Discovering Soda Recipes

My maternal grandmother and a great-aunt made root beer soda decades ago. After posting that story, I saw some soda recipes that seemed worth trying, although I think that recipes from from the 1930's and 1940's may have been more involved.

Reading this article and the accompanying recipes made me wonder what other beverages or other special recipes were made 'back in the day.' Maybe I'll find something worthy of a 'post.'

One of the last Fathers

On Saturday, July 10, a funeral was held for Mr. Patrick Henry Christopher at Salem Baptist Church in Jenkintown. Mr. Christopher died in his 80s. He was buried at Fairview Cemetery in nearby Upper Dublin. Generations of people from La Mott, Germantown and many other neighborhoods were buried there as well.

Mr. Christopher was the father of fives sons, but one son predeceased him. He had three daughters-in-law, several grandchildren and a boatload of relatives. He was married for 57 years which seems amazing in this day and age. While I knew who he was, I really didn't know much about him. I learned that day that he worked in construction for decades, was always willing to lend a helping hand and didn't like talking on the telephone.

I think of him as being one of the last Fathers in La Mott. Like many of the men of his generation he was the kind of man you looked up and admired. You knew he had a strength about him and raised his sons to be strong men as well. Each of his sons is admired just as he was.

He will be missed, but at the same I think he led a long and fruitful life.

Fourth of July

La Mott had a parade that marched around all the streets in the neighborhood. My mother recalls that it was held by the American Legion. Mom's family stood on the corner at Cedar Lane and Willow Avenue and watched all the pomp and circumstance of several bands going by. Many of the residents marched in the parade themselves.

Cousin Stelle echoes my mother’s memories about the parade on the Fourth of July. She added that people came from South Philly to see the bands march from street to street. One of the residents even sat in the back of a convertible waving to all her family, friends and neighbors.
After the parade, the families might have their own gathering or participate in one of the block parties with a full spread complete with ribs. At my mother's house several members of the family gathered together for a fare that included fried chicken, potato salad, string beans, sliced ham, spinach and a pie, possibly apple. Grandmom Adelaide Jones would 'put up' root beer as the beverage for the day; the drink was prepared in really big pot. She got root beer extract and bottles about the size of a ‘Pepsi Cola’ bottle from the store as well as other ingredients. My mother recalls it as a several day process from cleaning the bottles, making the drink, pouring it into the bottles and waiting until it was time to drink it. About 3 dozen bottles were filled. Grandmom Adelaide had some sort of 'contraption' which put a lid on the bottles. They would sit for about a week or two and then be ready to drink. She had a place in the kitchen or the shed where she kept the bottles until they were ready.

My concept of root beer is a drink purchased at the grocery store and enjoyed over ice or with vanilla ice cream. It's so cool to think that both my Grandmother and my Great-Aunt prepared root beer in their own home I hope your 4th was filled with plenty of family, friends and good eats!