A pie safe, also called a pie chest, pie cupboard, kitchen safe, and meat safe,
is a piece of furniture designed to store pies and other food items. This was a normal household item before
icebox
An icebox (also called a cold closet) is a compact non-mechanical refrigerator which was a common early-twentieth-century kitchen appliance before the development of safely powered refrigeration devices. Before the development of electric refrig ...
es came into regular use, and it was an important part of the American household starting in the 1700s and continuing through the 1800s.
The pie safe was used to store not only pies, but bread, meat, and other perishables as well, to protect them from insects and vermin.
Origins
The origin of the pie safe can be traced back to the early 1700s in America. It was likely introduced by German immigrants to the country, who typically settled in the Pennsylvania area. These people later become known as the ‘Pennsylvania Dutch.’ The pie safe was introduced to protect perishables and other ingredients from vermin and pests. Their popularity meant that most American homes during this period possessed a pie safe, or similar regional variation.
Design
A common pie safe is made of wood, is around the same size as a large bureau, and is approximately deep. The shelves within the storage area are often perforated. The safe normally has two hinged doors on the front. These doors, and usually the sides,
are ordinarily ventilated either with
tin plates with punched holes, or screens. The holes in the tin are often punched to produce an image such as a simple shape, or something more intricate like a church scene, eagles, and stars, or even a
Masonic
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to Fraternity, fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of Stonemasonry, stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their inte ...
emblem.
A notable design is the
Wythe County
Wythe County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,290. Its county seat is Wytheville.
History
Wythe County was formed from Montgomery County in 1790. It wa ...
pie safe, which has a distinctive tulip pattern.
Pie safes that are freestanding are ordinarily made with long legs to keep them away from the floor. Some are wall-mounted or suspended from the ceiling.
Most have a drawer, usually above the pie storage area, but sometimes below.
![Pie Safe Tin Panel](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Pie_Safe_Tin_Panel.JPG)
A notable pie safe maker was the American industrialist and founder of
PPG Industries
PPG Industries, Inc. is an American Fortune 500 company and global supplier of paints, coatings, and specialty materials. With headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, PPG operates in more than 70 countries around the globe. By revenue it is ...
(then known as the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company),
Captain John Baptiste Ford, who made tin pie safes and sold them throughout the United States.
Regional variations
Garde-mangers
In
Cajun
The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the U.S. state of Louisiana.
While Cajuns are usually described as ...
or
Creole Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
, a pie safe is referred to as a ''garde-manger'' or a ''garde de manger''. Pie safes from this region had doors with punched tin panels known in the region as'' tôles de panneaux'', or were inlaid with
baluster
A baluster is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its cons ...
, closely spaced. These items of furniture were considered utilitarian, as opposed to decorative, and were often coloured dull red, referred to as ''gros rouge''.
California Coolers
Many San Francisco homes built during the
Victorian and
Edwardian
The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...
era (1890-1930) had built-in pie safes, known locally as "California coolers". These took the form of small pantries, typically off the home's kitchen, that were vented to the outside to keep contents at a stable temperature due to the city's generally cool weather.
Impact and legacy
The origin of the name of
chess pie
Chess pie, also known as Jefferson Davis pie is a dessert with a filling composed mainly of flour, butter, sugar, eggs, and sometimes milk, characteristic of Southern United States cuisine. It is similar to pecan pie without any nuts.
History ...
may have come from the term "pie chest", another name for a pie safe.
Pie safes are considered to be collectable antiques and are commonly reproduced. They are popular pieces in the
shabby chic
Shabby chic is a style of interior design where furniture and furnishings are either chosen for their appearance of age and signs of wear and tear or where new items are distressing, distressed to achieve the appearance of an antique. At the sa ...
interior design style.
References
{{reflist
Furniture
Pest control techniques