Category Archives: Food

Biographical, Culture, Edwardian/Pre-War, Food, History, Strong Women

Cranberry Lady

When we US Americans [1] think of food and the Thanksgiving holiday, the vast majority will first think of turkey.  Not far down the list many will also have cranberry sauce.  A joke in our family is that Lime Jello-mold is still missing, but that’s a family joke for another essay.

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Of the 103 colonists who arrived at Plymouth in 1620, only 53 survived until the following fall.  In celebration of a healthy harvest, and their own survival, the first Thanksgiving of Europeans on the new continent was held in early November, 1621.  Little more is known, but two surviving accounts by Puritans state that the ceremony was celebrated with the local native Wampanoags.

For 12,000 years the Wampanoags had dwelt along the northeast coastal areas of the current USA, mostly in what is today the states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

They developed great local knowledge, shared by oral tradition over 100s of generations.  This included knowledge of all the native plants, and how to use them.  Among them were cranberries.

Land of the Wampanoags. New England Massachusetts and Rhode Island

The cranberry bush is rugged.  It thrives in harsh, cool conditions, often near the sea, especially in acidic, sandy and salty soils.  They do well in, and near, marshy bogs.

It seems quite likely to this author that cranberries were present at this “first” Thanksgiving.  But not cranberry sauce.  Wait about 300 years.

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We really enjoy the fruit at our house.  Well, actually, we like the dried and sweetened product called “craisins.” Cranberries themselves are naturally tart, hence the sweetening. In addition to noshing on a handful from time to time, I add them to salads and even breakfast, either on yogurt or on cereals (my wife makes an awesome Muesli, but I sometimes throw a few in).

Our Colorado grandson, a frequent visitor, knows right where they are.  One of his first destinations upon arrival is usually the pantry and shelf where we keep them.  He’ll eat a pound if we let him.  When we remember, we keep the pantry locked when he’s coming over.  [2]

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The Wampanoag had many recipes with cranberries, including pemmican, a high-calorie mixture of fat, protein and dried fruits that kept well over the winter, and on hunting expeditions. They were also used for dyeing.

Cranberry harvest season is late summer and early autumn.  Pemmican was prepared before winter, and dyeing was done during winter.  The berries are packed with nutrients and offer numerous health benefits.  They contain antioxidants, flavonoids, and phenolic acids, which help prevent urinary tract infections. They support cardiovascular health and regulate the immune system. Cranberries have also been shown to have anti-cancer properties, promote dental health, and support gut health.  And shown to reduce LDL cholesterol.  Eat more cranberries!

New Jersey Climate Areas

Cranberries are also native to the nearby coastal and pine barrens regions of New Jersey.  It’s on the cooler end of the temperate climates.  This climate has matches in southern Quebec on out to the ocean, and parts of Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin.  The plant is also native to Quebec, but are now grown most prolifically in those 3 “non-native” states.  In fact, most are now grown in the Badger State.

US-Americans consume 400 million pounds of cranberries each year. Twenty percent are eaten during Thanksgiving week.

 

On December 7, 1864, Elizabeth Fee, a first-generation US-American, was born to Irish immigrants John and Mary (O’Hagen) Fee in New York.  It’s not hard to imagine they came across as a consequence of the great potato famines in the years 1845-51. And also because of the atrocious treatment of the Irish by the ruling imperialistic Brits. [3]

Elizabeth was the last of Mary and John’s three children, after James and Martha, 2 and 5 years older, respectively.  Martha, as we’ll see, went on to play a large role in Elizabeth’s life.  Elizabeth’s siblings were born in New Jersey, which would go on to be their life-long home.  I am not sure why Elizabeth was born in New York.  [4]

We first find the family documented in 1860, in Bordentown, NJ.  John is a “Laborer” with a net worth of $100.  The family’s residence was here for many years.

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We find no further family information until 1880. And, even then, Elizabeth remains elusive; still no record of her. Only Martha, who worked as a house maid servant in Freehold, NJ. She soon thereafter married Frank Howard Bills, a watchmaker, in 1881. They settled in Bordentown, NJ. A son, Enoch arrived in 1883. Enoch was Frank’s father’s name.
For genealogists and researchers (like me) 1890 was an empty year & 1896 was a very sad year. The US 1890 census records were destroyed in 1896 when a fire swept through the Commerce Building. ☹

Starting in 1900 Elizabeth finally shows up in records, and regularly.  Usually as a dressmaker or dress designer, and always living with her sister, Martha. At one point she is listed as Designer/ Women’s Garments.

Dressmaking (seamstress) and watchmaking (and repairs) were pretty big deals in the later 19th and early 20th centuries.  Textiles was a huge industry at the time in the US, and all manners of talent were required.  The industrial age evolved to bring the era of precise time keeping.  Economies ran on production and consumption; production and transportation of goods ran on ever tighter time schedules.  This was before the widespread use of wristwatches, which, at the time, were considered rather a novelty item and only for women.  Pocket watches were the norm.

We find Elizabeth again in 1905 (then going by “Lizzie”, but not for long) and 1915.  She also appears in 1910 and ’20.  Occupation: dressmaker.  [NJ census, and US census]

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Late in the first decade of the 20th century, Enoch – Elizabeth’s nephew and housemate, both living with her sister Martha in Bordentown – began growing blueberries over near New Egypt, NJ, along the fertile fields of Ocean County.  As such, he and his aunt Elizabeth also became aware of the commercial potential of growing cranberries near there.  By 1911 Elizabeth had acquired a large acreage of promising cranberry land nearby. Thus she began her great cranberry enterprise.

Cranberries do not need a bog to thrive. They grow along the mossy edges of moist woods, meadows, creeks, rivers and swamps. They even can be found growing in sand dunes near the beach. They tend to prefer sandy soils and certainly acidic soil.

 

After some early success selling cranberries, around 1912 Elizabeth started experimenting with making cranberry jellies.  One reason given is that she wanted to develop a product to extend the selling/buying season throughout the year. Her special recipe eventually became the sauce we know well and associate with Thanksgiving.

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Other local cranberry growers were doing well and experimenting with the fruit; among them were Marcus Urann and John Makepeace.  Urann also experimented with jellies and developed a process for canning the product.

In 1912, Elizabeth hit on the idea of using “reject” imperfect berries to make her jelly.  Experimenting with berry concoctions of secret local ingredients, and sugar, she soon had it perfected.

From approximately 1910 to 1920, Martha’s husband, Frank Bills, is generally not living with his family.  He may have first left to find better employment. First, he’s 20 or 30 miles away, in New Egypt, occupation: Cranberry Grower.  Later, he’s living near New Egypt, out in the unincorporated parts of the county; occupation: laborer on his “own farm.”  We deduce the operation has grown quite large and the family – at least Frank and Enoch – have completely committed to Elizabeth’s business.  Enoch, still living with his mom Martha, sometimes working as a “structural engineer” with Newton AK Bugbee, in Trenton.

“She was so impressed with her creation that she took a few cases of it to Philadelphia to find an investor to buy and sell her sauce. However, no investors saw her, and because she didn’t want to carry the crates of sauce back to New Egypt, she left them there. By the time she returned to New Egypt, a phone call was waiting for her to inform her that an investor tasted her sauce and loved it and made an order of 500 cases. So, she got to cooking. She bought up all surplus berries from local cranberry bogs, and eventually had to relocate out of her kitchen and into an old chicken coop…”  — https://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC61Q5D.

Around 1913 the three big cranberry growers – Elizabeth, Makepeace and Urann – began collaborating, mostly sharing ideas on growing, jellies and marketing.  Informal posts on the web suggest Makepeace was, or had been, in business with an Albert Westbrook Lee, a haberdasher of Trenton, NJ; he’d recently lost his wife, Mary, in 1910.

In any case, a relationship developed between Elizabeth and Albert; they were wed February 14, 1914 (Valentine’s Day).  Albert was some 8 years older.  Sadly, he passed away just 14 months later, April 23, 1915.  She never remarried.

National “Eat a Cranberry Day” is November 23.  Right before Thanksgiving!

As she progressed with her jellies, working in New Egypt, NJ, she renamed her company Bog Sauce.

All three collaborators were running their own businesses, Elizabeth (now Lee) soon again changed hers to Bog Sweets Cranberry Sauce.  Urann occasionally operated as Ocean Spray Cranberries.  Each had large and expanding operations.

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Enoch also endured a very short marriage.  On July 24, 1917 he wed Emma Rogers Cowperthwait of Medford, NJ, shortly after registering for the draft.  (US entered WWI in April that year).  Very sadly, Emma passed away on November 24, that same year.  Coincidentally just 2 days after Thanksgiving Day.

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According to the South Florida Reporter (March 23, 2024) … “canned cranberry sauce got its start in 1912 when cranberry growers Marcus L. Urann and Elizabeth Lee started working together to create a jellied sauce, which was concocted by boiling bruised berries from the bog. (say that 3 times fast, <BBBB>)”

Trucks deliver the good for the co-op, Cranberry Canners, Inc

In 1930 the three formally united, forming a cooperative called Cranberry Canners, Inc.  From the name (Canners) we deduce that they were likely big into cranberry sauce.  Along the timeline, the product name was changed from jelly to sauce.

Almost immediately upon joining together, the 3 began joint work on developing and marketing cranberry juice.  Under a law passed by the New Jersey State Legislature in 2022, Cranberry Juice is the official state drink.  The same law declared that Elizabeth Fee is the inventor of cranberry sauce.

In this sense, a co-op is owned by its members and operated for their benefit.  In an economic sense, they’ll cooperate on any, up to all, aspects of the business.  Procurement, processing, delivery, marketing, fundraising.
I have an ancestral line from a wine making valley some 25 km east of Stuttgart. They were in what was effectively a community cooperative.  They shared equipment to press the grapes, ferment and age the wine, and get the wine to the market town of Feuerbach, just outside Stuttgart’s northern border.  [Now consumed by Stuttgart, thus losing any physical manifestation of its legacy].

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After starting as “at school” (1900 census), Enoch’s occupation flips back-and-forth from “draughtsman” to a “structural engineer” and “contractor “, then finally just “cranberries.” I surmise he’s drafting and building additional cranberry processing plants.  The colorized photo suggests they were enormous.  (Draughtsman is an older USA spelling of Draftsman; also still used by the British).
Although cranberries need not be grown in bogs, this does make them easier to harvest.  Because of this Cranberry “fields” are often flooded at harvest time to make an artificial bog.  Elizabeth invented devices for harvesting and processing her cranberries.

Plant #3, Elizabeth Lee’s Cranberry Canners

The four (Elizabeth, Makepeace, Urann and nephew Enoch) formed the co-op’s leadership.  Elizabeth was the operations vice president; Enoch ran the processing facilities.

In 1959 the cooperative changed its name to Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc.  Over the decades they’ve recruited new members from among cranberry growers in Wisconsin, Washington and Oregon states. They built processing plants there, too.  Although cranberries are native to the US Northeast, far more Ocean Spray cranberries are grown in those states than in New Jersey and Massachusetts.

The cooperative now has over 1,000 members, growers of both cranberries and grapefruit, including in Canada.

Curious factoid about the name.  Urann had used the “Ocean Spray” name briefly before, in the 1910s, and was attached to the image of “Ocean Spray.”  Although he was two years into technical retirement by 1959, his encouragement led to the name change.  However, the name’s trademark was owned by a fish company in Oregon.  Ocean Spray bought the name.

Elizabeth Lee was the first treasurer of a local military support organization, The National Security League of Bordentown, beginning with the US entry into World War I. Often providing care packages to sailors.  The port of Camden was nearby, with its naval shipbuilding enterprise. Many embarked to go “over there” from Camden, including the original battleship New Jersey which was in port there at least once.

“Born Tart.  Raised Bold” TM, motto of Ocean Spray.
Applies to many strong women.  Elizabeth Fee Lee as well.

 

Elizabeth Lee, probably early 1930s

Through the 1930s Elizabeth’s role in the operation slowly dwindled, although she remained vice-president because of her decades of experience in the business.  She did very well financially; she had a “palatial summer home” on the coast, in Sea Girt.

She passed away April 22, 1942, at her sister Martha’s house after a brief illness, age 77.  She was Roman Catholic. Not surprising at 100% Irish. She was interred at St Mary’s Cemetery in her longtime hometown of Bordentown after a private Requiem Mass at St Mary’s church.

Up until now she’s mostly only remembered as the Cranberry Queen. I’ve tried to add some meat to the skeletal remains of what memory there is of her.  A remarkable woman, who “made her bones” after arriving in her middle age.

 

Joe Girard © 2025

Thank you for reading. As always, you can add yourself to the notification list for newly published material by clicking here . Or emailing joe@girardmeister.com

 

Some notes:

[1] From the recent re-naming of the body of water formerly known as Gulf of Mexico, I am now trying to use “America” to refer to the 2 continents stretching from Tierra del Fuego and the Straits of Magellan, to well above the Arctic Circle.  The country formerly commonly referred to as simply “America” is now some variation of USA, as appropriate.  In the opening lines I used US-America.

[2] The sugar in craisins partly offsets the benefits of cranberries.  Eat in moderation.  https://www.lihpao.com/are-craisins-healthy/

[3] Likely he arrived aboard the SS Hancock in New York, September 21, 1850.  “United States, Famine Irish Passenger Index, 1846-1851”, , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KDXT-3NJ : Fri Feb 14 23:38:06 UTC 2025), Entry for John Fee, 21 Sep 1850.
And Mary arrived November 11, that year aboard the Princeton

[4] Likely the family made a stay in NY, perhaps with relatives for a spell, to get through some financial or health hardships.

[5] Enoch wed Emma Rogers Cowperthwait, July 24, 1917.  Shortly after registering for the draft, earlier that month.  Sadly, Emma passed away, November 24, that same year.  Finding no other records, I presume he never remarried.

Sources/bibliography.  Mostly old census data and newspapers. Also: Find A Grave.  And found stuff on a few random sites, like Reddit threads, and even a couple of Facebook pages.  Familysearch.org (LDS) has gobs of data, and it’s free, but Elizabeth Lee isn’t found in many places in the records.  And they have not yet scanned all records.  The Library of Congress, also free, has tons of newspapers (and other stuff), but filtering through them is not easy.  Newspapers.com has easier searching tools, but not as many as the LoC and it’s quite expensive.

General family timeline and references
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    1. Martha Fee born (Elizabeth’s Sister), March 24, 1857, parents John and Mary, [“New Jersey, Births and Christenings, 1660-1980”, , FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FZQZ-R9Z : 18 January 2020), Martha Fee, 1857.]
    2. Martha born 1858, per soc sec data
    3. Fee and Bills families locations, US Census 1860  {no good access to 1870 census data yet}
    4. Martha and Frank Bills locations, US Census 1880
    5. Martha marries Frank Howard Bills, New Holly News
    6. Enoch Franklin Bills born, July 23, 1882, various, FindAGrave
    7. Sisters Martha and Elizabeth living with 3 kids in Bordentown, 1885 New Jersey census, Frank living as boarder in Trenton
    8. 1890 census – sadly destroyed in the US Commerce Department building fire, 1896
    9. Enoch Bills is a boarder in Brooklyn, NY, with occupation Architect/Drafter, 1905 New York state census
      Elizabeth Fee is living with sister Martha in Bordentown, NJ 1905 census
    10. All together in Bordentown, still Frank is gone; Martha’s son William shows up (9), 1910 US Census
    11. Elizabeth weds Albert Westbrook Lee, Feb 18, 1914, Mount Holly News
    12. Albert W Lee passes away, July, 1915, Find a Grave and FamilySearch.org
    13. Enoch registers for draft, July 23, 1917, US Draft Registration Records
    14. Enoch weds Emma Rogers Cowperthwait, July 24, 1917, New Holly News
    15. Emma Lee (nee Cowperthwait) passes away, November 24, 1917, New Holly News
    16. Enoch selected for jury duty until end of December, December 10, 1917, New Holly News
    17. All living together, even Frank is not missing, Occupations: Elizabeth, Cranberry Bog, Enoch, Manufacturing, Frank, Cranberries, US Census, 1930
    18. Elizabeth, occupation Manufacturing/wholesale canning
    19. Elizabeth passes away, 1942, Camden Morning Post
    20. Enoch Franklin Bills passes away, February 21, 1966, US GeneologyBank Historical newspaper Obituaries
Elizabeth is an extremely enigmatic person. When I came across a very brief account of her success, I thought “here’s a great strong-woman essay just waiting to be written.” I thought this would be a simple essay/biopic, like many others. Get some facts, make her an interesting person, and pound it out.
No. In fact, there’s only one extant picture of her. Scarce details scattered in odd corners. Was she a tomboy?  Did she face adversity?  Yes, she married at a mature age, and her husband soon died.  What else?  Romances?  Travels?  Just about nothing.
The historical societies of New Egypt, NJ and Ocean County (where she rose to fame and fortune) had nothing except very, very top level info. They told me simply: “She was a very private person.”
Almost all info herein was mined from hundreds of records and newspapers of that era. Scads of internet sites, but they simply repeated the same meager info.
Stunning how much census records and official records like birth, marriage and death turned up completely empty on her. Even her maiden name and parents were very difficult to find.
Note:  AI is not to be trusted in these situations.  You’ll get poor info and blind alleys.
Nonetheless, I was able to scrape together just enough to complete this bio-essay.  I’ve sent a shorter version of this – strictly bio, no humor, no Amerindians, no grandsons, no cranberries – to the Ocean County Historical Society.

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Death Announcement Camden Morning Post, sadly WordPress imports are lossy and I can’t figure out how to fix it.

She even cheated a bit on her gravestone, 1865, not 1864.

Found this in the Mount Holly News, February 24, 1914.  Mount Holly is about 5 miles from Bordentown.

Wedding announcement, Mount Holly News

Elizabeth serving on National Security League

Mount Holly News, April 9, 1918. It is interesting that Rev Charles Malloy was also on the committee.  He had married Elizabeth and Albert Lee just a few years before.

 

 

Food, Science & Technology

Tears We Cry

The Tears We Cry

“An onion can make people cry,
but there’s never been a vegetable that can make people laugh.”
~ Will Rogers

Plants are essential to life. While not all plants may appeal to humans, they are nutritious and tasty to various forms of animal life.

Will “A stranger is a friend I haven’t made yet” Rogers

Unlike antelopes or rabbits, plants can’t run away or physically fight back, like wasps and badgers, when threatened. To survive and reproduce, most have developed defense mechanisms to deter animals and fungi from consuming them.  [1]

Some have thorns.  Some others release bitter tasting chemicals, or foul smells when disturbed.  Some even emit pheromones to confuse their predators.

Onions are a particularly popular human food. They emit an inviting aroma when sautéed or baked and complement many dishes, from omelets to casseroles to chili. In the United States, onions are the third largest fresh produce industry, with the average American consuming over 18 pounds of onions per year. That’s a substantial amount!

Mmmm. Sautéing onions [I usually chop mine more finely]

However, preparing onions often comes with a tearful challenge. Most varieties make the person cutting them cry, some more than others. As Carl Sandburg put it, “I may cry when I cut an onion, but I also cry when I realize how much flavor it adds to my dish.”

Onions are packed with health benefits, including antioxidants, vitamins C and B6, and other natural compounds that help control blood pressure, promote heart health, aid digestion with fiber, and contain cancer-fighting sulfides and polysulfides. Additionally, thiosulfates in onions can inhibit the growth of microorganisms and help prevent blood clots

Growing underground, onion bulbs are tempting treats for small animals like voles and mice, though not squirrels, which dislike their smell and taste. This aversion is fortunate since onions can damage a squirrel’s blood cells and cause anemia.

Onions evolved a defense mechanism with special enzymes and sulfenic acids that activate when their skin and layers are broken. These compounds produce propanethial S-oxide, a gas released into the air. When this gas contacts water, such as the moisture on our eyes, it forms sulfurous acid – a potent irritant in organic chemistry.  It’s almost identical to sulfuric acid (H₂SO₃ vs H₂SO₄, but not as corrosive).

Our eyes are coated with a water and oil layer for lubrication. Tiny droplets of sulfurous acid form on account of the cornea’s water layer.  Our eyes sense this and release additional water (reflex tears) to flush out the irritation.

Note from experience.  Onion juice also contains the same compounds; water from the air, your hands and your eyes will produce an advanced effect! During and after slicing, dicing or cutting an onion: NOT rub your eyes until after thoroughly washing your hands! Or touch anything, as you can’t be sure who will touch that surface next.

So, how can you minimize the tears when slicing onions (and their relatives, like scallions, leeks, and green onions)? Here are a few tips:

  • Use a fan to disperse the gas.
  • Cut the onion underwater, such as in a large pot or on a cutting board in the sink. The water traps the gas, then dilutes the sulfurous acid.
  • Wear goggles for protection.
  • Chill the onion before cutting. This slows the enzyme reactions. I’ve inadvertently discovered this when storing a leftover onion in the refrigerator; the next time I cut it, the effect is milder.

    Sophia Lauren, through the decades

“If you haven’t cried, your eyes can’t be beautiful.” – Sophia Loren

Whether it’s a wee dash of sulfurous acid or an emotional jolt, these are real and valid reasons to cry.  Be not ashamed.

Joe Girard © 2024

Thank you for reading. As always, you can add yourself to the notification list for newly published material by clicking here . Or emailing joe@girardmeister.com

 

[1] many plant “fruits” are actually designed to attract and be eaten by animals – this helps spread their seed.

Final Thoughts:
The full chemical process as I understand it.

  • Cut an onion and its cells release alliinase, and enzyme that converts its amino acids into sulfenic acids.
  • These acids are unstable; the molecules re-arrange to form propanethial S-oxide, an invidible gas containing sulfur and sulfur compounds.
  • When this gas contacts water, like on the cornea, It reacts to form a sulfurous acid.
  • Sulfurous acid is very reactive with many chemicals, especially all animal tissue.

BTW: Sulfuric acid’s pH is near 1.0.  Sulfurous is 1.5.

Although the S-oxide gas is quite a bit heavier than air, it still reaches the face.  General wafting caused by air motion.  On account of diffusion due to partial pressures, the gas will tend to migrate from higher concentrations to lower concentrations.

I put in squirrels as they are rodents, like voles and mice.  And capable of reaching onion bulbs.