Family Recipe Friday: Freezer Slaw

Grandma Wright's huge cabbage

Mom shared another recipe from her collection:

Every Spring when I plan my garden I always figure enough cabbage to make this slaw recipe.   It tastes so good in the winter and keeps well in the refrigerator once it's thawed.   It makes a great side dish to any meal.  While I have never had a problem growing cabbage I have never produced a head of cabbage as large as Grandma "Peach" Wright did.

    1 head cabbage, shredded                                       
    1 green pepper, chopped fine                                   
    1 red bell pepper, chopped fine                                
    1 carrot, chopped or shredded                                  
    1 medium onions, chopped fine                                  
    1 teaspoon salt                                                
    1 cup vinegar                                                  
    2 cups sugar                                                   
    1/2 cup water                                                  
    Dash celery seeds  
                                            
Put all chopped vegetables in large bowl and put salt on the mixture.   Stir and let sit.   Meanwhile bring vinegar, sugar, and water to a boil and boil 5 minutes.   Cool and pour over cabbage mixture which may need to be drained.   Freeze.   This recipe does need to be frozen before eating.  


VARIATION: " Refrigerator Slaw":  Shred 1 medium head of cabbage and alternate with 1 medium onion sliced thinly in a bowl.  Top with 7/8 cup of sugar.   In a saucepan,  mix 1 cup vinegar, 3/4 c. salad oil. 2 teaspoon sugar, 2 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon dry mustard, and 1 teaspoon celery seed.   Bring to a boil.   Pour hot mixture over cabbage and onion mixture.   Cover and let stand 4-6 hours.   Mix well and serve.   Will keep 2-3 weeks in refrigerator.



Family Recipe Friday – is an opportunity to share your family recipes with fellow bloggers and foodies alike. Whether it’s an old-fashioned recipe passed down through generations, a recipe uncovered through your family history research, or a discovered recipe that embraces your ancestral heritage share them on Family Recipe Friday. This series was suggested by Lynn Palermo of The Armchair Genealogist.

Fearless Females: Maternal Grandparents Wedding

Bonnie & Bill Wright with Terry c1944-46

March 4 — Do you have marriage records for your grandparents or great-grandparents? Write a post about where they were married and when. Any family stories about the wedding day? Post a photo too if you have one.

Wright-Lambertson marriage application

My maternal grandparents, Bonnie Mae LAMBERTSON and William Lee WRIGHT,  applied for a marriage license in Madison County, Indiana on June 7, 1941.  The marriage return on June 12th, 1941 stated that Rev. Robert W. Sage performed their wedding ceremony on June 7, 1941, the same day as the license.  Bonnie was under age 18, and her parents consent was on file.  She had just graduated from Elwood High School.

MALE
1. The full Christian name and surname of this man is William Lee Wright
2. His color: White
3. Where born : Madison Co., Alexandria, Ind.
4. When born : December 1, 1919
5. Present residence: R # 2, Alexandria, Ind.
6. Present occupation: Factory employee
8. Is this male contracting party of nearer blood kin to the female contracting party than second cousin? No
9. Full Christian and surname of father : Virgil Lee Wright
10. His color: White

11. His birthplace : Madison Co., Ind.
12. His occupation : Farmer
13. His residence : R # 2, Alexandria, Ind.
14. Full Christian and maiden name of mother : Edna Muriel Pierce
15. Her color: White
16. Her occupation: Housewife
17. Her birthplace: Madison Co., Indiana
18. Her residence: R # 2, Alexandria, Ind.
19. Has the male contracting party been an Inmate of any county asylum or home for indigent person within the last five years? No
21. Is this his first marriage? Yes
26. Is the male contracting party afflicted with epilepsy, tuberculosis, venereal or any other contagious or transmissible diseases? No
27. Is he an imbecile, feeble-minded, idiotic or insane, or is he under guardianship as a person of unsound mind? No

FEMALE
1. The full Christian and surname of the woman is Bonnie Mae Lambertson
2. Her color: White
3. Where born: Madison Co., Elwood, Ind.
4. When born: Feb. 18, 1924
5. Present residence: R # 3, Elwood, Ind.
6. Present occupation: none
7. Full Christian and surname of father: Clemon Lambertson
8. His color: White
9. His birthplace: Hamilton Co., Cicero, Ind.
10. His occupation: Cabinet-worker
11. His residence: R # 3, Elwood, Ind.
12. Full Christian and maiden name of mother: June Gilliland
13. Her color: White
14. Her occupation: Housewife
15. Her birthplace: Monroe Co., Bloomington, Ind.
16. Her residence: R # 3, Elwood, Ind.
17. Has the female contracting party been an inmate of any county asylum or home for indigent persons with the last five years? No
18. Is this her first marriage? Yes
22. Is the female contracting party afflicted with epilepsy, tuberculosis, venereal or any other contagious or transmissible disease? No
23. Is she an imbecile, feeble-minded, idiotic or insane, or is she under guardianship as a person of unsound mind? No



The address listed for Rev. Robert W. Sage was 1415 South E Street, Elwood, Indiana.  Rev. Sage was the pastor of the First Baptist Church in Elwood, where the Lambertsons were members.  The church is located at 420 South Anderson Street and is still in use today.

First Baptist Church, Elwood, Indiana, c.1940
Source: Indiana Memory Collection

I do not know who stood up with them at their wedding and haven't yet located a wedding photo.


Once again, in honor of National Women’s History Month, Lisa Alzo of The Accidental Genealogist blog presents Fearless Females: 31 Blogging Prompts to Celebrate Women’s History Month.

The Life and Death of America's First Celebrity Criminal

Just finished reading John Dillinger: The Life and Death of America's First Celebrity Criminal by Dary Matera.  It was a pretty good read, and I was eager to see how much material mentioned my newly-found relative, "Handsome" Harry PIERPONT.

Growing up in Indiana, the Dillinger legend was always present, but I was captivated reading about robberies near to where I grew up, such as Daleville, as well as places I've visited such as Greencastle and South Bend.  The book flows well and gives a much better accounting of the activities of Dillinger and his various gangs than the movie Public Enemies.

However, the book was sorely in need of better editing.  I can understand a typographical error or two, but it was jarring to see cities such as Kokomo or Greencastle referred to as being in Illinois, rather than Indiana. Also, the author's style was a bit off-putting, using metaphors that were anachronistic in order to get his point across.  At times, it read more like a pulp fiction novel from the 1950s.

The main thesis of his work was that there has never been a criminal who had so much influence and celebrity as John Dillinger.  To support this, the author cites the numerous changes made to how banks operate, changes in federal law, how police operate, the formation of the FBI, etc. that can be directly tied to the Dillinger era.  Throw in the public's mistrust of the banks due to the Depression and Dillinger's antics in making the Feds and police look like fools and you have a perfect storm of celebrity.

On a genealogical note, there were plenty of clues for me to begin researching more about Harry PIERPONT and his involvement with Dillinger.  The stories of how Harry's mother, Lena, and brother, Fred, were arrested several times as well makes me want to know how much they were involved or at least turned a blind eye to his crimes.  In the book, Lena is referred to as "Leaping Lena", but it was never explained how she came about that nickname.