TIME MACHINE: Mary S. Peake

 

TIME MACHINE: MARY S. PEAKE

One of the least known historical figures from the 19th century an American educator and humanitarian named Mary S. Peake. Along with her husband, Mrs. Peake was a member of the African American elite community from Hampton, Virginia before the U.S. Civil War.

In 1823 Norfolk, Virginia; Mary Peake was born as Mary Smith Kelsey to a light-skinned free woman of color and an Englishman. Her mother sent Mary to live with her aunt in Alexandria (then part of the District of Columbia), so that she could attend school. Mary spent another eight years attending a primary school operated by Sylvia Morris. Since Alexandria was part of the District of Columbia until 1846, when it was retro-ceded to Virgina. A new U.S. Congress law prohibited free people of color in Virginia and several other Southern states from being educated. This prohibition came as a result from the Nat Turner Rebellion in 1831. When Alexandria was retro-ceded back to Virginia in 1846, all schools for free people of color were closed due to this law. However, Mary had completed her education at age sixteen by 1839 and returned to her family in Norfolk.

Not long after her return to Norfolk, Mary secretly taught some of the city's slaves and free blacks to read and write in defiance of the law that prohibited African Americans from receiving an education. Her widowed mother married a free man of color named Thompson Walker in 1847 and the family moved to Hampton, Virginia, where they purchased a house. In 1850-51, Mary married Thomas Peake, a freed slave who worked in the merchant marine. The couple had a daughter named Hattie, whom they nicknamed "Daisy". As she had done in Norfolk, Mary began teaching some of the neighborhood's slaves and free blacks in defiance of the law prohibiting their education. Kelsey also founded a women's charitable organization, called the Daughters of Zion, whose mission was to assist the poor, the sick and enslaved fugitives who managed to reach Hampton. She supported herself and her family as a dressmaker and continued to teach in secret. Among her adult students was her stepfather Thompson Walker, who became a leader of Hampton's black community.

A few weeks following the outbreak of the U.S. Civil War, Union forces assumed control of the nearby Fort Monroe. The fortification became a place of refuge for enslaved fugitives seeking asylum. The Union defined them as "contraband", a legal status to prevent their being returned to Confederate slaveholders. They built the Grand Contraband Camp near, but outside the protection of Fort Monroe. Her classes moved inside Fort Monroe, after Confederate forces torched Hampton in August 1861. After Mary Peake began teaching the fugitives' children, the American Missionary Association (AMA) hired her as its first paid black teacher. Mary taught her first class and many others under a large oak tree on September 17, 1861; in Phoebus, a small town nearby in Elizabeth City County.

Eventually, the AMA provided Peake with Brown Cottage, which is considered the first facility of Hampton Institute (and later Hampton University). Mary's school taught more than fifty children during the day and twenty adults at night. Due to her classes being held at Brown Cottage, Mary became associated with the AMA’s later founding of Hampton University in 1868. However, Mary never enjoyed this distinction during her lifetime. Before the war, she had contracted tuberculosis. The illness struck her again in February 1862. And on February 22, 1862 - George Washington's birthday - Mary Peake died of tuberculosis.

For more details on Mary S. Peake, I recommend the following book:

"Mary S. Peake, The Colored Teacher at Fortress Monroe" by Rev. Lewis C. Lockwood

Favorite Pre-Gilded Age American History Books

 

Below is a list of my favorite books that covered the history of the United States from the late British Colonial period to the end of the U.S. Civil War:



FAVORITE PRE-GILDED AGE AMERICAN HISTORY BOOKS



1. "The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism" (2014) by Edward E. Baptist - This book centers on how slavery and the cotton industry helped develop the rise of U.S. capitalism.





2. "1861: The Civil War Awakening" (2011) by Adam Goodheart - This book depicts the last months of the United States' Antebellum period and the first months of the U.S. Civil War.





3. "1858: Abraham Lincoln, Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant and the War They Failed to See" (2008) by Bruce Chadwick - The book focuses on the historical events in the United States during the year, 1858.





4. "Thomas Jefferson & Sally Hemings: An American Controversy" (1997) by Annette Gordon-Reed - This book won the Pulitzer Prize for its in-depth exploration of President Thomas Jefferson and one of slaves, Sally Hemings.





5. "The Town That Started the Civil War" (1990) by Nat Brandt - This book is an in-depth study of Oberlin, Ohio during the 19th century and its role in one of the most famous slave rescues in U.S. history.





6. "Slavery and the Making of America" (2004) by James Oliver Horton and Lois E. Horton - This book is a detailed account of the history of slavery in the U.S. from the Colonial period to the end of the Civil War.





7. "The World Rushed In: The California Gold Rush Experience" (1981) by J.S. Holliday - This book is an in-depth study of the California Gold Rush between 1848 and 1855.





8. "The War Before the War: Fugitive Slaves and the Struggle for America's Soul from the Revolution to the Civil War" (2018) by Andrew Delbanco - This book focuses on slavery and especially the abolition movement from the Revolutionary War to the Civil War.





9. "John Adams" (2001) by David McCullough - This book is a biography of President John Adams and won a Pulitzer Prize.





10. "Gateway to Freedom: The Hidden History of the Underground Railroad" (2015) by Eric Foner - This book is a detailed account on the history of the Underground Railroad and the abolition movement in New York City.





11. "Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln" (2005) by Doris Kearns Goodwin - This biography is about the life of President Abraham Lincoln and the more prominent members of his Cabinet before and during the Civil War. It won both the Lincoln Prize and the inaugural Book Prize for American History of the New-York Historical Society.





12. "A Southern Odyssey: Travelers in the Antebellum North" (1976) by John Hope Franklin - This book is an account of the experiences of Southern travelers in the Northern states during the years before the Civil War.

Chicken and Waffles

 

Below is an article about the dish known as Chicken and Waffles:



CHICKEN AND WAFFLES

Considered an American dish, Chicken and Waffles is a fusion of two food times - chicken and waffles. The dish is part of a variety of culinary traditions that include soul food and Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine. It is served in certain specialty restaurants in the United States. The combination that is regarded as part of African-American or Southern tradition is usually served with condiments such as butter and syrup and has become a local custom in Baltimore, Maryland. However, the Pennsylvania Dutch version of the dish is usually served with pulled or stewed chicken and gravy on top. This version has become a custom in Northeastern United States.

Several theories about the origin of Chicken and Waffles do exist. But they are theories and is not exactly regarded as fact. Waffles entered American cuisine in the 1600s with the arrival of European colonists. A chef to the prince-bishop of Liège originated the waffles used in this particular dish in the 18th century. The popularity of waffles saw a boost following Thomas Jefferson's purchase of four waffle irons in Amsterdam after 1789.

Hotels and resorts outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania began serving waffles with fried catfish in the early 1800s. Such establishments also served other dishes like fried chicken, which gradually became the meat of choice due to catfish's limited availability. By the 1840s, broiled chicken and waffles became the specialty at Warriner's Tavern in Springfield, Massachusetts. The establishment was owned by Jeremy and Phoebe Warriner, two well-known African-American abolitionists. The Warriners hired African-American women as cooks for the tavern. They were usually freed or runaway slaves who had learned their trade in Southern plantation kitchens. Chicken and Waffles had been extravagant breakfast staples in plantation houses through much of the South. Earlier, I had pointed out that the chicken served with waffles by the Pennsylvania Dutch was usually stewed and topped with gravy. This version had became an established common Sunday dish among the Pennsylvania Dutch by the 1860s.

The combination of chicken and waffles did not appear in early Southern cookbooks such as "Mrs. Porter’s Southern Cookery Book", published in 1871; or in the first African-American cookbook, "What Mrs. Fisher Knows About Old Southern Cooking", published in 1881 by former slave Abby Fisher. The lack of a recipe for the combination of chicken and waffles in Southern cookbooks during the post-Civil War era may suggest a later origin for the dish. Popular culture had associated Chicken and Waffles with the South by 1917 with the publication of Edna Ferber's novel, "Fanny Herself".

Fried Chicken and Waffles had arrived in Los Angeles, California by 1931. The dish was served at The Maryland, a local restaurant that marketed the dish as a Southern specialty. The protagonist in James M. Cain's 1941 novel "Mildred Pierce" was a woman who finds success serving "chicken-and-waffle dinner" at her Glendale restaurant. Chicken and Waffles had become a staple in New York City's African-American community in Harlem as early as the 1930s in such locations as Tillie's Chicken Shack, Dickie Wells' jazz nightclub, and particularly the Wells Supper Club. The dish eventually regained popularity in Los Angeles in the 1970s, due to the fame of former Harlem resident Herb Hudson's restaurant Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles. The latter has become known as a favorite of some Hollywood celebrities and been referenced in several movies.

Below is a recipe for Chicken and Waffles from the Delish website:


Chicken and Waffles

Ingredients

Fried Chicken
1 quart buttermilk
2 tbsp. kosher salt
Mix of bone-in chicken thighs, breasts, and drumsticks (about 2 lbs.)
Vegetable oil, for frying
2 cups All Purpose Flour
1 tbsp. paprika

Waffles
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup sour cream
1 cup milk
6 tbsp. butter, melted, plus more for waffle iron
3 Large eggs, separated
1 tsp. cayenne
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 Large eggs


Preparation

1. Brine chicken - In a large bowl, mix together buttermilk and 2 tablespoons salt. Add chicken and cover bowl with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to overnight.

2. Meanwhile, make waffles - Preheat oven to 200°. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and a pinch of kosher salt.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together sour cream, milk, butter and egg yolks. Gently fold wet mixture into dry mixture.

4. In a large bowl, using a hand mixer (or in the bowl of a stand mixer), beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold whipped egg whites into batter, being careful not to over mix. (A few fluffy streaks of whites are fine!)

5. Heat waffle iron according to manufacturer’s instruction. When the iron is hot, brush grates with melted butter. Spoon about ⅓ cup of batter into waffle maker and cook until golden, about 5 minutes. Repeat with remaining batter. Place cooked waffles in a clean kitchen towel on a baking sheet. Place in oven to keep warm while preparing chicken.

6. When ready to fry - Fill a Dutch oven fitted with a candy thermometer with vegetable oil until 2" to 3" deep, then preheat until oil reaches 350º. Prepare one sheet pan lined with paper towels and a wire rack.

7. Transfer chicken from brine to another sheet pan and dry thoroughly with paper towels. Season generously with salt and pepper.

8. In a large, deep bowl, whisk together flour, paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper. In a large bowl, beat eggs with 2 tablespoons water. Using tongs, place chicken in egg mixture, roll in flour mixture, and shake off excess. Fry chicken in 2 batches until golden brown and cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes (internal temperature should read 165º). Bring oil back to 350º before adding last batch.

9. Place chicken on wire rack and season with salt immediately. Plate waffles with a pat of butter and top with 2 to 3 pieces of fried chicken. Serve with maple syrup on the side for drizzling.

Favorite Pre-Gilded Age American History Books

Below is a list of my favorite books that covered the history of the United States from the late British Colonial period to the end of the U.S. Civil War:


FAVORITE PRE-GILDED AGE AMERICAN HISTORY BOOKS



1. "The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism" (2014) by Edward E. Baptist - This book centers on how slavery and the cotton industry helped develop the rise of U.S. capitalism.





2. "1861: The Civil War Awakening" (2011) by Adam Goodheart - This book depicts the last months of the United States' Antebellum period and the first months of the U.S. Civil War.





3. "1858: Abraham Lincoln, Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant and the War They Failed to See" (2008) by Bruce Chadwick - The book focuses on the historical events in the United States during the year, 1858.





4. "Thomas Jefferson & Sally Hemings: An American Controversy" (1997) by Annette Gordon-Reed - This book won the Pulitzer Prize for its in-depth exploration of President Thomas Jefferson and one of slaves, Sally Hemings.





5. "The Town That Started the Civil War" (1990) by Nat Brandt - This book is an in-depth study of Oberlin, Ohio during the 19th century and its role in one of the most famous slave rescues in U.S. history.





6. "Slavery and the Making of America" (2004) by James Oliver Horton and Lois E. Horton - This book is a detailed account of the history of slavery in the U.S. from the Colonial period to the end of the Civil War.





7. "The World Rushed In: The California Gold Rush Experience" (1981) by J.S. Holliday - This book is an in-depth study of the California Gold Rush between 1848 and 1855.





8. "The War Before the War: Fugitive Slaves and the Struggle for America's Soul from the Revolution to the Civil War" (2018) by Andrew Delbanco - This book focuses on slavery and especially the abolition movement from the Revolutionary War to the Civil War.





9. "John Adams" (2001) by David McCullough - This book is a biography of President John Adams and won a Pulitzer Prize.





10. "Gateway to Freedom: The Hidden History of the Underground Railroad" (2015) by Eric Foner - This book is a detailed account on the history of the Underground Railroad and the abolition movement in New York City.





11. "Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln" (2005) by Doris Kearns Goodwin - This biography is about the life of President Abraham Lincoln and the more prominent members of his Cabinet before and during the Civil War. It won both the Lincoln Prize and the inaugural Book Prize for American History of the New-York Historical Society.





12. "A Southern Odyssey: Travelers in the Antebellum North" (1976) by John Hope Franklin - This book is an account of the experiences of Southern travelers in the Northern states during the years before the Civil War.

Favorite Television Productions Set in the 1810s

Below is a list of my favorite television productions set during the 1810s:



FAVORITE TELEVISION PRODUCTIONS SET IN THE 1810s



1. "Pride and Prejudice" (1995) - Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth starred in this award winning adaptation of Jane Austen's 1813 novel. The six-part miniseries was adapted by Andrew Davies and directed by Simon Langton.





2. "Emma" (2009) - Romola Garai, Jonny Lee Miller and Michael Gambon starred in this excellent adaptation of Jane Austen's 1815 novel. The four-part miniseries was adapted by Sandy Welch and directed by Jim O'Hanlon.





3. "Vanity Fair" (1987) - Eve Matheson starred in this superb adaptation of William Makepeace Thackery's 1848 novel. The sixteen-part miniseries was directed by Diarmuid Lawrence and Michael Owen Morris; and adapted by Alexander Baron.





4. "Pride and Prejudice" (1980) - Elizabeth Garvie and David Rintoul starred in this first-rate adaptation of Jane Austen's 1813 novel. The five-part miniseries was adapted by Fay Weldon and directed by Cyril Coke.





5. "War and Peace" (2016) - Paul Dano, Lily James and James Norton starred in this excellent adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's 1869 novel. The six-part miniseries was adapted by Andrew Davies and directed by Tom Harper.





6. "Vanity Fair" (1998) - Natasha Little starred in this award winning adaptation of William Makepeace Thackery's 1848 novel. The six-part miniseries was directed by Marc Munden and adapted by Andrew Davies.





7. "Emma" (1972) - Doran Godwin and John Carson starred in this first-rate adaptation of Jane Austen's 1815 novel. The six-part miniseries was adapted by Denis Constanduros and directed by John Glenister.





8. "Davy Crockett and the River Pirates" (1956) - This sequel to the 1955 television movie, "Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier", conveyed the experiences of Davy Crockett and George Russel with keelboat riverman Mike Fink and river pirates along the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. Picturesque and a lot of fun. Directed by Norman Foster, the TV movie starred Fess Parker, Buddy Ebsen and Jeff York.





9. "War and Peace" (1972) - Anthony Hopkins, Morag Hood and Alan Dobie starred in this superb adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's 1869 novel. The twenty-part miniseries was adapted by Jack Pulman and directed by John Davies.





10. "Poldark" (1996) - John Bowe and Mel Martin starred in this television adaptation of Winston Graham's 1981 novel from his Poldark series, "The Stranger From the Sea". The television movie was directed by Richard Laxton and adapted by Robin Mukherjee.

Favorite Films Set in the 1800s

Below is a list of my favorite movies set during the decade between 1800 and 1809:



FAVORITE FILMS SET IN THE 1800s



1. "Emma" (1996) - Gwyneth Paltrow starred in this very entertaining adaptation of Jane Austen's 1815 novel about an upper-class Englishwoman's attempts to play matchmaker for her friends and neighbors. Co-starring Jeremy Northam, the movie was adapted and directed by Douglas McGrath.





2. "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World" (2003) - Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany starred in this Oscar-nominated adaptation of several of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey–Maturin series. The movie was co-written and directed by Peter Weir.





3. 'Buccaneer's Girl" (1950) - Yvonne De Carlo starred in this entertaining romantic adventure about the relationship between a Boston singer and an elite sea trader/pirate in old New Orleans. Directed by Frederick de Cordova, the movie co-starred Philip Friend and Robert Douglas.





4. "Captain Horatio Hornblower" (1951) - Gregory Peck and Virginia Mayo starred in this adaptation of three of C. S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower novels. The movie was directed by Raoul Walsh.





5. "Mansfield Park" (1999) - Patricia Rozema adapted and directed this adaptation of Jane Austen's 1814 novel about an impoverished young woman living with her wealthy relations. Frances O'Connor and Jonny Lee Miller starred.





6. "The Duellists" (1977) - Ridley Scott directed this adaptation of Joseph Conrad's 1908 short story, "The Duel" about a small feud between two Napoleonic officers that evolves into a decades-long series of duels. Keith Carradine and Harvey Keitel starred.





7. "Lloyd's of London" (1936) - Tyrone Power was featured in his first starring role as a young man who worked for the famous insurance corporation, Lloyd's of London, during the Napoleonic Wars. Directed by Henry King, Madeleine Carroll and George Sanders co-starred.





8. "Carry On Jack" (1963) - Bernard Cribbins, Kenneth Williams and Juliet Mills starred in this eighth entry in the "Carry On" comedy series, which is a spoof of the high-seas adventure genre. Gerald Thomas directed.

Favorite Television Productions Set in the 1700s

Below is a list of my favorite television productions (so far) that are set in the 1700s: 



FAVORITE TELEVISION PRODUCTIONS SET IN THE 1700s



1. "John Adams" (2008) - Emmy winners Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney starred as John and Abigail Adams in this award winning HBO miniseries about the second U.S. President from his years as a Boston lawyer to his death. Tom Hooper directed.





2. "Turn: Washington's Spies" (2014-2017) - Jamie Bell starred in this television series that is an adaptation of Alexander Rose's 2006 book, "Washington's Spies: The Story of America's First Spy Ring". The series was created by Craig Silverstein.





3. "The Scarlet Pimpernel" (1982) - Anthony Andrews and Jane Seymour starred in this television adaptation of Baroness Emmuska Orczy's novels about a British aristocrat who adopts a secret identity to save French aristocrats from the guillotine during France's Reign of Terror. Directed by Clive Donner, Ian McKellen co-starred.





4. "The History of Tom Jones – A Foundling" (1997) - Max Beesley and Samantha Morton starred in this adaptation of Henry Fielding's 1749 novel about the misadventures of an illegitimate young man in the mid-1700s, who had been raised by a landowner. Metin Hüseyin directed.





5. "The Book of Negroes" (2015) - Aunjanue Ellis starred in this television adaptation of Laurence Hill's novel about the experiences of an African woman before, during and after the American Revolution; after she was kidnapped into slavery. Clement Virgo directed.





6. "Black Sails" (2014-2017) - Toby Stephens starred in this television series, which was a prequel to Robert Louis Stevenson's novel, "Treasure Island". The series was created by Jonathan E. Steinberg
and Robert Levine.





7. "Garrow's Law" (2009-2011) - Tony Marchant created this period legal drama and fictionalized account of the 18th-century lawyer William Garrow. Andrew Buchan, Alun Armstrong and Lyndsey Marshal starred.





8. "Poldark" (1975/1977) - Morris Barry and Anthony Coburn created this series, an adaptation of the first seven novels in Winston Graham's Poldark literary series. Robin Ellis and Angharad Rees starred.





9. "Outlander" (2014-present) - Ronald Moore developed this series, which is an adaptation of Diana Gabaldon's historical time travel literary series. Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan starred.





10. "Poldark" (2015-2019) - Debbie Horsfield created this series, an adaptation of the first seven novels in Winston Graham's Poldark literary series. Aidan Turner and Eleanor Tomlinson stars.