African Americans have made extraordinary contributions to the history and culture of the United States as part of the nation and apart from it. This month, Auction Finds presents “28 days (Plus 1)” of this collaborative history. The additional day is intended to break Black history out of the stricture of a month into its rightful place as an equal partner in the history of America. Each day, I will offer artifacts culled from the auction tables and my research, along with the stories they hold.
Feb. 10, 2022
Aunt Julia’s Cookbook of African American recipes
The Aunt Julia’s cookbook was used as advertisement for Esso Standard Oil Co., now Exxon, and distributed as a giveaway at its service stations. There was no date on the cookbook, but it may have been from the 1930s. A photo inside identified the namesake of the cookbook and another Black woman, but there was nothing else about them.
The cookbook was chocked full of ads for Esso gasoline for cars and airplanes, car polish, motor oil, tires, insect-repellent spray, batteries and furniture polish. It was largely, though, a cookbook, with the normal categories of recipes. These included Hoe Cake, Old Virginia Spoon Bread, Prune Sauce Cake, Meat Sandwich Spread, Brunswick Stew, Pressed Chicken, Green Tomato Pickle, Buttermilk Custard Pie, Apple Betty, Hard Sauce and Hopping John. Read the full story.
