Long Forgotten Folklore

   Many people think of folklore as something that isn't true. A tale of a man of old with super strength. A woman whose motherly instinct knew no bounds. A heroic deed by a family member that simply cannot be verified.

   Many fail to realize that most folklore is based in reality, it has just changed slightly(IF at all)over the generations in order to keep alive our ancestors memories.
Folklore also involves sayings and names that were once so widespread and generally conveyed, that they are true. 

   New Englanders, henceforth referred to as Yankees, are the epitome of folklore, the definition really. In our Yankee folklore, you will find materials of a homely epic, Yankee toil, Yankee ingenuity and enterprise, Yankee, salty humor, idiosyncrasies, Yankee tradition and invention. Really, the typical American face of Uncle Sam but with the wondrousness of the tree squeak.

   Enjoy a trip back many centuries, only to continue the ride up the the 21st century, where many of you will be reminded of some of the following.

Some of the Yankeeisms that have been continued through the centuries include:

   A fresh cook, meaning a cook that uses little to no salt.

   Thatchy milk, or milk that tastes of thatch. Thatch was the coarse grassland pastured called salt marshes. This was common in the 17th-19th century New England and people could tell if a cow had eaten thatch. 

   Booze fuddle, as in "Got me a jug of booze fuddle." Meaning any type of liquor.

   Ding licker was a very pleasing person. Kind, gently and generally nice.

   Dingmaul was a mythical woods creature that was widely known to hang around lumber camps. Lucivee, or the "Injun Devil", was another name for another 4 legged animal, along with the Mooner, tree squeak and side-hill ranger.

   Dust your back was a phrase that meant to wrestle.

   Herring choker was a person from Prince Edward Island, although it came to mean anyone from English Canada. PJ was another name for the same.

   Prayer handles meant your knees.

   Yankee bullets were rifle shot made of pewter instead of lead.

Pumpkin heads, or rightly punkin' heads. Yes, this name has stuck around for many generations and is still uttered, referring to anyone who has had a "bowl cut". It began in New Haven, Connecticut in the middle 1700s and began  because of the ancient Blue Laws, which governed clergymen and his flock must keep their hair out of their eyes at all times. Over a few years, children too were given this type of hair cut. Ones hair could NOT be hanging down past their respective caps, so everyones hair was cut with their caps on. If one didn't have a cap, and many backwoods families could not afford one, then the dried shell of a pumpkin was used. And always on a Saturday night, right before Sunday services. Why was this important? Four reasons were outlined.

1. To prevent ones hair from snarling.
2. It saved the use of an expensive comb.
3. It kept you from being distracted from the Sunday sermon, instead of constantly fussing with ones hair.
4. And probably most important at the time, "such persons as have lost their ears for heresy, and other wickedness, cannot conceal their misfortune and disgrace."

   Thank'ee M'ams was a phrase I heard often from my uncle whenever we would go over a dip in the road. He told me when your body sunk at the lowest point, you should utter "Thank you m'am" every time. It was true in the horse and buggy days as well.

   How many know what is the Nutmeg State? Of course Connecticut comes to mind, but what about Pudding Town? Or Puddingers? Puddingers were people in Pudding Town(and I am not making this up)who ate hasty pudding with milk for supper every Saturday night. How about Scrabbletown, another name for Chatham? 

   Where were "lard eaters" from? This was another name for Cannucks. How about Chowderheads and mooncussers? Both refer to Cape Cod residents. Bean-eaters should be an easy one, referring to Bostonians.


Us Yankees have always had folk sayings as well, and are quite famous for many, such as:

   "The New England climate consists of 9 months of winter and 3 months late in the fall."

   "Go to Poodic". This is less known and simply meant the same thing as "Go jump in the lake". Poodic was the Indian name for a point  of land on Maine's coast.

   "Put a bag of coffee in the mouth of hell, and a Yankee will  be sure to go after it".

   Yankees are very well known, if not on the positive end, of answering a question with a question.

"Stands out like a blackberry in a pan of milk." The expression alone will tell you how old this saying is. When was the last time you ever had a pan of milk?

From 1888:"As Maine goes, so goes the country."

"Jumped like a cat out of the woodbox."

"Pick up your feet". We all know what this means but originally it was a demand from the top sawyer to the bottom, pit sawyer. When a 6 foot trench was dug and a large log was placed over it, a top sawyer would grab one end of the saw while a man would enter the trench and grab the other. When sawing in this manner, work was much easier, with both men pulling and pushing to saw through a huge timber. If the bottom sawyer wasn't giving his all, the top sawyer would holler, "Pick up your feet."

    Before Paul Bunyan was even a thought in the woodmens minds, Sock Sawyer was the "scape goat" for Yankee lumberers of old. If a riverdriver dropped his peavey in the water, he would say, "Well take it Sock Saunders." Or if he slipped on a log but recovered, he would say "Not quite this time Sock Saunders."

   And my favorite story of a Yankee, which encompasses what a true Yankee wit and ingenuity means is the following.

"A well known sea captain of Searsport, Maine when about 60 years of age, nearly lost his shipping business and 5 schooners as a result of his taste for liquor. His eldest son was appointed conservator of his estate, and allowed the old captain to take a voyage once in a while. The captain of the schooner on which he sailed was always instructed never to let the old gentleman have any money when he went to shore, obviously knowing that a tavern would be the beneficiary of every last cent.
ON the occasion of one of his trips, while anchored at T wharf in Bosotn, the captain sat on deck looking the length of Atlantic Avenue, viewing the many saloon signs witha parched throat. After speculating for hours as to how he could obtain a drink without money, he became inspired. Going to the cabin, he filled a gallon demijohn half full of water, and hurried to the nearest saloon. Entering, he informed the bartender that he wanted the demijohn filled with rum, and said he thought that it would take about 2 quarts as it was already half full. When the bartender had filled the jug and demanded his pay, the captain told him to charge it. Whereupon the bartender reclaimed his two quarts of rum./ Repeating this at the next five saloons along the avenue, the captain returned to his ship with two quarts of excellent rum".

   And lastly, of Songs and Rhymes. We can rightfully call old Yankee ballads as Folk music. It was homespun and rural. Yankee psalms and hymns in the way of deaconing(an ancient New England word for reading a line before singing it so that those worshippers without an expensive hymnal could sing along) were the foundation of the folk music we know today. It all started in the 1600s and is proven and referenced by Cotton Mather when he wrote that he was against the "foolish Sons and Ballads, which the Hawkers and Pedlars carry into all parts of the Countrye."

Long forgotten ballads include:

Old and New England
Old Colony Times
Away Downeast
Yankee Manufacturers
Free America
Ballad of the Tea Party
The Millers Three Sons
Mary of the Wiled Moor
The Shining Dagger
The Boston Come-All-Ye
Blow Boys, Blow
Cape Cod Shanty
Nantucket Lullaby
The Little Pig
The Herring Song
The Old Man Who LIved In The Wood
The Lone Fish-Ball
Old Woman, All Skin and Bone
Devil's Dream(Which I have a copy and play frequently on the violin)

And Corn Cobs Twist Your Hair. This song was a comic song and sung by Little Yankee Hill and was popular by 1800. It is sung to the tune of Yankee Doodle Dandy.

Localized rhymes were so many, I simply cannot list even a tenth of them here. Some great examples are:

God is great, god is good. So always do what He thinks you should.

Needles and pins, needles and pins. When a man gets married, his trouble begins.

To the tune of Ring around the Rosy, children sang, "Ring a ring a rounder. Daddy cought a flounder. Oysters, oysters, hurray!"

The Montague girls are pretty, and the Howland girls are sweet. But the Passadumkeag girls, all have big feet.
Rain before seven, clear before 'leven.
A sunshiny shower won't last hafl an hour. Sun at seven, rain at 'leven.
If the rooster crows when he goes to bed, he will get up with a wet head.
A mackerel sky won't have the ground dry.
Mackerel sclaes and mares tails, make lofty ships to carry low sails.
A cold wet may, a barn full of hay.
On Christmas day, half the wood and half the hay.
Half the pork and half the hay on Chrismas Day.

More Than Money.....

Ever since my book, An Amazing Journey came out a month or so ago, the book has been a tremendous success. But success in many more ways than I could ever have imagined. Financially, I am astounded at the geographic demand for it. I have sold so many copies to people throughout the United States, England, Scotland, Wales and far beyond. The reason? I can only surmise that it is because this is the first book to completely cover the Bailey family when they first came to America as well as close gaps that for centuries have eluded historians and genealogists.



I uncovered facts that were elusive and simply too far into the fray for many to research unless you had the determination to do so.

It also goes back millenia before 1635 as well. Although supplying the reader with an accurate lineage of this family was quite easy, it was looking out of the box that proved to be the key to unlocking many roadblocks.

I also employed a unique writing style that presented this book to be read as a fiction rather than a name, date and place compilation. I incorporated all references in the main body of the book rather than adding footnotes. I added so much date on allied families as well, along with a huge amount of information about the life and hardships that families(other than the focused family of the book)endured and lived. I added data on people, assets, town governments and that is just the tip of the iceberg.
But the most prized result of finally putting this book in print was a connection of one lost family with another.

In one particular generation, Thomas Bailey(my great great grandfather of Topsfield, Maine and my sons namesake)was married twice. He had a full family before marrying my great great grandmother. For over 20 years I have searched and searched for anyone that was descended from Thomas and Catherine Ripley, his first wife. I came up short every single time and it was the most important roadblock for me to cross all these years.

After the first week of it being on Amazon, I received an email from a lady in Wyoming that was directly descended from Thomas and Catherine and she told me that there was a whole slew of Baileys waiting to connect with the Maine Baileys. That was it!

I can honestly say my life's mission has been fulfilled and this book has accomplished everything I ever expected.

Add that I have connected with so many other Bailey members here in Maine and far beyond is yet another reason I can smile when I look at my book. I have been blessed far beyond what my royalty checks can give me.

What started out as a book that I could literally hand down to my children for posterity has evolved into what was in the top 10 new releases on Amazon for weeks, and what can I say?

Thank you for everyone who has reached out to me. Thank you to everyone who has descended from John Bayley of Newburyport, Massachusetts and thank you to every single person who has purchased this book. I think you will thoroughly enjoy reading it and all I have is one more desire. That is to start the Bailey/Bayley Association back up gain for all of us who are descended from John. This association was quite briskly attended 100 years ago and it sure would be nice to begin again. It would be monumental to have a gathering of Washington County Baileys as well, even if it only once every 5 years. I am sure there are pictures, stories and even memorabilia still out there that would be fascination to see.

Again, my Bailey mission is complete and I am truly blessed at the huge Bailey family that have benefited from my book.

Yes....I am a "Square"!

I will never forget walking into a shoe store a couple of years ago and asking for a certain type of shoes I really wanted. They were called hush puppies, and not just any old kind of hush puppy, they had to come up to my ankle. Now I hadn't been in a shoe store searching for shoes or sneakers for a long time. I ordinarily simply run in, grab a pair of sneakers I like the looks of and leaving. No searching out or looking for any particular type.

So the girl at the mall(after explaining to her what I was looking for, and knowing she wasn't even born in the 70s, 80s or even the 90s)looked at me with a complete blank face. After a few moments of smoke coming out of her ears(figuratively of course), she snapped back into reality and put both hands up. She extended both index fingers and drew an air square. Of course I immediately knew she was calling me a square and how she even knew what that meant is beyond me. Heck, I haven't even uttered that name since high school.

Now my kids roll their eyes at the mere mention of the fun we had in the 60s and 70s and continue on with the allusion that their Dad was truly a square, especially when I mention the different ways we had fun growing up. But there truly is a lot to be said for the former times of creating our OWN, imaginative pasttimes and getting outside to enjoy life, rather than seeking "enjoyment" through electronic means. We thought nothing of hopping on our big wheel or banana seat bike and cruisin' down the street. If we were lucky enough to grab a pillow case or burlap bag, then everyone knew what that meant. SACK RACE!!! Leap frog was so much fun back then as well. Go ahead and put the words leap frog game in any search engine and see what you come up with....I am waiting.......It has all but disapeared from life now.

I am very proud and content knowing that our answers to boredom needed to be sought from within rather than having any device dictate the answer.

There was so many different ways to play tag. From TV tag to frozen tag, this game was probably to most fun. Add to that walking around on stilts, hide and seek, kick ball or simply building our own tree house out back.

When the family wanted to go somewhere on a Sunday, we would hop in the back of the station wagon and go for an ice cream cone somewhere.

THAT was a treat because we weren't able to stop at the store whenever the mood hit us and chose from hundreds of sweets. Not only was it too expensive but our parents wouldn't allow us to "rot our teeth" at a whim.

As for impressing our friends in the way of fashion, well all I can say is that we thought we were so groovy whenever Mom and Dad bought us a new pair of converse sneakers,

those high healed shoes or some flashy bell bottoms. We mixed polka dotted, butterfly collared shirts with striped pants and we were outta sight!

Not only is this post a quick trip down memory lane, but I am hoping it will spark a little incentive in parents to bring their children outside, now that summer is around the corner, and maybe spark your childs interest in something that is healthy for them, rather than seeking "gun" on the internet or other 'thumb-driven' means. Heck, stop and grab a hoolahoop the next time you go out and surprise your child with it.

You will be amazed at the fun they will have, at least for a fleeting day. Don't give up though! Just because your children may think you too are a square, continue to offer alternatives in their lives. I am quite sure 95% of anything you show them will be met with a scowl or brush off, but as a parent it is your responsibility to keep them active, open minded, feel their mind and body and above all....YOU BE THEIR INTELLIGENCE, not the artificial plug in sitting on their lap or held in their hands. I am not here to harp on you, but just stimulate. I am guilty at times of taking the easy route when it comes to entertaining my children, but it is always in my mind to get them to set down their devices and do something that is constructive physically and mentally. It really is easier than you think and it leaves no guilty feeling.

So I am not the least bit offended by being called square! In fact, I am not offended by many things. If I am, I simply turn the other cheek or alter my route. That, too, is something we should be teaching our children. Everything in life doesn't need to be conformed around their likes and dislikes. They need to know how to handle that which they don't like. This plays along perfectly with this post. So let US teach them and nobody or noTHING take that parenting skill over.

They STILL Don't Understand!

    I was watching a show on television last night called America's Hidden Stories on the Smithsonian Channel. I love this show and find it very intriguing and informative.....except for one particular episode called Salem's Secrets. One of their tag lines is:

 "Today, a group of historians uncovers new information about the infamous witch hunt in an effort to answer its most enduring mysteries."

    Boy did my "gander" get up! I just cannot believe that with our supposed, evolving intelligence, these so-called experts, historians and psychologists are still reaching for straws when it comes to explaining the actions of these wretched girls who cast unfounded aspersions of the poor souls of Salem in 1692.

    They were on the program alluding to a NEW psychosis/disorder in order to explain what Occam's Razor has already, and I elaborate in my book Witch Hunts. There is NO psychosis, no medical or psychological reason and absolutely no sickness involved in this hysteria. And the answer is right in front of you, actually in that one word at the end of the previous sentence.

    Everything and everyone has to have a label now, which is absurd. It is as if my father's premonition is coming true. He told me before he died in 2001 that he was glad he was departing this life because slowly our world, especially our country, is becoming a blameless society. Nobody will accept fault for their actions, nor will those who have the intelligence place blame. Rather finding a "rational" label for their behavior, which is irrational on its face.
    These experts are furthering foolish labeling only to have their listeners think they are so intelligent in their assertions and diagnosis that everyone should believe them. THEY are the last word on a subject that needs no intelligence to understand, conclude and answer. Simply common sense, a level head and the attitude of not caring about notoriety or publicity.

    Purely propaganda, notoriety, self grandiose attention were the SOLE reason for the dangerous behavior in 1692. And think about this. We are STILL using the same exact behavior today, and have over the centuries since Salem. Further proof that we have not evolved in intelligence, but still allow our attention seeking soul to override common sense.

    Read my book, Witch Hunts, and you will completely understand and with any luck, you will heed the past and actually evolve intelligently.

My Labor of Love

 

    I have just finished my book called An Amazing Journey. It is the complete book on the Bailey family, the ancestry and the lineage that has so eluded genealogists for decades. But it is far more than a "black and white" genealogical work. I have added a TON of information on the early families of New England in the Massachusetts colony, as well as way too much data to even begin listing here. Containing hundreds of names and old New England families, I have added so much information on exactly how our ancestors lived, and not the affluent inhabitants. It just so happens that my family were simply...well, simple in means. We worked for a living and always have. I go into detail about every day lives of every day citizens of Puritan New England, Massachusetts and Maine and continue up until the start of the 20th century.

   Going back to the times before the early 17th century, I take you on a journey through England, the greatest storm ever to hit New England's coast and continue backward to the Norman Conquest, the castles and lands held not only by our family but others of prominence.
Continuing back, I solve many mysteries and place the "missing brick" back into the wall that has so often hindered historians.

   I take you to a time where our family was murdered on one hand, yet crowned King on the other. We break open the secret veil of adultery that is STILL not talked about in English stories of the monarchy.

   I take you through biblical times and beyond in order to continue one family's line, unbroken, to the beginning of time. This is an accomplishment that is rarely completed and I am proud to have finished.

   From the founding of small towns such as Baileyville, Topsfield, Princeston, Maine and surrounding towns, to the Bailey records of Newburyport and Salisbury, MA and continuing on back in time to Chippenham, Scotland and Wales, find information not in print and undiscovered as you read yourself back in time. I give you information that has never been sought out and linked together in order to  complete this family history. A very comprehensive book that reads like a fiction. You will also find some valuable information for the beginning genealogist as well as some data that professional genealogists have overlooked all these years.

   But my proudest literary achievement in this book has to do with Nathaniel Bailey. He was the founder of Baileyville in Maine and there is so much missing about his life....up until this book! I have closed every single missing year and added so much data on him that I am proud to have descended from him.


   This truly is a wondrous Trek Through Time and I urge you to grab your copy. I will add, however, that at times, I am simply black and white. What I mean is I give precise and concise data on food prices, home living, how our ancestors named their children and a lot of information that I did not take the poetic license to glorify or dramatize it. What was it that Sgt. Friday always said on Dragnet? "Just the facts!". If I had taken the drama route in order to hyperbolize some of these stories, the book would have easily been a thousand pages.

 
   If you want a book that ensnares you in a fictional world and keeps you enraptured an imaginative tale , pay attention to my next book, which will be a novel full of....well, you will soon see.

For those of you who wish to order, please see:

 https://www.amazon.com/dp/179644247X

.....or simply email me directly through the contact form to your right.

Remember When?

   I thought I would share some memories of days long ago when we weren't glued to our electronic devices so that we can try to bring down our stress levels from all the political nonsense and foolishness that pervade our lives minute in and minute out. Some of the following items were way before my time, but I am sure many of you have heard stories passed down from your parents, grandparents of days when being outside brought about imaginative games, snacks and treats were so few and far between that they are indelibly mounted on our biological memory board. Foods that are no longer made, but thought of in a calming manner and toys that made us smile much more than adolescent and, oftentimes, vulgar memes.

   For example, I remember all too vividly and happily, albeit mundane and a pain in the butt at the time, having to use the dictionary and encyclopedia whenever I needed an answer for school or pleasure. "Dad, what does monumental mean?" I would ask my Dad, even though I knew precisely the answer that was bellowed from his deeply rich retort. "Look it up!"....Always the same answer to every single query I sought an answer to.

   I fondly remember Dad telling me about his grandfather going out into the woods in Topsfield, Maine to gather a(now long forgotten)glob of spruce gum. Dad was wicked happy when he saw his grandfather return, reach into his pocket and pull  out a small wooden box with a sliding lid, He knew instantly that he was in for a treat of some of Mother Nature's finest...thick spruce sap that had been stretched, pulled and kneaded by his grandfather until it had formed a mass of soft plastic-like rubbery chewing gum. Many of the old time loggers in Maine woods would take their off

day(Sunday)and forage throughout the woods to collect this sap and store it in their own spruce gum box so that when they returned home to their children at the end of logging season. Kids adored this treat almost as much as they were happy to see their fathers again.

I won't go on and on about each item, nor do I need to.


Other forgotten gum from years gone by are:

Beachnut chewing gum.

Blackjack chewing gum.

Clove chewing gum.

Teaberry chewing gum.

Other sweet delights that are sadly gone today were:

Sugar Mama's.

Razzles.


Teem soda.

Shasta soda.

Sassafras(Sarsaparilla) soda.

Birch beer or soda.

RC soda.

How about tripe?

Eel.

Liver and onions.

Cod Liver oil.

Mercurochrome.

Iodine.

Father John's.

Castor oil.

Eye patches or lens covering for amblyopia.

Disclosure tablets

How about dressing up simply on Halloween? Hobo's and ghosts.

Red Rover.

Kick the Can.

3-legged races

.

Our clothing in the 1970s with platform shoes and butterfly collars...oh, and bell bottoms

Tag, Freeze tag, TV tag...

Playing marbles

Jacks

Red Light, Green Light.

And how about those little ditties that have stuck with us for decades, like cigarette commercials and MacDonalds.

"Winston takes good, like a cigarette should"

Remember dressing up simply on Halloween?

The old Maypole

Or being able to utter "Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame seed bun", in 4 seconds for a free Big Mac?

We thought we were the coolest when we got our first record player

 "Us Tareyton smokers would rather fight that switch";




Or always getting your Dad Hai Karate aftershave on Father's Day?

That Grimace Look

   

     That is exactly the look most people create on the outside or within when they think of Christmas Fruit Cakes. More of a door stop than a dessert. And actually, I often think the same way! "Supah" heavy and bewildered as to how this cake can actually hold together with the obvious overload of candied fruit and nuts. And to be completely honest, this cake has changed very little over the centuries. Lighter in color and lacking alcohol of any type are the main signs of this cake losing its "kick". And this is solely because of our diets and tastes. Even though today's fruit cakes sold prepackaged in stores are basically a yellow-colored cake, producers think this may draw in the health conscious, although the calories remain basically the same  as if it were prepared during the Puritan era in New England and Victorian age in England, and elsewhere in the world.

Here is a quick rundown of this famous, or infamous, cake that is either enjoyed or ridiculed during Christmas as it has been classically made in the most popular cuisines.

Although there are literally dozens and dozens of recipes for fruit cakes, each supposedly unique and original,they all fall into 3 main categories--white, light and dark. Fruits, spices and liquors vary from one to another. Fruit cakes are English in origin and have been the centerpiece of dining tables during the Holidays, using local products. 

All of these cakes were stored for many months, wrapped in rum or a brandy soaked cloth and placed in an airtight container. They really did, and still do, improve with age.  

Swedish Apricot Nut Bread, also called Aprikosnotbrod. It has apricots, brandy, sweet butter, orange juice, walnuts and the grated zest of lemons.


Dublin Fruit Cake had cherries, almonds, raisins, currants, candied fruit peel, apples, almond extract and Irish whiskey. It was generally covered in almond paste icing.

Danish Beer Fruit Cake. This intensely flavored cake is called Olfrugtbrod and had raisins, currants, candied fruit peel, sweet butter, almonds and dried fruit that was soaked in dark beer.

Cherry Whiskey Cake is from Scotland and had both granulated and brown sugars, sweet butter, cherries that had been soaked in Scotch whiskey, currants, angelica, citron and orange peel. 

(Angelica, or wild celery leaves, roots or more commonly stems,  used to be sold candied or crystallized and were once a very popular cake decoration or eaten alone.) 

Victorian Plum Cake was an English fruit cake that contained raisins, currants, almonds, candied cherries and fruit peel, sweet butter, brown sugar, molasses, brandy, rum, sherry or Madeira and the grated zest of oranges and lemons. It was covered with almond paste icing.


English Twelfth Cake, Three Kings Cake, hid both a dried pea and bean for the lucky one who came across one in the slice. The bean determined the King for the evening and the pea relegated the Queen. It contained white rum, raisins, currants, citron, angelica, candied orange peel, sweet butter, almond extract, mace, almonds and almond icing as well. 

Golden Coconut Fruit Cake was a southern United States treat many decades ago. It has sweet butter, cloves, mace, sherry or rose water, raisins, figs, citron, almonds and unsweetened coconut.

Charleston Crystal White Fruit Cake. Citron, raisins, almonds, pineapple, coconut, sweet butter, rose water and almond extract were the main ingredients of this lighter fruit cake that was ended with a covering of almond paste icing. 


Black Fruit Cake was an Italian, Canadian and southern American favorite for many generations. It was baked full of raisins, currants, rum, hard apple cider, candied orange, lemon and citron peel, cherries, pineapple, almonds, walnuts, mace, sweet butter, brown sugar, molasses and covered with melted chocolate, apricot preserves and almond paste icing.

Jamaican Black Fruit Cake. The secret of this cake lies in the soaking of the raisins, currants, citron, figs, dates and prunes in rum for at least 4 weeks, but popularly 4 months. It was common for the fruit to be soaking by August every year in Jamaica, then added to a cake which had cherries, candied orange peel, almonds, more Jamaican rum, orange juice, brandy, sweet butter, brown sugar, cloves and covered in almond paste icing. 

Ladies World magazine, 1915

Martha Washington's "Great Cake", which was traditionally served at Mount Vernon on Christmas day, New Years Day and Twelfth Night. The original recipe, now in the Mount Vernon archives, starts by calling for 40 eggs, with the whites being beaten to a froth with a bundle of twigs. Raisins, currants, candied orange and lemon peel, citron, candied angelica, red and green cherries, brandy, mace and sherry rounded off the flavor profile of this popular and festive presidential cake.


Estonian Honey Cake, aka Mee Kook. It was a simple preparation of dark honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, sweet butter, grated lemon rind and ground almonds.


Irish Fruited Gingerbread. This was a version of our popular gingerbread, though it had mace and allspice that took the place of cloves and ginger. Raisins, chopped, mixed, candied fruit peels and blanched, chopped almonds were added.


Pain d'Epice, of France, was a dark honey flavored cake that also included rye flour, anise seeds, grated orange and lemon peel, baking soda, hot water, brown sugar and hot milk. That is, or was, the entire ingredient list. But at times, according the family finances, dry mustard and candied orange peel were added. It was more often than not cooked, cooled, sliced thin and was made into a "sandwich" with orange marmalade as a spread between the slices.

Printen originated in Aix-la-Chapelle in France, but Sachen, Germany also claims origination distinction. It was always made in either of two ways, both based on one recipe. The first, molded Printen, used extra flour to make a dough smooth enough to roll out. IT was then stamped with springerle, or printen, molds, which ranged from a few inches up to 3 feet large. They were baked on a cookie sheet. The second, and simpler, version is Printen slices. The batter was spread about 1 1/2-inches thin and baked. It was then cut into finger-sized strips and eaten plain or iced with melted chocolate. The ingredients in each were primarily cloves, allspice, crushed rock candy, cinnamon and pepper.


Pepparkakor, or Scandinavian Gingerbread, used crushed cardamon, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, sweet butter, sour cream, currants, raisins and bread crumbs.

Here is a great recipe for a revamped Pepparkakor at my friends website. I think you will enjoy it tremendously.

             https://www.fiveeurofood.com/swedish-soft-gingerbread-cake/


Oatmeal Gingerbread. Now you wouldn't think of gingerbread as being in the same family as fruit cake, but they are so closely related, they share the same birth. Scotland's Oatmeal Gingerbread recipe ingredients are listed below as it was for generations. 2 cups flour, 2 cups powdered oatmeal, 2 tablespoons powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/4 cup grated lemon zest, 2/3 cup molasses, 1/2 cup sweet butter, 1 cup brown sugar, 2 eggs and 1/2 cup buttermilk. This was poured into a 10-inch square pan and baked at 325-degrees F.

Ukranian Honey Cake, called Medivnyk, was a sweet cake with honey, mace, cloves, sweet butter, brown sugar, raisins, currants, dates, candied orange peel, walnuts and almonds.

Polish Gingerbread Layer Cake. This 'mile-high' cake was doused in brandy when first pulled from the oven. When cooled, it was cut into 3 layers with the first layer of cake spread with melted strawberry or cherry jam. The second layer had a mixture of pitted, chopped dates, candied orange peel, strawberry, raspberry or apricot preserves, chopped walnuts or hazelnuts. The third layer was place on and covered with a towel. A light weight was placed on top overnight. When ready, the top and sides of the cake was drizzled heavily with melted chocolate icing. 

                                      https://venierospastry.com/



Sicilian Marsala Gift Cake, or Cucidata, was a specialty of the Veniero Pastry Shop in New York. It originally had grated lemon rind, brandy, raisins, figs, orange peel, almonds, walnuts, cinnamon, fennel seeds and Marsala wine.


Panforte Di Siena, an Italian favorite, was a strong bread which was practically a confection. Similar to nougat candy, it has been a Christmas specialty of Siena since the Renaissance. It contained minced, candied orange, lemon and citron rind, brandy, hazelnuts unsweetened cocoa, honey and rice wafers.

In the Emilia section of Italy, they have Panpepato. This was basically the same as of Siena, but with chocolate icing.

Certosina was yet another version of the same Panforte, but from the Bologna region of Italy. This cake had red wine in place of brandy, almonds in place of hazelnuts,cloves for allspice and was decorated on top with strips of candied fruit peel, candied cherry halves and slivered almonds. 

Finnish Sour Cream Cake, called Kermakakku, was rather a dry, bland cake. It had only a small amount of grated lemon rind, sweet butter and vanilla to flavor it. 

The Finnish Christmas Torte, called Joulukakku, was a little more flavorful with the addition of chocolate icing in between layers.

Galette des Ropis was a January 6 specialty cake in France. It was also called a Kings Cake because it had a single almond or dried bean hiding somewhere in it. Whoever found it would have the good fortune of a King. 

     Now what is this almond paste icing that was so often used in these age-old cakes? 2 cups powdered sugar, 2 cups blanched whole almonds that are ground, 3 egg yolks and 1 teaspoon lemon juice or rose water. You tossed the sugar with the ground almonds until very thoroughly mixed together. Then you beat the yolks with remaining ingredients in a separate bowl and combined the two together. Knead together on a work surface that is liberally doused with more powdered sugar until the dough is smooth. Roll thinly between parchment or waxed paper and use as a covered for these cakes, but first you needed something to keep it sticking on the cakes.  
  That is where royal icing came in. This was a mixture of 2 egg whites, 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon glycerin and food coloring of  your choice. Beat together with an electric mixer until stiff peaks formed. 

The glycerin prevent the sugar from crystallizing if it sits out too long or while it is on the cake itself.

Here is one last recipe, MINE!!! Not to toot my own horn, but I LOVE this version of a classic. It is truly lighter and tastier than any store bough version of our beloved classic. Click on the name for the recipe on https://theyankeechef.com

                                    Yanked Fruit Cake