Reading, MA — As you ponder hosting family and friends for Thanksgiving this year, do you ever wonder how a harvest celebration dinner (before Thanksgiving was an official holiday) was prepared over 250 years ago?
Wonder no more!
On Monday, November 18, at 7:00 p.m. at the Reading Public Library, the Reading Antiquarian Society, the caretaker organization of the Parker Tavern, hosted its biennial meeting. Following a very brief business meeting, a program was presented giving a little insight into what it took to create a harvest feast before 1775. People in attendance learned about what our ancestors ate, what it took to put it all together, and how various foods were cooked. While some traditional dishes remain today, others, like turtle, may have fallen out of favor. Attendees received copies of a few authentic period recipes to try out — or not!
Some of the Tavern’s vintage cooking items and utensils were demonstrated and explained during the presentation. You’d recognize some things, but a few may surprise you!
It was great seeing how our ancestors handled a celebratory meal in their rustic kitchens. This little history lesson gave everyone in attendance something unexpected to be very thankful for this Thanksgiving — your kitchen!
About the Society
The Reading Antiquarian Society is an independent nonprofit organization that owns and maintains Reading’s oldest surviving home, The Parker Tavern. The Parker Tavern is a historic house museum at 103 Washington Street in Reading, Massachusetts, United States. Built in 1694, it is the oldest extant structure in Reading. The saltbox was built by Abraham Bryant, a farmer and blacksmith, and Ephraim Parker operated a tavern on the premises in the 18th century. It has been a local history museum since 1923 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.
