Abby Fisher, sometimes spelled as Abbie Fisher (1831 – 1915) was an American former slave from
South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
who earned her living as a pickle manufacturer in San Francisco and published the second known cookbook by a Black woman in the United States, after
Malinda Russell's ''Domestic Cook Book: Containing a Careful Selection of Useful Receipts for the Kitchen'' (1866). Abby Fisher's book, ''
What Mrs. Fisher Knows About Old Southern Cooking'', was published in 1881 by the Women's Cooperative Printing Office in San Francisco.
Personal life
Abby Clifton was born in
Orangeburg, South Carolina
Orangeburg, also known as ''The Garden City'', is the principal city in and the county seat of Orangeburg County, South Carolina, United States. The population of the city was 13,964 according to the 2010 United States Census and declined to 12 ...
to Andrew James, a white farmer, and Abbie Clifton, a slave, in June 1831. Although listed in the US Census as French, her father was more likely an American citizen of
French Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Bez ...
origin; in giving her Census account, Abby may have assumed he came from France after hearing him speak French at home. Prior to the 1860 Census in South Carolina, Abby had moved to
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population within the city limits was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 195,111 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 cens ...
. She married Alexander C. Fisher,
likely around 1859.
The 1880 Census in San Francisco notes that she was 48 years old at the time, corroborating an 1831 birthday (she had not yet celebrated her birthday in 1880). Her race was listed as "Mu.," short for
mulatto
(, ) is a racial classification to refer to people of mixed African and European ancestry. Its use is considered outdated and offensive in several languages, including English and Dutch, whereas in languages such as Spanish and Portuguese is ...
, or mixed-race. Her occupation is written as "cook", while her husband, Alexander C. Fisher, is "Pickle and Preserve Manfr". They had four children living in the household, Benjamin (16), Eliza (12), Jennie (10), and Mary (3), though Abby Fisher's book notes in her "Pap for Infant Diet" recipe that she also had seven other children: "I have given birth to eleven children and raised them all, and nursed them with this diet." She is buried in
Cypress Lawn Memorial Park
Cypress Lawn Memorial Park, established by Hamden Holmes Noble in 1892, is a rural cemetery located in Colma, California, a place known as the "City of the Silent".
History
Cypress Lawn Memorial Park is the final resting site for several membe ...
in
Colma, California
Colma (Ohlone for "Springs") is a small incorporated List of municipalities in California, town in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 1,507 at the 2020 census. The town w ...
.
Career
After arriving in San Francisco after 1877 (her daughter Mary was born in Missouri in 1877), Abby Fisher competed in and won several prizes at local fairs, including two medals at the San Francisco Mechanics' Institute Fair in 1880 and a diploma at the Sacramento State Fair in 1879.
She made a big impression with high society in San Francisco and was asked to publish a book based on her experiences with Southern cooking. She noted in the "Preface and Apology" of her book that she entrusted the dictation of her cookbook to her friends, including several of San Francisco's elite. This was because she could neither read nor write, having received no schooling.
By 1882, she was listed independently from her husband as a pickle manufacturer. (Her husband, meanwhile, worked as a porter). Fisher's business continued to operate through 1890, when it was still listed in Langley's San Francisco City Directory, May 1890, San Francisco, California. By that time, her operations had moved to
Noe Valley
Noe Valley ( ; originally spelt Noé) is a neighborhood in the central part of San Francisco, California. It is named for Don José de Jesús Noé, noted 19th-century Californio statesman and ranchero, who owned much of the area and served as m ...
(436 27th Street).
Legacy
After the
1906 San Francisco earthquake
At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity sha ...
and fire, references to Abby Fisher and her cookbook all but disappeared before a copy of the book resurfaced again at a
Sotheby's
Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and ...
auction in New York City in 1984.
The Arthur and Elizabeth
Schlesinger Library
The Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America is a research library at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University. According to Nancy F. Cott, the Carl and Lily Pforzheimer Foundation Director, ...
at Harvard University purchased the book, and
Applewood Books
Applewood Books is a publishing company which specializes in reissuing original versions of historical books, founded by Phil Zuckerman in 1976.
Its popular reprints include a hardcover edition of the Constitution of the United States; Robert L. ...
reprinted it the next year, in 1985. At the time, Mrs. Fisher was thought to have written "The First African-American Cookbook," but
Malinda Russell's older cookbook was rediscovered in the years following publication.
Culinary historian
Karen Hess
Karen Loft HessThough ''New York Times'', ''Toronto Star'', and ''The Independent'' give "Lost," the ''Los Angeles Times'' correctly gives "Loft." The New York Times noted her given name was pronounced "CAR-inn" per the Scandinavian manner. (Novem ...
provided historical notes for a second reprint in 1995.
See also
*
Cuisine of the Southern United States
The cuisine of the Southern United States encompasses diverse food traditions of several regions, including Tidewater, Appalachian, Lowcountry, Cajun, Creole, and Floribbean cuisine. In recent history, elements of Southern cuisine have sprea ...
*
Soul food
Soul food is an ethnic cuisine traditionally prepared and eaten by African Americans, originating in the Southern United States.Soul Food originated with the foods that were given to enslaved Black people by their white owners on Souther ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fisher, Abby
1831 births
19th-century American businesspeople
19th-century American non-fiction writers
19th-century American women writers
19th-century American businesswomen
African-American women writers
American cookbook writers
19th-century American slaves
American women non-fiction writers
Businesspeople from San Francisco
Businesspeople from South Carolina
Burials at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park
People from Orangeburg, South Carolina
Women cookbook writers
Writers from South Carolina
Writers from San Francisco
Date of birth unknown
Year of death unknown
19th-century African-American women