The Russell Cemetery in Ridley Creek State Park

This is the long awaited post that I've had a lot of requests for ever since this post here: Trip to Ridley Creek State Park. The Russell Cemetery is a small family plot that was used from 1820 to 1861.

The Cemetery is in the state park and talked about frequently, especially around Halloween. 
I have heard a lot of stories of people looking for it but very few find it. It is nestled in a copse of trees at the very top of a grand hill, known as Hunting Hill which is still used by archery hunters today.

There is a lot of local folklore about the cemetery. To quote my previous post on the subject:"...one occupant ... Jesse Russell, a fox hunter, died on the 12th of September in1820 when he was 42 years old. It is said that he was buried standing up so as to better hear his hunting hounds after death."
  

 
The Russell family lived along Gradyville Road which runs through the park and I believe that the house is still standing.

The cemetery is far from the regular paths and is in the hunting area, so I wouldn't recommend going during hunting season, like I did. It's kind of a neat little cemetery and you wouldn't expect a cemetery to be so far removed from everything.

I'm not going to give directions to it, not only because it's a lot of fun to find it yourself and I'd hate to ruin that journey for anyone but also because it is a cemetery and I'd hate for anyone to disrespect or ruin it. It is a very tranquil place.

 A book excerpt about the family buried in this cemetery:

 To see the list of the 6 family members buried in this cemetery click here: Delaware County PA History.

The Evolution of Shortbread: Shortbread Recipes from the 1700s- 1900s.

 Everybody loves shortbread!
Shortbread is a yummy, plain, butter cookie, but it wasn't always so. Many modern recipes only use three ingredients: flour, butter and sugar. But historically, shortbread used to include dried fruits, nuts and even caraway seeds!

Shortbread can be served with tea or coffee and are the basis for a lot of modern-day treats such as Girl Scout Cookies."Petticoat Tails" were a shortbread treat, popularly served with tea in the 1850s. Petticoat tails are made by making a round shortbread in a tin, cutting out a hole in the center, and cutting the remaining shortbread into triangles.

I have made modernized instructions for this recipe at the bottom of this post. It mentions using a "mutchkin" of barm. A mutchkin is 1/4 an English pint. Barm is the froth from the top of beer. It is used in the recipe as a leavening agent. Today shortbread is made without any leavening. I was going to wait until I made some of these recipes before I wrote this post but other people might save me the work and make some of these for me. :D

I tried to find a way to put the modern recipe on here. This isn't very clear but it's the best I could do. If you would like a cleaner copy, I will gladly e-mail it to you in PDF or as a Word Document. It's neat to see how the ingredients were slowly whittled down through the years. I am very excited to make some period shortbread, when I do, I will make sure to include photos and a critique.

Giveaway Extended until October 13th!

I'm going to extend the giveaway due to everyone here being really, really busy so don't miss out! Go here to see the original rules.

Glengarry Cap Crochet Pattern from Godey's Lady's Book

Glengarry caps (or Glengarry Bonnets,) have been thought to have been worn by the Scottish military since 1794. In the mid-1800s, the hat was adopted by men and young boys in England.  By the time of the American Civil War, it was a popular civilian hat for men, children and ladies, copied from the 1850s English fashions.

During the 1860s the fashion caps were commonly made out of velvet or stiff cloth. Checked or contrasting colored solid bands were common. They were sometimes decorated with feathers and cockades. You can learn to make very beautiful cockades at American Duchess. When made correctly, the cap should have a dip in the middle of the top.

This crochet pattern from Godey's Lady's Book (1861) was previously published in London in 1853.

If I ever learn to crochet, this looks like such a cute hat to make. It looks like it might be a good started project after I practice "granny squares." Crochet is still a complete mystery to me, knitting makes perfect sense. Has anyone ever made this hat? I'd love to see what it looks like all finished. I love green, I think this would look so cute in the winter. I love the look of crochet beanies that people wear to school, this is like a quirky twist.

I've been itching to finish knitting my sontag but I can't bring myself to pay the $4.00 shipping on one ball of yarn so I have to put it on hold. The ladies over at The Lady's Guide for Re-enactresses, suggest recycling sweaters for inexpensive yarn. I love that you get cheap yarn and recycle at the same time. Look at this pretty sontag they made out of thrifted yarn! The nice thing is you can read the tags and find 100% wool yarn. How cool. So, all of you crocheters, is this hat easy enough for a beginner?

**Please remember to enter my contest, the drawing will be held on October 5th!**

Civil War Dancing Curtsy and Dance Position Instructions

 

'"As to flirtation," continues this sage instructor in morals and manners, ''it is difficult to draw a limit where the predilection of the moment becomes the more tender and serious feeling, and flirtation sobers into a more honorable form of devoted attention. I think flirtation comes under the head of morals more than of manners; still I may be allowed to say that ballroom flirtation, being more open, is less dangerous than any other. But a young lady of taste will be careful not to flaunt and publish her flirtation, as if to say, ' See, I have an admirer !' In the same way a prudent man will never presume on a girl's liveliness or banter. No man of taste ever made an offer after supper, and certainly nine-tenths of those who have done so have regretted it at breakfast the next morning."' ~Harper's Magazine 1860

Dances and balls were at their height in the mid-1800s.  Many conservative people at the time thought balls were only good for introducing sin to young people. Despite that many people loved dances: a dance with under 50 participants was considered "a dance," a dance with under 100 people but more than 50 was considered "a ball," and a dance with over 100 people was considered "a large ball."

Tickets to public dances held in public halls could be bought in advance. Dance cards were frequently printed with the tickets. The cards listed the songs which would be played and the dances that would accompany them. The cards had spaces for dancing partners to write their names to reserve dances. It was considered polite to not dance with the same partner more than once or twice if you were engaged or married. This is much different from our view today, where we normally go to a dance with one person and stay with them the entire night.

The point of dances were to have a good time and to converse with people that you didn't see all of the time. The sentiment at the time was that if you stayed with one person all night you were monopolizing yourselves and denying everyone else the company of both of you. There were many group dances that would allow every lady to dance with every man throughout the course of the dance. This seems like a good arrangement because couples, although at the same dance, could have different experiences at the dance that they could share with each other after.

Dances and dinners that observe the separating of couples are quite refreshing.  I met a lady at a reenactment who said that a girl asked if she could dance with her husband. The lady said she was appalled and didn't know what to do and that she felt foolish after she found out that it was a common period request. It is a weird sensation to us today, but one that should probably be more common. Sometimes it seems that when two people get married or become a couple that they suddenly become removed from their friends and stopped getting invited out. I know many couples who dislike only being invited out on "couples outings" or "date nights." To quote a friend of mine, "We're married, not dead."

Other Posts of Interest:

• 19th Century Dancing Meets 21st.
• The Virginia Reel: Instructions and Sheet Music

**Please remember to enter my contest, the drawing will be held on October 5th!**