Pioneering Palm Beach by Ginger L. Pedersen & Janet M. DeVries

Author:Ginger L. Pedersen & Janet M. DeVries [Pedersen, Ginger L. & DeVries, Janet M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781614236689
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing Inc.
Published: 2012-09-04T04:00:00+00:00

SEMINOLE INDIANS AT JUPITER LIGHTHOUSE. During the late 1800s, the Seminole Indians traded with the pioneers living along the coast. The Jupiter Lighthouse, constructed in 1860, is seen in the background. Courtesy Library of Congress.

Being such an untamed wilderness, it was filled with game. To supply some fresh meat for the table, Birdie took to her own hunting expeditions to shoot small game such as squirrels or quail. “Fred became so proud of my skill as a Diana, that it added greatly to his enjoyment of our game dinners.” She described in detail how Fred had seemed dismayed with his meals and left one day with only a jelly sandwich. Birdie set out that morning and bagged some quail for the evening meal. She prepared the quail, “done to a turn” as she described it, served on toast.

Obtaining groceries and food was a challenge, and sometimes dinner even fell from the sky. Fred thought a chowder would make a fine noon meal, and all ingredients were at hand, except the fish. He was too busy repairing an oar to go fishing; she reminded Fred of the famous cookbook quote of “catch your hare”—the first step of a recipe is to have your game at hand. Then an osprey appeared overhead with a large fish in its talons, being pursued by another osprey wishing to rob it of its catch. In the struggle, the fish was dropped a few feet from Fred. A few minutes later, it was scaled and filleted, ready to be added to the chowder.

Although there were two local stores where basic supplies could be had on the barrier island (the Brelsford store and the Hendrickson store), the shipments arrived at the mercy of the weather. As fall set in with its northeast winds, entering the narrow, dangerous inlet to the ocean became more treacherous. Schooners could make it as far as Jupiter on the Indian River, but then the ships had to turn out to sea to sail the final nine miles of their journey to Palm Beach. At times, the schooners tacked back and forth, waiting for more favorable winds; once the sailors ended up consuming all the supplies aboard; they had to return to Jacksonville for another load. When supplies were low, the stores first ran out of flour and kerosene. After the kerosene was out, Fred and Birdie turned in with the chickens, with no light to read or write in the evening. The next day, the mail boat did manage to make it through the inlet, and Fred returned to the Hermitage with two weeks’ worth of mail. “We built up a fire of pine wood knots, and sat down on the floor in front of the stove, with its fire-doors open, our treasures of mail in our laps, devouring the words until the backs or our heads began to feel cooked.” Fred’s trip over to Palm Beach the next day yielded boxes of candles from a ship that had dumped its cargo in the gale.

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