[Seymour Congregational Church (Seymour, Conn.). Ladies' Aid Society]

Cook Book. [Compiled by the] Ladies' Aid Society [of the] Congregational Church, Seymour, Conn.

Seymour, Conn: The Church, [1913].

Octavo (23 x 15.5 cm.), 56 pages. Advertisements (some illustrated). Title from cover. Date of publication from internal evidence. Evident FIRST EDITION. No frills for Seymour – no title page, no cherished image of the church. A desultory title sandwiched between advertisements on the front cover ushers some two hundred short recipes, perhaps half of them attributed. Includes a standard complement of cakes, breads, puddings, and preserves. But several of the instructions register impressions of the era. A Walnut Bread ought to “stand before the oven about twenty minutes before baking.” If Potato Croquettes are “allowed to stand a few hours before cooking, they are less likely to crack.” And for reasons unclarified, an Alpine Cake “must be eaten with a fork.” ~ The invention of the starter motor assists in narrowing the estimated date of publication. Though the first electric starter had been patented in 1911 (by Charles F. Kettering), development by automobile manufacturers took a bit of time. Moon Motor Cars of Missouri announced its adoption of an electric self-starter in 1913 and was marketing models within the year. Rambler Motor Cars of Wisconsin advertised its Cross Country model with self-starter in January 1912; the name Rambler, however, was replaced in 1914 with the name Jeffery. The relevant advertisements in the Seymour Cook Book are on pages 20 and 40, respectively. ~ The original Ecclesiastical Society in the lineage of the present congregation was formed in 1789 in what was then Chusetown (later Humphresville) within the town of Derby, in the southeastern county of New Haven. The present church on Broad Street – the third in as many centuries – was dedicated in April 1847, then enlarged in 1890, at which time it was renamed Seymour Congregational. A century later still, in 1955, just after the installation of a new Skinner organ, it was severely damaged in a series of floods. The congregation rallied nonetheless and restored what serves today as the home of Congregationalist progeny under the name United Church of Christ. ~ Stapled in charcoal wrappers, titled in red and black; spot-stained, chipped, and separated along the back; the upper with a small perforation at the fore-edge. Page corners bumped; fore-edges lightly soiled, and several pages creased; otherwise for the most part clean; text block solid. Near very good. Unrecorded. [OCLC locates no copies; not in Cook, Brown, or Cagle].

Price: $200.00