2015 Engages Christsmas - Fort Union
May 2, 2016 9:30:17 GMT -7
Post by Leifer on May 2, 2016 9:30:17 GMT -7
The following is transcribed from my field journal. There are typos, misspellings and editings as there would be for transcriptions of other period journals. This entry is from the 2015 Engages Christmas at Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site. To read this journal entry with the posted pictures click here.
2015 Engages Christmas
Fort Union
Friday, December 4th, 2015
In a year’s time I’ve finally been able to take each one of my kids on an overnight with me. Today I took my son Garrick with me. Tonight we’d be staying in the clerk’s office at Fort Union, where later on tomorrow evening we’d be celebrating Engages Christmas. Besides the usual gear that we brought with us we a few special things as well: stamped and frozen gingerbread cookie dough, turkey, two boiled deer hearts and a mule deer buck. The gingerbread cookies and the turkey I would cook tomorrow in FUMLA’s tin kitchen reflector over in front of the hearth in the clerk’s office and the the mule deer buck we would hang up from the cross supports on the wall to skin and rough process. The hearts we would slice up and pair with swiss cheese for the dinner tomorrow evening. Processing wild game would have been a commonplace occurrence at Fort Union.
Garrick and I arrived at dark. We were met by Rod who was enjoying some reading and a cup of coffee at the table in the clerk’s office. I brought the turkey into the bourgeois house where it could finish thawing for tomorrow and then Rod helped me bring the deer into the clerk’s office on a piece of canvas to warm up for processing tomorrow. The deer was in a bit of posed state as a result of the trip to the fort and now completely frozen. I kept doing double takes as it seemed it was watching our every move.
The dinner Garrick and I had consisted of some bread, meat and cheese. Rod and I figured it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get some larger chunks of firewood for the night since most of the wood that was in the clerk’s office was good for getting a fire in the hearth started and established, but not to keep the heat going. We went outside and loaded the wooden wheelbarrow with larger pieces and then stacked them inside. After awhile Garrick wanted to go to sleep so I prepared our bedding on the floor towards one side of the hearth.
Rod and I enjoyed our pipes filled with tobacco I had received as part of my issued rations at the Fur Trade Symposium at Bent’s Fort in September. It was good tobacco. It had gotten dried out since I had kept it in some trade cloth so I put it in an airtight container and mixed in some rum to give it some life again. We did some reading by candle and firelight before turning in for the evening. I started to read “Pierre’s Hole” by Jim Hardee.
Saturday, December 5th, 2015
Garrick the three and a half year old tossed and turned all night in our bedroll, making my ribs and face the recipient of many elbows and knees. Rod and I basically took turns throughout the night keeping wood on the fire. When Garrick and I got up Rod had already left to take care of his morning chores.
The first thing I did was drag the “posed” deer closer to the fireplace to continue to warm it up. I then got some bacon frying in my little skillet for breakfast. The smell of bacon woke Garrick up. All three of the kids have demanded bacon when they camp with me. We made bacon sandwiches. The rest of the bacon was cut up and put into my lidded copper kettle along with the beans that had been soaking since lastnight.
Next order of business was to get the gingerbread cookies started. This was the first time I had made cookies in the tin kitchen. Garrick helped rub butter onto the small tin cooking sheets and lay out the cookies onto them.We had square cookies that had been stamped with Luther’s Rose and smaller ones where the kids had rolled the dough into a skinny log and cut short pieces from. The first batch got a little dark unfortunately. I was distracted by a small group of visitors that came in with Ranger MacVaugh. They wanted to know what would be appropriate personas for events and what would be appropriate items to sell. It was a bit more involved than that...however…’nuff said about that… Second batch of gingerbread cookies turned out better.
After the cookies were I took the small kettle of beans and bacon into the trade room and set them to cooking over the fire. After that I trussed the turkey, seasoned the outside, put it on the large skewer and loaded it into the tin kitchen. This is the largest thing I’ve made in the tin kitchen. It was a 12 pound bird. I tossed three sticks of butter into the bottom to melt to baste the bird throughout the day. Around 12:30 is when I set the tin kitchen in front of the hearth in the clerk’s office. After I got that situated I loaded up more wood to last the rest of the afternoon and on into the evening.
Rod arrived later on along with Dave F. and Tod. They helped me get the deer, which no longer looked like a posed frozen animal, hung up on the cross beams of the wall. We skinned the deer and did the rough processing of it. The meat and the quarters were tied wrapped up in the deer’s. We were hoping for some visitors during the process but we had no more today. Brandon arrived with Jess and gave me a roast from his deer. Kim, the kids and I will enjoy it as part of a meal next week.
We had a good number of folks for the dinner tonight. There was a lot of food as well. Potatoes, green beans, two turkeys, ham, rolls, pie, pie and pie, deer heart, lefse, and Kim made a cranberry tart from Amelia Simmons 1796 collection, "American Cookery”. Bob S introduced us to a few new games and did a drawing for all people present for a piece of artwork. He even swore off the Northwest Company and swore allegiance to the American Fur Company.
Lots of food, games, laughter, beverages, conversations and even music all to the light of candles and the hearth. I played a variety of historic Christmas music ranging primarily from the 1600s to as late as the 1880s. Everyone seemed to have a great evening. At the end of the evening I just enjoyed playing my guitar and watching all that was going on around me. For a few short hours this evening we enjoyed a wonderful meal and time with each other, as a friend calls FUMLA, our Muzzleloader family.
Garrick and I would not be spending the night this evening and would be headed back with Kim and the girls. About five or so of the other guys would be. I was bummed, but I was able to stay with Garrick and Rod lastnight, made cookies and a turkey with Garrick in a historic tin kitchen, processed a deer and got to enjoy a wonderful meal with good friends. Pretty tough to beat that. Happy Christmas everyone.
-- Leifer
2015 Engages Christmas
Fort Union
Friday, December 4th, 2015
In a year’s time I’ve finally been able to take each one of my kids on an overnight with me. Today I took my son Garrick with me. Tonight we’d be staying in the clerk’s office at Fort Union, where later on tomorrow evening we’d be celebrating Engages Christmas. Besides the usual gear that we brought with us we a few special things as well: stamped and frozen gingerbread cookie dough, turkey, two boiled deer hearts and a mule deer buck. The gingerbread cookies and the turkey I would cook tomorrow in FUMLA’s tin kitchen reflector over in front of the hearth in the clerk’s office and the the mule deer buck we would hang up from the cross supports on the wall to skin and rough process. The hearts we would slice up and pair with swiss cheese for the dinner tomorrow evening. Processing wild game would have been a commonplace occurrence at Fort Union.
Garrick and I arrived at dark. We were met by Rod who was enjoying some reading and a cup of coffee at the table in the clerk’s office. I brought the turkey into the bourgeois house where it could finish thawing for tomorrow and then Rod helped me bring the deer into the clerk’s office on a piece of canvas to warm up for processing tomorrow. The deer was in a bit of posed state as a result of the trip to the fort and now completely frozen. I kept doing double takes as it seemed it was watching our every move.
The dinner Garrick and I had consisted of some bread, meat and cheese. Rod and I figured it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get some larger chunks of firewood for the night since most of the wood that was in the clerk’s office was good for getting a fire in the hearth started and established, but not to keep the heat going. We went outside and loaded the wooden wheelbarrow with larger pieces and then stacked them inside. After awhile Garrick wanted to go to sleep so I prepared our bedding on the floor towards one side of the hearth.
Rod and I enjoyed our pipes filled with tobacco I had received as part of my issued rations at the Fur Trade Symposium at Bent’s Fort in September. It was good tobacco. It had gotten dried out since I had kept it in some trade cloth so I put it in an airtight container and mixed in some rum to give it some life again. We did some reading by candle and firelight before turning in for the evening. I started to read “Pierre’s Hole” by Jim Hardee.
Saturday, December 5th, 2015
Garrick the three and a half year old tossed and turned all night in our bedroll, making my ribs and face the recipient of many elbows and knees. Rod and I basically took turns throughout the night keeping wood on the fire. When Garrick and I got up Rod had already left to take care of his morning chores.
The first thing I did was drag the “posed” deer closer to the fireplace to continue to warm it up. I then got some bacon frying in my little skillet for breakfast. The smell of bacon woke Garrick up. All three of the kids have demanded bacon when they camp with me. We made bacon sandwiches. The rest of the bacon was cut up and put into my lidded copper kettle along with the beans that had been soaking since lastnight.
Next order of business was to get the gingerbread cookies started. This was the first time I had made cookies in the tin kitchen. Garrick helped rub butter onto the small tin cooking sheets and lay out the cookies onto them.We had square cookies that had been stamped with Luther’s Rose and smaller ones where the kids had rolled the dough into a skinny log and cut short pieces from. The first batch got a little dark unfortunately. I was distracted by a small group of visitors that came in with Ranger MacVaugh. They wanted to know what would be appropriate personas for events and what would be appropriate items to sell. It was a bit more involved than that...however…’nuff said about that… Second batch of gingerbread cookies turned out better.
After the cookies were I took the small kettle of beans and bacon into the trade room and set them to cooking over the fire. After that I trussed the turkey, seasoned the outside, put it on the large skewer and loaded it into the tin kitchen. This is the largest thing I’ve made in the tin kitchen. It was a 12 pound bird. I tossed three sticks of butter into the bottom to melt to baste the bird throughout the day. Around 12:30 is when I set the tin kitchen in front of the hearth in the clerk’s office. After I got that situated I loaded up more wood to last the rest of the afternoon and on into the evening.
Rod arrived later on along with Dave F. and Tod. They helped me get the deer, which no longer looked like a posed frozen animal, hung up on the cross beams of the wall. We skinned the deer and did the rough processing of it. The meat and the quarters were tied wrapped up in the deer’s. We were hoping for some visitors during the process but we had no more today. Brandon arrived with Jess and gave me a roast from his deer. Kim, the kids and I will enjoy it as part of a meal next week.
We had a good number of folks for the dinner tonight. There was a lot of food as well. Potatoes, green beans, two turkeys, ham, rolls, pie, pie and pie, deer heart, lefse, and Kim made a cranberry tart from Amelia Simmons 1796 collection, "American Cookery”. Bob S introduced us to a few new games and did a drawing for all people present for a piece of artwork. He even swore off the Northwest Company and swore allegiance to the American Fur Company.
Lots of food, games, laughter, beverages, conversations and even music all to the light of candles and the hearth. I played a variety of historic Christmas music ranging primarily from the 1600s to as late as the 1880s. Everyone seemed to have a great evening. At the end of the evening I just enjoyed playing my guitar and watching all that was going on around me. For a few short hours this evening we enjoyed a wonderful meal and time with each other, as a friend calls FUMLA, our Muzzleloader family.
Garrick and I would not be spending the night this evening and would be headed back with Kim and the girls. About five or so of the other guys would be. I was bummed, but I was able to stay with Garrick and Rod lastnight, made cookies and a turkey with Garrick in a historic tin kitchen, processed a deer and got to enjoy a wonderful meal with good friends. Pretty tough to beat that. Happy Christmas everyone.
-- Leifer