(Nebraska) Ladies' Aid Society of the First Congregational Church. Congregational Cook Book: A Choice Collection of Tested Recipes for the Kitchen.

52 pp. Ads for local businesses throughout, incl. a surprising one for a femal doctor, Anna M. Cross, physician & obstetrician. Original string-tied wrappers. First Edition. Crawford, NE: Crawford Gazette, c.1880s-90s.

Crawford was settled on the Great Plains of Nebraska in 1886. According to historians, Crawford was a wild town, and was home to many saloons and brothels. In fact, Calamity Jane came to Crawford from Deadwood, South Dakota with ten dancing girls and set up a tent south of town. There were also a number of murders that took place in Crawford, most involving soldiers from Fort Robinson. Despite all the lawlessness, the First Congregational Church managed to gain a foothold in the town from the beginning. The first service, in 1886, was held in a tent partially occupied by a storeroom for feed, and in another corner was a barber chair. Recipes in this early Nebraska cookbook include musk melon preserves, corn fritters, lemon pie, Thanksgiving cake, German custard pie, Miss Harmon's roast chicken, etc. Handwritten recipes to memo pages (also 19th c.) for corn cakes & salmon loaf. Rare.