Dr. Paul A. Tenkotte
Special article from NKyTribune
This is the ninth installment of an occasional series on fast food restaurants.
In 1888, Cincinnati’s 100th anniversary year, a photographer captured a rare moment. A huge, almost life-size, version of this photograph is on display at the National Immigration Museum at Ellis Island in New York City. The photo shows the Tedeschi and Purdy Saloon on Vine Street, which at the time was located near the intersection of 5th and Vine Streets, Cincinnati’s so-called “dirty corner.” People are talking outside on the sidewalk. Above them, the saloon sign reads, “One Wienerwurst per Drink,” a claim shared by other competing saloons.
Tedeschi and Pardi’s Tavern near Fifth and Vine Streets in Cincinnati, Ohio, 1888. (Source: Cincinnati and Hamilton County Libraries; digitally restored for this article by Paul A. Tenkotte)
“Wienerwurst [sausage] At the heart of today’s column is the concept of “free lunch with every drink.” In the late 1800s and early 1900s, saloons in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky (and many other parts of the U.S., such as Chicago) literally invited patrons to come in at lunchtime, purchase one or more alcoholic drinks, and enjoy a “free lunch.” While it seemed like a good deal to the individual patron, what were the social concerns and costs?
Temperance leaders who sought to reduce or eliminate alcohol consumption in America were appalled by these free saloon lunches. The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) opposed alcohol abuse and its negative effects on women and families. In an era when men were the “breadwinners” of the family, if a husband drank too much alcohol and spent a large part of the family income on it, it could lead to serious financial problems. Furthermore, some alcoholics abused their spouses and children. Furthermore, employers were not always happy about their employees wandering off to a saloon at lunchtime and coming back to work unable to do their jobs. Some opposed alcohol on moral grounds, while others felt that saloons did not practice a hygienic eating environment.
Indeed, it’s clear that practicing sanitary dining practices was not a priority for saloons. In June 1914, The Cincinnati Post tongue-in-cheek lampooned the situation. As the paper’s reporter sarcastically noted, Cincinnati’s “Chief Sanitary Inspector for the Health Department, Folsom, found the situation first-hand after visiting 773 of the city’s 802 saloons.”
The reporter continued.
This editorial cartoon explains how a saloon owner who charges five cents per beer can offer a “free lunch” compared to one who charges three cents per beer. (Source: “Three-Cent Schooner House Alone Sells 11,000 Schooners in 24 Years,” Cincinnati Post, August 31, 1909, p. 4. Digitally restored for this article by Paul A. Tenkotte)
“The result of his inspection was the ordering of the abolition of one of the beverage market’s oldest institutions: the common lunch-counter fork, which can no longer be used to alternate impartially between pickled herring and sauerkraut, nor can it be used to pierce a steaming sausage with the same fork that has returned from its duty of shoving peas into a hungry person’s face.
“Instead, Folsom recommends that porters keep a basket of clean forks on hand, with the order accompanied by the following instructions for using the utensils:
“Forks are intended for picking up food from plates and should not be used to put food into the mouth” (“Pipe This: City Says We Must Have Own Forks at Free Lunch Counter,” Cincinnati Post, June 17, 1914, p. 1).
The article highlighted that health inspectors found dirty glasses in 151 bars and that “of 773 bars inspected, only 21 met all sanitary standards.”
Seven years earlier, in 1907, Covington, Kentucky, had stepped up sanitary inspections of meat and milk producers and retailers. The city’s “meat and milk inspector,” Dr. W.E.A. Wyman, and his colleagues at the health department, had launched a “vigorous campaign of eradication” against impure and adulterated products. A Kentucky Post reporter noted that “Dr. Wyman has been especially bold in his inspection campaign. Slaughterhouses, meat and milk stores, and several dairies have been visited and severely inspected.” Wyman declared, “‘It will soon be compulsory for all butchers, meat dealers and dairymen in Covington to have licenses. Those without will be arrested.'” (“Covington’s New Health Officer Keeps Serious Eye on Public Health,” Kentucky Post, September 30, 1907, p. 2).
In this editorial cartoon, Cincinnati Health Inspector Folsom, along with two tiny germs, is trying to chase an ordinary lunch fork out of a saloon. (Source: “Pipe This: City Says We Must Have Own Forks at Free Lunch Counter,” Cincinnati Post, June 17, 1914, p. 1. Digitally restored for this article by Paul A. Tenkotte)
The Cincinnati and Covington movements were a product of the Progressive Era and have much to do with President Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt and his attempts to get big corporations to play fair. This era grew out of a decades-long movement in the late 1800s and early 1900s that tried to check and regulate America’s food supply. Called the “Pure Food Movement,” its leaders included two men from the Ohio River Valley, Dr. Harvey Wiley and Dr. Charles A.L. Reed.
Harvey Wiley (1844-1930) was born in a log cabin on a farm in Republican Township, Jefferson County, Indiana (on the Ohio River, county seat Madison). His parents helped escaped slaves on the “Underground Railroad.” Wiley received his M.D. from Indiana Medical College and continued his studies at Harvard University and in Germany. Wiley taught at Indiana Medical College, Butler University in Indianapolis, and Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. In 1882, Dr. Wiley became chief chemist for the United States Department of Agriculture in Washington, DC. There, Wiley spearheaded the national Pure Food Movement, an effort to eliminate dangerous food and addictive drug additives from the nation’s supply. Facing opposition to further reforms, Dr. Wiley left the Department of Agriculture in 1912 and “took over the laboratories of Good Housekeeping Magazine, created the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval, and worked tirelessly on behalf of consumers” (“Harvey Washington Wiley, M.D.”, U.S. Food and Drug Administration).
Covington health officials, 1907. From left, sanitary inspector Edward Cook, health officer Dr. L.E. Brinker, and meat and milk inspector Dr. W.E.A. Wyman. Source: “Covington’s new health officer really cares about public health” (Kentucky Post, September 30, 1907, p. 2)
Dr. Charles A. L. Reed (1856-1928) was born in Wolf Lake, Noble Township, northeastern Indiana. He received his master’s degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and his medical doctorate from the Cincinnati Medical College, where his father was a professor. He later served as president of the American Medical Association (AMA) and chairman of its Legislative Committee, and was influential in supporting federal legislation regulating adulterated products, such as the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. Interestingly, he was an opponent of Prohibition.
Temperance leaders succeeded in “securing the passage of the 18th Amendment in three-quarters of the states in 1919,” which established the period in U.S. history known as Prohibition (1920-1933), which “prohibited the manufacture, import, sale, and transportation (but not consumption) of alcoholic beverages. Congress passed the National Prohibition Act (also known as the Volstead Act) in 1919, clarifying the details of prohibition: alcohol with a content of more than 0.5% was prohibited, except for religious services, medical purposes, scientific research, or industrial uses such as fuel or dye” (Paul A. Tenkotte, U.S. History Since 1865: Information Literacy and Critical Thinking, Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt, 2022, p. 52).
Dr. Harvey Wiley working in the USDA chemistry lab. (Courtesy of the Library of Congress)
Prohibition closed the saloons and ended the free lunches at saloons. Decades earlier, enterprising businessmen and businesswomen had opened successful alternative lunch establishments called “dairy lunches” that served milk and other non-alcoholic beverages. These “dairy lunches,” also known as “lunch counters” or “lunchrooms,” became associated with “short-order” fast food that was quickly prepared and efficiently served. Menu items included a bowl of milk with crackers, pancakes/hotcakes, bacon and eggs, sandwiches, and soup.
Maintaining hygiene and serving consistently quality food became hallmarks of the post-Prohibition era. Cafeterias and fast-food restaurants such as White Castle were clean, efficient, and proudly displayed their kitchens. White porcelain tile was prevalent. Cooks and servers wore white uniforms and often wore hats or hair nets. Public health, and American fast-food choices, entered a new era with an emphasis on quality and the demands of the conscientious consumer.
Dr. Paul A. Tenkotte is a professor of history and gender studies at Northern Kentucky University (NKU) and editor of the weekly series “Our Rich History.” He can be reached at tenkottep@nku.edu. Dr. Tenkotte is also co-director of the ORVILLE Project (Ohio River Valley Innovation Library and Learning Enhancement Project). For more information, visit https://orvillelearning.org/.
Dr. Charles A. L. Reed. (Courtesy of the National Library of Medicine)
