Toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a pedlar, just opening his pack.

His eyes-how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow.

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath.
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly!

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself!
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk.
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose!

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of sight,
"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!"

This came from a ©1888 printing in Parodies of the works of English & American Authors.

New York Canals

One of my fascinations with the early part of the 19th century regards the building of canals. They were the primary transportation until the railroads grew large enough to overtake the need or use of canals. Granted there are still canals in operation today but many have been abandoned. I had the opportunity to travel by boat into an abandoned canal in Georgia one time and my dad used to use a canal every summer with his dad bringing their sailboat from Springfield, Mass down the Connecticut River.

All of that is to say that I came across a report from the state of New York concerning Laws for the canals and Annual Reports. There's a wealth of information in this report about some of the needs and workmen for these canals. Below you will find a few random excerpts.

With regard to the Erie Canal
"But there is much to be done yet, upon the Seneca river level. In the marsh and swamps, the state of the waters was such, as not to admit of attempting to excavate them, till the latter part of May: and soon after the laborers had begun to work, a flood came over the whole line, which drove them off for three weeks. It was not, therefore, till after the middle of June, that much labor could be applied to this level. At that time, the work was re-commenced with spirit; and it was carried on, thenceforward, and increasing means, till near the first of August, when sickness began to manifest itself among the hands. For two months, when the waters were lowest, no efforts could keep up the necessary number of workmen. In this time, the number actually engaged, varied from two hundred to seven hundred; ail the principal contractors, with many of the sub-contractors and hands, became diseased; and as there was daily a considerable change of men, those who had acquired, from experience, the skill necessary to enable them to apply their labors judiciously, being obliged to give place to new hands, the progress of the work was much retarded."

"29 locks. Between Schenectady and Albany are twenty-nine locks, including two at the side cut opposite the city of Troy, most of which were completed during the last season, and it is confidently believed that some of them, for beauty of materials, elegance of workmanship, and symmetry of form, will compare with any locks in the world."

"Oct. 8,1824, On the 8th day of October, the first boats passed from the west and the north, through the junction canal, into the tide waters of the Hudson at Albany. And this day was celebrated in a manner which evinced the lively satisfaction of thousands of our citizens, at the triumph of art over the formidable impediments which nature had thrown in the road to prosperity. From the eighth of October, until the canal was closed by the ice, there was but one small breach, which did not obstruct the navigation but three days ; and during this period, from thirty to forty loaded boats were frequently seen to pass in the course of twenty-four hours."

Construction of the canals took lots of men, some were skilled, others were taught on the job. Stone cutters were hired. And some were hired to maintain the canals and locks after they were built. But most of the men moved on to another canal construction site. Citizens found the canals a boom to their economy. Eventually the canals became a place for social activities as well. People would literally stroll along the canal, while others were in boats, having a leisurely cruise down the canal. They were the heart of a community and brought in revenue, as well as a rapid connection with the sending of mail and goods back home.

1822 Fenders

Fenders you ask? Well they weren't just for cars. In 1822 a patent was given to:

To Thomas Ibbotson, of Sheffield, in the county of York, Fender Manufacturer; for a Fender capable of being extended or contracted in length, so as to fit fireplaces of different dimensions. Dated Nov. 28, 1822.

To Thomas Ibbotson, of Sheffield, Yorkshire, fender manufacturer, for his improved fender, capable of being extended or contracted in length so as to fit fire-places of different dimensions.—28th November.

If you're unsure like I was about which part of the fireplace a fender was place do a google image search and you'll see a variety of fenders.

Thomas Ibbotson manufactured a variety of items several of which are being sold today as antiques, even on eBay.

Cashews

Here is some basic information about the Cashew. It's interesting to see how beneficial they saw the cashew during the 19th Century.

'The cashew-tree, is a native of the Brazils, and other parts of America, where it grows to the height of twenty feet or more, in favourable situations. Lunan gives the following account of it in his Hortus Jamaicensis. The fruit is full of an acrid juice, which is frequently used in the making of punch. To the apex of the fruit, grows a nut, of the size and shape of a hare’s kidney, but much larger at the end which is next the fruit than at the other end. The shell is very hard, and the kernel, which is esteemed the finest nut in the world, is covered with a thin film. Between this and the shell is lodged a thick, blackish, inflammable liquor, of such a caustic nature in the fresh nut, that if the lips chance to touch it, blisters will immediately follow. The fruit is said to be good in disorders of the stomach; for the juice of it cuts the thick tough humours, which obstruct the free circulation of the blood, and thus removes the complaint. This juice, expressed and fermented, makes a fine rough wine, useful where the viscera or solid system has been relaxed. Barham, who has written on this fruit, says, " the stone of this apple appears before the fruit itself, growing at the end in the shape of a kidney, as big as a walnut. Some of the fi'uit are all red, some entirely yellow, and some mixed. with both red and yellow, and others perfectly white, of a. very pleasant taste in general; but there is a great variety, as some more sharp, some in taste resembling cherries, others very rough like unripe apples. The taste of most of' them is sweet and pleasant, but generally goes; off with an astringency or stipticity upon the tongue, which proceeds from it’s tough fibres, that run longwise through the fruit. When cut with a knife, it turns as black as ink. The generality of the fruit is as big and much of the shape of the French Pippins, and makes an excellent cider or wine.” Barham adds, that he has distilled a 'spirit from the nut far exceeding arrack, rum, or brandy, of which an admirable punch is made.
The flowers are very small, grow in tufts of a carnation colour, and are very o'doriferous. The leaves much resemble those of the common walnut-tree in shape and smell, and a decoction of them is equally efifectual in cleansing and healing old wounds.
The oil cures the 'herpes, takes away freckles and liver spots, but draws blisters, and therefore must be cautiously made use of; it also takes away corns, but it is necessary to have a very good defensive round the corn to prevent inflaming the - part. The inside kernel is very pleasant to eat when young, and, before the fruit is too ripe, exceeding any . walnut; and when older and drier, roasted, is very pleasant, exceeding Pistachio nuts or almonds; and ground up with cocoa, makes an excel
lent chocolate. . It has been observed, that poor dropsical slaves who have’ had the liberty to go. into a cashew-walk, and eat what cashews they please, ‘' as well as the roasted nuts, have been recovered. These trees are of quick growth: Barham says he has planted the nuts, and the young trees have produced
fruit in two years after. They will continue bearing fruit for more than a hundred years. Many are now flourishing in Jamaica that were planted when the Spaniards had it in possession. '
I have lately received from Jamaica cashew apple, bearing two distinct nuts, which was considered so rare a circumstance that it was preserved in spirits. It’s appearance is unnatural, resembling a lemon pippin apple, with two lambs’ kidneys stuck on the end.
Source: Pomarium Britannicum ©1822

Lemonade

I was wondering how far north lemons made it and how early in the 19th century could you find them when I came across these fun recipes for or using lemonade. Note the dates of some of the sources. I did find an article written in 1801 comparing the use of crystalized lemon vs. real lemon juice.

In my research I did come across a note regarding the import of lemons from Spain and Madrid. Lemons and importing them had been going on before the 19th century.

LEMONADE
white sugar 1lb.
tartaric acid 1/4 oz.
essence of lemon 30 drops
water 3 quarts
Mix
Source: The Cyclopedia of Practical Receipts ©1841

LEMONADE. To prepare lemonade a day before it is wanted for use, pare two dozen lemons as thin as possible. Put eight of the rinds into three quarts of hot water, not boiling, and cover it over for three or four hours. Rub some fine loaf sugar on the lemons to attract the essence, and put it into a china bowl, into which the juice of the lemons is to be squeezed. Add a pound and a half of fine sugar, then put the water to the above, and three quarts of boiling milk. Pour the mixture through a jelly bag, till it is perfectly clear.—Another way. Pare a quantity of lemons, and pour some hot water on the peels. While infusing, boil some sugar and water to a good syrup, with the white of an egg whipt up. When it boils, pour a little cold water into it. Set it on again, and when it boils take off the pan, and let it stand by to settle. If there be any scum, take it off, and pour it clear from the sediment, to the water in which the peels were infused, and the lemon juice. Stir and taste it, and add as much more water as shall be necessary to make a very rich lemonade. Wet a jelly bag, and squeeze it dry; then strain the liquor, and it will be very fine.—To make a lemonade which has the appearance of jelly, pare two Seville oranges and six lemons very thin, and steep them four hours in a quart of hot water. Boil a pound and a quarter of loaf sugar in three pints of water, aud skim it clean. Add the two liquors to the juice of six China oranges, and twelve lemons; stir the whole well, and run it through a jelly bag till it is ouite clear. Then add a little orange water, if approved, and more sugar if necessary. Let it be well corked, and it will keep.--Lemonade may be prepared in a minute, by pounding a quarter of an ounce of citric or crystalised lemon acid, with a few drops of quintessence of lemon peel, and mixing it by degrees with a pint of clarified syrup or capillaries.
Source: The Cook and Housekeeper's Complete and Universal Dictionary ©1822

LEMONADE.
Three lemons to a pint of water, makes strong lemonade ; sweeten to your taste.
This is the best beverage for parties, cool, refreshing, pleasant and salubrious.
Source: Good Housekeeper ©1839

LEMONADE ICED. Make a quart of rich lemonade, whip the whites of six fresh eggs to a strong froth—mix them well with the lemonade, and freeze it. The juice of morello cherries, or of currants mixed with water and sugar, and prepared in the same way, make very delicate ices.
Source: The Virginia Housewife ©1838