Happy I’m Sarah Fischer, a Collections and..

Happy I’m Sarah Fischer, a Collections and Archives intern at the South Street Seaport Museum. For the last month, I have been processing the Miller Family Beefsteak Dinner Collection. Beefsteak dinners of the late 19th century were traditionally considered all-male affairs, promoting the assumption that “women do not esteem a glutton” — or so journalist Joseph Mitchell wrote in a 1939 New Yorker article, one of the few sources describing the practice. Beefsteak dinners were typically gatherings of working men who came together to consume as much steak and beer as they could. Music was played and social niceties were put aside; rarely did a Beefsteak dinner supply forks, knives, or even napkins. Mitchell suggests that with the inclusion of women, those defining features of the Beefsteak were corrupted. But some of the many letters in the Museum’s collection, relating to the Beefsteak dinners hosted by William S. Miller challenge this view. In these letters, ranging from the 1890s to 1909, women are not mentioned as a nuisance, but a natural part of the proceedings. More than a few of the letters are addressed to both Mr. and Mrs. Miller, suggesting that she was as present and involved in the Beefsteaks as he was. That is the case with this letter, from Marion O. Skeele, thanking both Millers for their hospitality. Mrs. Skeele delights in recounting the enjoyment she and Mr. Skeele took in the evening, and as the excerpt proves, there was no shyness in consuming just as much as one’s husband. This particular gender divide was less absolute than it appeared — perhaps women could have their steak, and eat it too! Images: [Letter from Marion O. Skeele to William S. Miller] ca. 1892- ca. 1909. Paper, ink. Gift of Mary Moncure Miller and family, South Street Seaport Museum 1980.074.0124