Mable Garfield Talley Rotthouse
 |
| Mable as a bride in 1903 |
Although
women make up 51% of the world’s population, and 43% of all farm workers, and
grow more than half of the world’s food, little is heard of our women farmers.
The land passed to the son of the family and the women have been invisible.
Today, I am talking about a woman who bridged the 19th and 20th
centuries. She was a smart businesswoman, an expert farmer, a devoted wife and
mother, and someone who triumphed over adversity and celebrated life. Meet Mable Garfield Talley Rotthouse.
I am
fortunate to have a heritage that honors the women in our family, and I am
fortunate to have so many smart, talented, loving, and capable women who have
set such a high standard for me. Mable
is my maternal great-grandmother.
Mable
Garfield Talley was born June 1, 1880, to William Talley (1845-1923) and Rachel
Emma Baker (1850-1935). Her two older siblings both died in the first year of
life, and her sister Anna, died at age 27.
Her sister had “hip disease,” which may have been developmental
dysplasia.
In 1880, the
country’s population was 50 million, of which almost 23 million were on farms.
By 1955, when Mable died, the total population was 151 million, of which the
farm population was about 25 million. Plows, cultivators, tractors, indoor
plumbing, electricity, phones, cars, two world wars, Great Depression, frozen
foods, supermarkets, television, antibiotics, vaccinations, knowledge of how to
treat patients during and after surgery—the dramatic changes in Mable’s
lifetime are astonishing.
 |
| Rotthouse farmhouse, about 1902 |
William and
Emma Talley had a farm off Naaman’s Road, close to Target’s current location.
The Rotthouse family settled on a farm close to the Wilmington Turnpike (Concord Pike) in the area now known as Blue Rock Manor. Most likely Mable and
Harry met at the Grange, which was the social hub for area farmers.
Mable
married Harry R. Rotthouse on September 9, 1903. Harry was a first generation American, son of
Louisa Shulmeister and Frederik Wilhelm Rotthouse, both of Germany. They were
part of the wave of immigrants in the 19th century, leaving multiple
wars behind. Mable and Harry started a
drug store in Wilmington, but soon realized they did not care for city life. They
came back to the Rotthouse family farm, Cherrywood. Harry’s parents sold most
of the acreage of Cherrywood Farm to the young couple in 1907.
As you might
expect from the name, Cherrywood Farm had cherry trees, both sweet black
cherries and tart cherries. The cherries
were sold in the farmers market on King Street.
There were also a few pear trees and apple trees. By the 1920s the cherry trees had died out,
but the Rotthouses had a thriving vegetable farm by then.
Mable was an accomplished dressmaker, and made
dresses for others on order. Of course, she made clothes for her family as well.
Her daughter, Rachel, remembered a pink dress that was the envy of her
schoolmates! Mable taught her daughter these skills also—as Rachel said, “She
put a needle in my hand as soon as I could hold one (around age 4),” and Rachel
later made the clothes for her own five daughters.
 |
| Matt Linton in a suit designed, woven, and sewn by Mable |
Mable wove her own fabric on two different looms—a small loom that sat on the table, and a larger floor loom. Both were made by her husband, Harry. She continued to weave throughout her life. Her granddaughter, Penny, remembers the placemats that she made. Another granddaughter, Elaine, remembers the fabric that Mable wove and then made into a suit for Elaine’s son, Mable’s first great-grandchild. That suit was worn by all the boys in the family.
Mable and Harry had two children. Their son,
William, named for Harry’s father, died unexpectedly from a blood clot after
having his appendix out at age 25. Their daughter Rachel, named after Mable’s
mother, went on to marry John Webster, and helped him manage Highland Orchards,
their five daughters, and his mother.
Mable and
Harry had a “truck” farm, growing small vegetables—asparagus, lettuce, chard,
celery, beets, broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, parsley and other herbs, scallions,
beans, and rhubarb, among others. They had chickens, pigs, and a few milk cows.
They were able to feed their family and have extra to take to market. Asparagus, rhubarb, and shelled lima beans
were three of their biggest cash crops. They usually went to Market on
Wednesdays and Saturdays, so the day before was preparation day. After spending
the day cutting asparagus, they would spend the evening tying it into one-pound
bundles, so it was ready to go in the morning. The same preparation went into
rhubarb and all the vegetables. Everything was cleaned and ready to present to
the customers. Later in the summer, Mable would shell 3-4 bushels of lima beans
to take to market each time. Her children, of course, had the privilege of
helping shell also. I always admired my grandmother Rachel’s nimble fingers at
shelling—she was faster than anyone else—now I know she learned it from her
mother, Mable.
Mable made
chow chow, a version of pickled salad vegetables. Still popular in Amish
communities, Mable made chow chow with a mustard sauce. She used a variety of
vegetables cut into chunks, so every batch was different.
Recipe: Cauliflower,
green and yellow beans, lima beans, corn, onions, green tomatoes, vinegar,
sugar, salt, mustard. Mable made her own mustard for the sauce. Good luck!
She made barrels
of this chow chow to sell at the King Street Farmers Market. The chow chow was
packed into cardboard containers (think Chinese take-out!). The containers were
originally designed for fresh oysters, but people quickly discovered they could
be used for anything.
Mable also
made cottage cheese from the extra milk from the family cow, and that, too, was
packed into the coated cardboard boxes.
This was another popular item at the Market. She made cream cheese as
well, and had a handout of recipes for customers. Mable also made butter in pound and half pound
blocks. Churning the butter took hours and a lot of arm power. Originally,
Mable made the butter in decorative molds with a sheaf of wheat, but then she
found her customers preferred the rectangular bricks. The butter, cottage cheese, and cream cheese
were sold all year. Mable and Harry brought in hundreds of pounds of ice to
keep the butter fresh in the root cellar all summer.
In addition
to selling the various vegetables which they grew, Mable made up soup seasoning
packets, which they call “potherbs.” Usually potherbs were just the greens, but
Mable added something special: her potherbs consisted of celery, a carrot, onion
or scallion, with parsley and thyme, tied together (4). All for 3 cents per bundle. What a great
marketing device! She made Cherrywood Farms’ vegetable offerings different from
everyone else.
Mable also
cut corn off the cob, salted it for keeping in stone crocks. In the winter, she
soaked it in big buckets of water to freshen it for sale, sold by the cup or
the pint.
Mable tried
to give her children the best that she could. She made sure they went to
school, which was easy. The Sharpley School was at one corner of their
property. It was a one room school for many years. When 80 children of all
grades were squeezed in, they doubled the size of the school about 1912 to two
rooms—40 students in each room. Sharpley School stood about where Aldersgate
Methodist Church currently is located.
 |
| Sharpley School in its 2-room guise |
The
Rotthouse family attended St. Stephen’s Lutheran Church in Wilmington. In
addition to church activities, the family went on picnics, visited Grandmother
Talley, learned to play the piano, visited Uncle Will in Rehobeth, participated
in 4-H projects at school. Mable’s daughter had sewing and hat making projects
that won prizes. They visited cousins in
Phoenixville. The age of the automobile made it possible for this farm family
to explore more of the area.
For the
first ten years of having children, Mable had a young girl live with them as a
housekeeper. Clara watched the little ones while Mable helped plant, tend, and
harvest the crops. After 10 years, Clara married and moved out. By then, both
children were old enough to help at the market and around the farm.
 |
| Hearing aid, 1930 |
Mable was
profoundly deaf, probably from scarlet fever around age 10. She was fortunate
that, with the help of a hearing aid, she could still hear most of what was
said. She wore a battery on her chest, which powered the hearing aid. If it was
off, she could hear very little. She did not drive the car because of this, but
was quite capable in the market, and was always ready to help others. Her horse
and wagon took her many places! Her granddaughters cannot remember a time when
she did not wear her battery powered aid, worn with a shoulder harness and
positioned over the heart.
About 1936,
Harry became very ill. The doctors told Mable that he would not live for
another year. Mable refused to take this as a final answer and began to search
books and folk lore for anything that might help. She went all natural and
organic! She started juicing beets, cooking radishes, pushing all kinds of
vegetables into her husband. After 2 years, when it was clear that not only was
Harry still alive but he was healthier than ever, Mable announced that it was
time to do what they wanted. They sold the farm and bought a small trailer.
 |
| Burro with Elaine Webster |
The Rotthouses proceeded to travel over the next five years to all 50 states and beyond. They camped out most of the time. At one point, they sent a burro home to their daughter, Rachel, and her children. My mother remembers that burro as the most stubborn animal ever! Another time they brought home a baby goat. Nanny was quite adventuresome and loved to climb up on cars. The customers did not care for the hoof prints, so Nanny went to live on another farm. Mable brought a hot pad made of seed pods from Hawaii, which still graces my mother’s Thanksgiving table.
Mable is
remembered by her grandchildren as never raising her voice and never losing her
temper. She was quiet, modest, and much loved. She was a wonderful cook, an
industrious farmer, and a clever businesswoman.
Her daughter, Rachel, also knew how to make cottage cheese and chow
chow. Her daughter and granddaughters
became accomplished seamstresses as well. Her blueberry bread recipe is enjoyed
by thousands who have tasted it from the Highland Orchards bakery. When someone
is curious enough to try the unusual chow chow, Mable’s heritage lives on.
 |
| Mable and Harry, about 1953 |
When Mable
is remembered in the family, no one ever talks about her hearing loss—it did
not matter. Certainly, she never complained about her hearing loss, or even
brought it up. Mable was fully capable and she ran that farm and family as was
needed and managed their market business very well.
Eventually
Mabel and Harry stopped traveling the country and retired to St. Petersburg,
Florida. She died in 1955, and Harry
passed away in 1970, over 30 years past deadline. Mabel reminds me that ordinary events and
actions have long lasting effects.
Knowing her story helps push me to keep celebrating the joys of life, no
matter how small or habitual. And—there
comes a time to let loose and explore!
~ Ruth
Quick genealogy: Mable Garfield Talley, mother of Rachel
Louise Rotthouse, mother of Elaine Webster, mother of Ruth Linton.
More about Rachel Webster: https://highlandcsafieldnews.blogspot.com/2018/03/march-is-womens-history-month.html
Quirky facts for those who enjoy trivia:
- The “Grange,” hub of farm social activities, comes from an archaic word meaning granary, or barn, or farm with outbuildings. The local Grange building is still in existence (101 Brandywine Boulevard), although no longer an official part of the state Grange activities.
- "Truck” farms are so named from the French word “troquer,” meaning to trade or barter. Called truck farms long before there were trucks! First used in 1784 to describe the vegetables and in 1866 to describe the type of farms.
- Bloomer Brothers, who made the oyster boxes (which became chow chow, cream cheese, and cottage cheese boxes), eventually became Fold-Pak, which still makes the boxes, but 90% are now used for Chinese take-out.
- Potherbs is a medieval English term for greens that are cooked. It is an expression still used in southern US states. Mable used the term specifically for ingredients to make soup.
Sources:
https://www.cooksinfo.com/potherbs
http://www.femalefarmerproject.org/
https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-american-agriculture-farm-machinery-4074385
Interviews with Elaine Webster Linton, Elizabeth Webster
Hodge, and Penny Webster Brown. February 2020.
Oral history interview with John
Webster, 1984.
Written letter of Rachel Webster to
Ruth Linton, 1986
Oral interview with Rachel Webster,
1984
Memoir of Rachel Webster, about 1975
Comments
Post a Comment