Vintage Recipe Box 002 From Ohio
Most of the cards in this box are from brands and notes on menu planning with very few personal recipes.
I purchased this box from a lot sale on eBay
which contained 8 vintage recipe boxes made of wood and tin. The seller shared the following information with me:
These recipes came from Shelby Ohio Richland County (Shelby, Richland County, Ohio) estate of a veterinarian we cannot remember his name we are going to ask the auctioneer that done the sale and see if he has the family’s name and when we find out we will surely let you know.
Through research, I found out the info and keep reading to find out all the goodies about this box and the others in the estate sale.
From the clues inside this box and in the others from the lot, I know that this box belonged to Merridelle DEPUE Sowers.
At the time I purchased this box I found online Harry’s obituary, which had Merridelle as still living and I wasn’t sure why her recipe box ended up at an estate sale. The only thing I can think of is that since Harry recently died and the box was recently purchased at an estate sale, that Harry must have needed long-term or hospice care. Because of the care, they sold their “estate” to downsize, etc.
Since the publication of this article on this recipe box, Merridelle has since passed, which was in 2017.
Merridelle was born in 1921 in Ohio and died in 2017 in Ohio. She was the daughter of William Andrew DEPUE and Lena Margueritte RHINEHART. Both of her parents were born and passed away in Ohio.
Merridelle was the wife of Harry L. SOWERS (1921 – 2015), who was the son of Goldie LEWIS Sowers (1899 – 1987), who was the owner of Vintage Recipe Box 001.
The receipt from Dr. H. L. Sowers’ veterinarian’s office in Willard, Ohio from the 1960s.
H. L. is Harry Lewis, who is Merridelle’s husband.
Postcard to Mrs. Merridelle Sowers of Willard, Ohio with a date of 1956.
Based on the postcard and the receipt it appears that the recipe box was active in the 1950s-1960s.
Persons mentioned in the recipe box:
Marjorie Theone RINEHART was born in 1909 in Ohio and died in 2014 in Ohio. Her parents Silas RINEHART and Emma Dell QUAY. She was the sister of Merridelle’s mother.
Aunt Minnie is mentioned and not sure which Minnie she is as the Minnie’s I have located are not her aunt. I will continue the search.
Barbara could be one of three Barbara’s in the family or a family friend. The family members that I know of so far are Barbara SCHULZ (1845-1936), Barbara Ellen RINEHART (1861-1949), Barbara Ellen SNYDER (1877-1963).
Below are the vintage recipes included in this box, Vintage Recipe Box 002:
Lori West
Monday 15th of February 2021
Hello, I ran across your site by accident, but I'm an avid cook and am very interested in what I see on this site. I'm wondering about a recipe my mom used to make called "Tomato Conserve". It was tomatoes sliced very thin, and lemons, also sliced. I absolutely loved it, but I don't know what else was in it. I was just a kid. I have looked extensively, but have not found a recipe. Also, I have my mom's recipe book from Home Econnomics in high school, dated 1935. It's mostly baking and cookies, but I will share them if anyone would like them. Thank you so much for your efforts to keep the oldies, but GOODIES, alive for today's cooks.
Lori West
Carol
Monday 14th of February 2022
@Lori West, hi, is this the red book with the original muffin recipe? I’d love to see that again Carol