Kosher butchers in the 1860's

Allie

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Dec 17, 2014
While reading Mary Randolph's 1860 "The Virginia Housewife," I ran across this mention of kosher butchers.

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It's obvious that any place with a substantial Jewish population needs a Jewish butcher. I wonder how widespread they were, and how many gentile housekeepers of the war era went to Jewish butchers for their meat?
 
While reading Mary Randolph's 1860 "The Virginia Housewife," I ran across this mention of kosher butchers.

View attachment 57987

It's obvious that any place with a substantial Jewish population needs a Jewish butcher. I wonder how widespread they were, and how many gentile housekeepers of the war era went to Jewish butchers for their meat?

It's rumored, though I've not found solid proof, that Grant came to prefer kosher meats because of the humane rules followed by the butchers. I do wonder, too, how many outside the Jewish community used kosher meats.
 
What makes a kosher (vs. a non-kosher) butcher, other from not carrying non-kosher food (e.g. pork) is that kosher (and halal - for Islam) meat comes from animals that are killed in a particular way. Nothing to do with the food the animal eats, where & how it grows and lives or anything else...
 
The largest jewish community was in New Orleans, but trying to find out about antebellum kosher butchers there might be difficult.
 
What makes a kosher (vs. a non-kosher) butcher, other from not carrying non-kosher food (e.g. pork) is that kosher (and halal - for Islam) meat comes from animals that are killed in a particular way. Nothing to do with the food the animal eats, where & how it grows and lives or anything else...
Yep. The slaughtered animal does have to be examined for disease, however.

From jewishfaq.org

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The mammals and birds that may be eaten must be slaughtered in accordance with Jewish law. (Deut. 12:21). We may not eat animals that died of natural causes (Deut. 14:21) or that were killed by other animals. In addition, the animal must have no disease or flaws in the organs at the time of slaughter. These restrictions do not apply to fish; only to the flocks and herds (Num. 11:22).

Ritual slaughter is known as shechitah, and the person who performs the slaughter is called a shochet, both from the Hebrew root Shin-Cheit-Teit. The method of slaughter is a quick, deep stroke across the throat with a perfectly sharp blade with no nicks or unevenness. This method is painless, causes unconsciousness within two seconds, and is widely recognized as the most humane method of slaughter possible.

Another advantage of shechitah is that it ensures rapid, complete draining of the blood, which is also necessary to render the meat kosher.

The shochet is not simply a butcher; he must be a pious man, well-trained in Jewish law, particularly as it relates to kashrut. In smaller, more remote communities, the rabbi and the shochet were often the same person.

So according to this, more than likely anywhere you had enough Jews to have a rabbi, you had that rabbi acting as a butcher, if no one else was available.

Wikipedia article detailing the process:

 
This is the 1893 birth record of my grandfather, Louis Slaviansky (Slavin). My G Grandfather, Max, was indeed a kosher butcher, or schochet. According to family legend, Max would travel to the countryside by wagon to purchase cattle and bring them back to the city for butchering. The prime cuts, i.e. sirloin, were sold to the gentiles, and the lower quality kosher cuts, i.e. brisket, went to his fellow Jews. He had a reputation of being very kind to animals and always kept sugar cubes in his pocket for any horse he happened to meet along the way.
My grandfather Louis, however, ate sirloin steaks two inches thick, well marbled with fat, used whole cream on his breakfast cereal, and smoked a dozen cigars a day. He only lived to age 89.
As far as health, I found a local newspaper article from around 1910 describing tragic events at a wedding where Max is mentioned as a guest. Some of the other guests got food poisoning and one actually died, apparently from tainted beef tongue that was served. Fortunately, the tongue was prepared at home and not supplied by my G Grandfather.
Louis Slaviansky 1893 (2).jpg
 
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It is interesting to see observances that could serve to protect.
In earlier law regarding food stuffs, detailed prep, also dwelling, latrine areas away from dwelling & water supply, cleanliness, & isolation during illness/after death, since microscopes obviously weren't available when law given to see harmful microorganisms, so simple obedience to law served as protection. To others as well, adopting similar good practices.
 
While reading Mary Randolph's 1860 "The Virginia Housewife," I ran across this mention of kosher butchers.

View attachment 57987

It's obvious that any place with a substantial Jewish population needs a Jewish butcher. I wonder how widespread they were, and how many gentile housekeepers of the war era went to Jewish butchers for their meat?
Miss you Allie.
 
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