“We had gone into Hangtown one night for provisions, when we heard that a great strike had been made at a place called Coon Hollow, about a mile...
Hangtown Fry
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Sherry Monahan
County Fair Fixin’s
“At Healdsburg, the first county fair, we received a silver butter knife for the best butter,” recalled Mrs. Eliza Gregson, who had arrived in...
When the Rich Went West
"It is the easiest thing in the world to make a living here if a man is industrious; but I am more and more hopeless of our ever making enough money...
Pizza in the Old West
“My wife has been in the habit for several years of putting up tomatoes for winter use…. She says they must be stewed a long time..,” penned a...
The Corny Old West
“It was pretty tough in those times,” Mrs. Bell Mattison recalled about her years in Fillmore County, Nebraska, after she moved there with her...
Fireworks & Festivities
The Fourth of July celebrations were the great events in our lives,” recalled Mrs. Ford, who lived in Canyon City, Oregon, after the 1862 gold...
The “Crazy” Dose
“One of the most prevalent superstitions was regarding the burial of partially decayed materials under steps of the house of the person to whom one...
Salty Thieves
“Another Robbery, This One On the Yukon, Netted $7,000,” read the August 31, 1898, headline in The Helena Independent. These clever thieves had used...
Snake River Salmon
“While travelling along the Snake River, father secured a fine, large salmon from an Indian, and we looked forward to a good feast at supper time....
Harvey’s Happy Girls
“There is never any sick among the travelers along the Santa Fe line on the eating houses. These are all owned and managed by Mr. Fred Harvey....”...
Mountain Man Grub vs the Forts’
“Our journey on will be still more difficult, on account of food. In a few days from this place, buffalo cease entirely, and no game is to be found...
Berries, and I Don’t Mean Whistle
“…I helped put in the corn, and on the hills I picked green huckleberries to make a pie. I picked ripe huckleberries, walked a mile and a half to...