Three Squares

Mealtime in America

At Broad Channel--dinner. Bain Collection, Library of Congress.

Published: November 22, 2012

Three square meals a day. Three to five servings of fruits and vegetables, two to three servings of milk, yogurt, or cheese. Avoid fats and sugar. Red meat in moderation…

But eating isn’t simply about achieving the perfect nutritional balance. It also has profound social implications, especially when we sit down with others to share a meal. And so in this episode, the History Guys recover from their Thanksgiving feasts with a look back at the history of mealtime in America. From Victorian table manners to the school lunch program, how have our ideas about what, when, and how we eat our meals evolved?

Tags: childhood, Food, Manners, Thanksgiving

Good Humors

Historian Trudy Eden explains that food in the early colonies was believed to affect more than just your waistline–it could change the very essence of what makes you you.

At the Kids’ Table

In between building fires and engaging in food fight warfare, campers in the early twentieth century were learning mealtime lessons about how to be men and women. Historian Abby Van Slyck talks about the subtle and not so subtle messages summer camps were sending their diminutive diners.

Meals on Wheels

Contributor Meg Cramer tells the story of America’s first chain restaurant, the Harvey House.

Mystery Meat

Susan Levine talks about the politics and pitfalls at the beginning of the federal school lunch program.

Listener Calls

Brian, Ed, and Peter take listener calls.

Guests Include:

e John Kasson, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill
e Trudy Eden, University of Northern Iowa
e Susan Levine, University of Illinois - Chicago
e Abigail Van Slyck, Connecticut College

Resource Galore!

Show whet your appetite? Enjoy three courses of the finest information on the history of mealtime in America, compiled by the BackStory team for your delectation.

Appetizer (Mentioned on the Show):

The Harvey Girls Cookbook Project – a daily serving of old Harvey recipes

Entrée (Outside Links):

Watch: Historian Megan Elias talks about the history of lunch.

Read: Frederick Douglass writes about “Blood-Bought Luxuries,” exploring the racial dynamics in 19th century mealtime.

Dessert (Bibliography):

Eden, Trudy: The Early American Table: Food and Society in the New World. Illinois: Northern Illinois University Press, 2010.

Fried, Stephen: Appetite for America: How Visionary Businessman Fred Harvey Built a Railroad Hospitality Empire That Civilized the Wild West. New York: Bantam, 2010.

Kasson, Jon: Rudeness and Civility: Manners in 19th Century Urban America. New York: Hill and Wang, 2010.

Levine, Susan: School Lunch Politics: The Surprising History of America’s Favorite Welfare Program. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2010

Van Slyck, Abigail A.: A Manufactured Wilderness: Summer Camps and the Shaping of American Youth, 1890-1960. Minnesota: University of Minnesota Press, 2006.

The BackStory to this Episode...

Read the listener discussion that helped shape this show.

Comments (5)

{ Add New Comment

Bella
November 28, 2012 at 11:42 AM
I am 51, and my mom grew up in KS. My grandmother was an okay cook, but as she got older, she got more indifferent (being a farmer’s wife & cooking for 30+ field hands during harvest season probably took the joy out of her cooking). She made great fudge, but I know I also remember green jello w/ cheddar cheese at a few special meals. I’m not sure if it was her contribution, or another of the local housewives, but I’m sure it turned up at church socials, or birthday parties. Another dish I dreaded was 3 bean casserole. Blech.
Reply
Barclay
November 30, 2012 at 11:24 PM
What is the song used as the interlude at 13:00 and again at 13:54?

(First started listening to this show with Civil War Specials. Now I am regular listener. Thanks for doing such a consistent and excellent job)

Thanks!
Reply
Susie
January 6, 2013 at 6:30 AM
What is that song with lyrics about the girl being like fondue? Who does it?
Reply
mhenner
January 28, 2013 at 5:44 PM
The discussion of how we changed from big lunches and small suppers to small lunches and making the evening meal the big one focussed on worklife changes.

I wonder if culture needs to be examined as well. In France, which went through the same worklife changes, the tradition continued – at least until recently – for big lunches, and small suppers, often of soup, cheese and bread, maybe salad.
Reply
AK
March 31, 2013 at 1:39 PM
What is that song with lyrics about the girl being like fondue? Who does it?

It’s the English folk band “Prelude”
http://www.preludemusic.co.uk
Reply

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