differences in marketing systems between urban and rural settings have a lot to do with availability and cost of goods, including food. See also: Reitz 1986 in Historical Archaeology 20(2)
these prices are from the Washington St. market in NYC 1866 (from the New York Times)
(price range in dollars)
beef prices
hind quarter .15 - .2
fore quarter .1 - .13
roasting piece .24 -.3
chuck roast . 26 - .27
round .18 - .25
rump .17 - .23
porterhouse .23 - .28
sirloin .24 - .32
course cuts .12 - .18
corned .14 - .24
smoked .23 - .28
mutton
carcass .11 - .16
hind .18 - .22
fore .12 - .16
chops .2 - .25
legs .22 - .25
pork
roasting pig 2. - 4.5
carcass .13 - .14
joints .16 - .2
steaks .2 - .23
bacon .22 - .25
ham .24 - .28
shoulders .16 - .2
chicken .35 - .4
capons .45 - .5
ducks .35 - .4
geese .22 - .28
turkey .18 - .35
U.S.D.A. bureau of animal husbandry (1893) lists the Manhattan Park Poultry Ranch as selling spring broilers for a dollar each. four month old roasters weighing about six pounds each sold for forty cents a pound
between 1895 and 1899 chicken eggs prices varied from 9.5 cents per dozen to 34 cents a dozen. (median price 21.75 cents/dozen) depending on season and quality
the 1893 report lists a farmer with 650 hens producing 200 to 350 eggs daily (16 dozen to 29 dozen) - each chicken producing about 9 dozen a year on the low end with a mean of 12 dozen. at 21.75 cents a dozen each chicken earns 2.6 dollars a year from eggs, about the same as a roaster would bring.
-------------- Original message --------------
From: Bob Genheimer <[log in to unmask]>
> I must say that none of this discussion has convinced me that chicken is the
> province of the wealthy or higher socio-economic status, or at least in any
> demonstrable and consistent fashion. There are simply too many variables to
> control for in these anecdotal comparisons. What was the availability of
> chicken and poultry in these various markets? How were decisions made based on
> self-raised vs. store bought? How representative are these features of the
> people who contributed to them and broader national trends in meat consumption?
> It is certainly possible that urban dwellers at the time who did not keep their
> own fowl might have weighed the choice between beef, pork, and bird, and simply
> chose a greater percentage of the first two. And, the rich widow with all the
> chicken bones, may have simply really liked chicken!
>
> What I would really like to see is a comprehensive study on the availability and
> comparative pricing of beef, pork, sheep, and bird from the last half of the
> 19th and the first half of the 20th century. I'm sure one of you will tell me
> it has been done!
>
> Bob Genheimer
> George Rieveschl Curator of Archaeology
> Cincinnati Museum Center
> 1301 Western Avenue
> Cincinnati, Ohio 45203
> 513-455-7161
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Wendy
> Nettles
> Sent: Thursday, August 30, 2007 12:36 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: poultry consumption
>
>
> Meli,
>
> I may have some information on poultry consumption that may be of help. We
> recently have completed two large urban archaeological data recovery
> projects in California. The first was in Sacramento, where we tested two
> city blocks (for those interested, between Q and R streets, 3rd through 5th
> streets). A total of 35 features were recovered, primarily privies and
> trash pits, with most deposition dates between 1891 and 1907 (There were a
> few earlier (1871) and later (1930s)). This was a residential neighborhood,
> very middle-class and cosmopolitan. We did faunal and macrobotanical
> dietary analysis and had some interesting results. Poultry, including
> chicken, goose, turkey, and duck, composed about 13% of faunal assemblage in
> two analytical units (both turn of the 20th century). The faunal assemblage
> from another feature in that project area, a wealthy widow's privy with a
> TPQ of 1873,was dominated by chicken (74%!!). We could only attribute this
> to her economic status.
>
> The other project was in downtown San Luis Obispo, CA. Feature associations
> in that project were a bit more varied, with faunal assemblages from a
> residence, a saloon/lunchroom, and a brothel. The faunal assemblage from
> the residence came from two discrete features, one dating to 1890, the other
> to 1904. In the earlier feature, poultry included chicken, quail, and
> turkey, comprising about 4% of the assemblage. In the later feature,
> poultry included chicken, quail, turkey, and duck, and comprised about 9.5%
> of the assemblage. Other meat cuts and artifacts in the features suggested
> that the resident's wealth increased through time, and he was purchasing
> better meat cuts and household items later in his life. We attributed the
> increase in chicken to an increase in wealth. In the saloon/lunchroom
> feature (1905), 8% of the assemblage was chicken. The brothel privy
> (1890)was dominated by chicken - 33%. The next highest percentage was beef
> at 22%. The brothel privy contained quite a variety of artifacts, and they
> were indicative of a large amount of income. Again, we attributed the
> presence of that much chicken was an economic indicator.
>
> These are very quick summaries of these projects. I would be glad to send
> you a copy of each report, but they are very large (even in pdf), so I would
> have to mail you a cd. If you think they may be helpful, just let me know
> and I can get them to you.
>
> You may also want to peruse the reports put out by the Anthropological
> Studies Center at Sonoma State University. Quite a few of their projects
> were in urban contexts from the late 19th and early 20th century. A list of
> publications is at http://www.sonoma.edu/asc/publications/index.html
>
> Wendy M. Nettles
> Staff Archaeologist
> Applied EarthWorks, Inc.
> 5090 N. Fruit Ave.
> Suite 101
> Fresno, CA 93711
> (559) 229-1856 ext 13
>
>
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