Chicken was considered the" Sunday special meal" by many folks in the 
'30's. Those of us living on the farms in Texas always took fried 
chicken with us most of the time while working in the fields. Many 
times while working in the fields (ours and our neighbors) the wives 
and mothers would meet us in the field under a shade tree with fried 
chicken, biscuits, iced tea   et al for lunch.
DTP


At 08:25 AM 8/30/2007, you wrote:
>Well, on the part of the planet I came from, we do talk to our 
>grandmothers, and they did not raise chickens, so clearly habits 
>differed - by region or cultural background, or setting.
>Sorry, even though I come from a long-lived family, no 
>great-grandmothers available for interview.
>If the families in my study were known to be buying eggs 
>(documentary info), do you think it likely they were ALSO raising 
>their own chickens?
>The question of just how common chicken was in the diet c. 1900 is 
>exactly what I am trying to establish, preferably from documented, 
>quote-able sources.  When the people were promised "a chicken in 
>every pot" was that a common meal, or a specialty they dreamed of 
>tasting, maybe reserved for special occasions?
>Meli Diamanti
>
>MORGAN A RIEDER wrote:
>>Sometimes I think you all are on a different planet.  Historically, 
>>folks have always relied on eggs and fried or boiled chicken as a 
>>major part of their diet. Just ask your great-grandmother (if you 
>>were born before 1950) or consult Fanny Farmer.  And, yes, we did 
>>raise our chickens "on-site," as a number of families in our 
>>neighborhood still do.
>>
>>
>>Morgan
>>