[1776]
Our founding fathers celebrated July 4, 1776 in Philadelphia's City Tavern. The restaurant confirms there is no record of the bill of fare served that day. What kind of foods were typically served in Colonial American taverns?

[1815]
"We find the following patriotic advertisement in a late paper printed at Lexington, Kentucky. The 'bra' lads and 'bonnie lassies' of that state unite in celebrating the independence of our country, and on the happy occasion fully partake of 'foreign and domestic liquors' and of a hog broiled whole, or or Barbecue (a word they barbarously spell Barbacue:"). Barbaque. The subscriber respectfully informs the citizens of Fayette and adjoining counties that he will prepare an elegant Barbacue Dinner on the Fourth of July, at his own house, on Limestone Road, nine miles from Lexington, and about the same distance from Paris. There will be an elegant arbor and seats prepared for the ladies and gentlemen, to amuse themselves in dancing. Excellent music is engaged for that purpose. The subscriber furnished foreign liquors of the best quality for the LADIES--the gentlemen will have free access to the use of domestic liquors. Tickets of admittance-- two dollars--there will be no expense omitted to render his entertainment brilliant and interesting. June 12. James Green."
---"From the Salem Gazette," New York Courier [New York City], July 3, 1815 (p. 2)

[1831]
Kentucky "Barbecue on the Fourth of July", Ornithological biography, or An account of the habits of the birds of the United States of America; accompanied by descriptions of the objects represented in the work entitled The birds of America, and interspersed with delineations of American scenery and manners, John J. Audubon

[1839]
"For the ast forty years every Fourth of July has been celebrated by the good ladies of Northampton, (Mass.) by a pic nic [sic] or rural tea party, upon a beautiful green in the vicinity of that pleasant town. Every succeeding year adds fresh interest and beauty to the delightful custom. It is usually served up in a grove, the ladies having the chief management. Tables, decorated with evergreens and beautiful flowers, and loaded with refreshments of the richest kind are contributed by the families in town. Eighty lady managers preside, assisted by delegated gentlemen. Music is in attendance, and a dance on the green follows during the afternoon. It is a rational and pretty entertainment, free from the selfishness of political festivals and dinner parties, from which the women are always arbitrarily excluded. It is a healthy, a gladsome, a delightful amusement, and one we should like to see more generally prevalent."
---"Dancing Upon the Green," Daily Picayune [New Orleans, LA, June 29, 1839 (p. 2)

"At the 'Concord Brecue,' (the first ever held in this Commonwealth, so we are told,) Hon. Myron Lawrence. The address will be delivered on the celebrated battle ground on the shore of Concord rever. We learn that a large party are expected in boats from Lowell. Some ten or fifteen thousand people from all towns in this country, are expected to be present at this novel feast."
---"Fourth of July Orators," New Hampshire Sentinel [Keene NH] July 1, 1840 (p. 2)

[1844]
"Dinner will be provided by Mr. Wales, the obliging landlord of the Temperance Hotel, Weymouth. Tickets for the dinner 50 cents each, which may be had of Mr. Wales..."
---"Celebration at Braintree," Emancipator and Repulican, [Boston MA], July 3, 1844 (p. 39)

[1847]
"Fourth of July. There is generally a cold collation on this day. Let the centre of the table be ornamented by a pyramid of evergreens or laurel... at the summer, let there be a miniature flag of our country, or a small bust or statue of Washington...A cold boiled ham and cold roast poultry may be placed on one end of the table, or at the middle of one side, and lobster and chicken salads at the sides or end, with bread and butter sandwich and crackers and soda biscuit; such pastry, jelly tarts, jellies floating, floating island or blancmange and baskets of cut cake and maccaroons, as may be desired may be distributed around the table; and syrup water and lemonade with a fine bowl of temperance beverage and bottled soda, which will generally leave a more clear recollection, than wines, cordials, and champagne."
---The American System of Cookery, Mrs. T.J. Crowen [T.J. Crowen:New York] 1847 (p. 405-406)

[1849]
"Fourth of July celebrations aboard Califonia-bound ships in 1849 were planned and implemented by passengers. Both the manner of organizing the celebration and the individual elements of the observance parallel the event ashore. Becuase so many forty-niners travdeled to Califonia in company with friends and business partners, there was an internal structure to brousl that eased celebration planning. Committees were formed, orators selected, readers of the Declaration designated, prayer leaders chosen, and other details arranged for a celebration as similar as possible to what they had known at home. Not surprisingly then, the forty-niner's day at sea began with noise, followed by breakfast. Then came a program very similar to those we have already seen, with speakers, music and toast--on some ships with alcohol, on others, in a time of temperance-consciousness, with water. As decent a dinner as provisions and conditions allowed was served at noon.'
---Saltwater Foodways, Sandra L. Oliver [Mystic Seaport Museum:Mystic CT] 1995 (p. 223)
[NOTE: This book has an entire chapter devoted to early/mid-19th century Fourth of July celebrations. Your local public librarian can help you obtain a copy.]

[1850s-1870s: pioneers & wagon trains]
"The Glorious Fourth," Wagon Wheel Kitchens: Food on the Oregon Trail/Jacqueline Williams

[1858]
"With comendable liberality the citizens of Magnolia and vicinity determined to celebrate the anniversaary of the American Independence Day, by giving a Free Baarvecue. The Fourth coming on Sunday the Saturday preceding was selected as the most suitable day. Early in the morning a large company left our town for the appointed place. After two hours ride we arrived in Magnolia and there learned that the Barbecue would be given at the Sulpher Spring about one mile above Magnolia, on the River. After resting a short time, we started for the ground and upon our arrival found that a large crowd had already assembled. The people came from every direction; some on horseback, and some in carriges, while yet others made use of that primative vehicle known as an ox wagon. The candidates for District Attorney being present they were invited to address the audiencce, and each one responded with a brief speech...At the conclusion of their speeches dinner was announced. Seated on a large log on top of the hill o'erlooking the table, we enjoyed the scene presented, when the gentlemen charged upon the edibles. The old, the young, and the middle-aged ran forward pell mell and little did they care for others. Here you might see the old man scrambling for possession of that excellent mutton-joint, whilst yonder a fine specimen of 'Young America' would be eagerly clutching after a dish of roasting-ears. One individual we noticed, sauntered around carelessly, did not appear to be noticing anything in particular,--all at once he made a rush towards the table,--for a moment he was lost to view in the crowd, then he re-appeared with a bottle of claret wine under one arm, a jar of pickles under the other, a chunk of meat in one hand and a loaf of bread in the other. He hastily beat a retreat to a safe distance, then leisurely proceeded to discuss the merits of the several articles his prowess had obtained...At night there was a pleasant party at the house of W. A. Hagood, Esq., who, with his usual liberality, tendered the young people free use of his Saloon for the purpose of 'tripping the light fantastic toe.'"
---"Fourth of July at Magnolia," Trinity Advocate [Palestine TX], July 7, 1858 (p. 2)

[1862]
"We would call the attention of our citizens to the excursion and basket picnic at Babock's Grove, on the approaching Fourth of July...A table will be set in the grove with refreshments for those who prefer to buy rather than to carry their dinners, and there will be hot tea and coffee, ice cream, lemonade, oranges and other fruits, on sale on the grounds. Donations of provisions for the furnishing of this table, cold meats, biscuit, cake, pastry &c., are earnestly solicited.
---"Fourth of July Excursion to Babcock's Grove," Chicago Tribune, July 3, 1862 (p. O_4)

[1863-4]
"Union soldiers celebrated two holidays a year that their enemy dis not necessrily observe. One was the Fourth of July. Early in the war, Confederates, too venerated it as the anniversary of American freedom and celebrated as they could. Even in the earthworks and forts surrrounding Port Hudson, Louisiana, where a beseiged Confederate garrison found itself steadiy driven toward starvation, the defenders strove to make something special for the holiday. Their skimpy beef ration already exhausted, they began eating mule on July 1, 1863. 'All who partook of it spoke highly of the dish,' said one Rebel. 'Mule meat was regularly served out in rations to the troops from and after 4th of July.'...Yankees officers held Fourth of July banquets beneath leafy arbors in their garrisons, and when possible, the day came with them all on campaign or as in 1863, exhausted from recent battle, and it passsed with only a modicum of culinary observance. The Sanitary Commission attempted to encourage celebration of the Fourth by sending special treats to the armies, fresh vegetables in 1864, for instance, but the distribution came to little more than two or three onions and tomatoes for each man, much diluting the holiday meal. Some men actually managed to save things from their Christmas boxes for months, in order to bring them out for the Fourth, such as canned salmon and green peas that appeared on a 1st New York Infantry officer's table in 1864. Rhode Island officers in the army besieging Petersburg in 1864 celebrated the day with canned stewed oysters, canned roast turkey, bread pudding, tapioca pudding, an apple pie made in camp, and lemonade."
---A Taste for War: A Culinary History of the Blue and the Gray, William C. Davis [Stackpole Books:Mechanicsburg PA] 2003 (p.118)

[1867]
"The Ninety-first anniversary--How the Day will be Honored--Parade of the First Division--The Celebration by Tammany Society."
---"Pic-Nicks, Excursions, Fireworks," New York Times, July 4, 1867 (p. 5)
[NOTE: No picnic menu or specific foods mentioned in this article.]

[1868]
"New Englanders marked Independence Day with seasonal fare. Tradition has it that salmon, peas, and new potatoes made up one common menu. Nathan Fish confirms part of this in his diary entry or 4 July 1868: 'Had salmon, Peas and beans.' A whole poached or baked salmon, often served with an egg sauce, made an impressive centerpiece...salmon, because of its size, firm texture, and flavor, conveyed more status and elegance to a meal than, for example, cod or haddock. Green peas and new potatoes at dinner meant the last of fresh peas before hot weather ad the earliest of new potatoes. According to his diary, Nathan Fish didnt have new potatoes that year until two weeks after the Fourth. The beans he speaks of could have been early green beans; it was a little too early for shell beans."
---Saltwater Foodways, Sandra L. Oliver [Mystic Seaport Museum:Mystic CT] 1995 (p. 221)

[1870]
"The day was pleasantly spent, as the record below will show. Picnics and excursions out of town, and to city groves, a ball match in the afternoon and fireworks and theaters in the evening, constituted the pleasures of the day. Less drunkeness than usual was noticed upon the street, and fewer accidents."
---"How Brooklyn Celebrated Independence Day," Brooklyn Daily Eagle, July 5, 1870 (p. 2)

"Fourth of July Sherry Cobbler.
A large tumbler two thirds full of pounded ice; half a dozen strawberries, a few fine chips from the yellow rind of a lemon, a table-spoonful of powdered sugar; fill with fine Sherry, shake, and take in the usual way."
---Jennie June's American Cookery Book, Jane Cunningham Croly [American News Company:New York] 1870 (p. 273)

"Independence Cake
Twenty pounds of flour, fifteen pounds of sugar, ten pounds of butter, four dozen of eggs, one quart of wine, one quart of brandy, one ounce of nutmegs, three ounces each of cinnamon, cloves, and mace, two pounds of citron, five pounds each of currants and raisins, and one quart of yeast. Frost it, and dress it with box and rose leaf."
---ibid (p. 195)

[1877]
"An old-fashioned Fourth of July barbecue-something that the present generation never witnessed-is advertised by the Chylor brothers, to take place at the State Fair-grounds. A 1,600-pound ox and numerous fine fat sheep are to be served up free, and then the crowd are to be treated to No. 1 trotting, passing, and running games, music and dancing. Inshort, a glorious, old-fashioned, happy celebration of the Fourth of July may be looked for."
---Indianapolis Journal [IN], June 30, 1877 (p. 10)

[1894]
"Berlin, July 5, 1894.-The Fourth of July this year turned out a day of remarkable pleasure at the Hotel Bristol. Some forty prominent Americans, with their ladies, which happened to be here, were invited by Mr. Uhl, the proprietor, to participate in a dinner ostensibly in honor of Independence Day, but which turned out to be Mr. Uhl's engagement to Miss Eva Bechtel, of Jersey City, daughter of the former mayor of Stapleton, a very rich and beautiful young lady. The house was one mass of American flags and flowers, and when the guests assembled with a number of native celebrities from the ministry, the arts and commerce, they were even more surprised by the novel bill of fare than by the extravagant decoration and appointments which had been lavished irregardless of expense. In the surprising space of forty eight hours the court engraver, Herr A. Liebmann, had prepared from a copper plate a menu with President Cleveland's likeness on the front page, even more perfect than the best of photos, and on the inside some wag had translated the French dishes into the following somewhat unpoetic comparisons: Lobster a la Grover, Spring chicken a la Mrs. Cleveland, Artichokes a la Tammany, Souffle au chocolade a la Lillian Russell, Patisserie a la Washington Post, Paillets au parmessir a la Yankee Doodle."
---"The Fourth in Berlin: An Unusual Dinner with an American Bride, and Millions in it," Washington Post, July 22, 1894 (p. 16)

[1895]
Hotel Roanoke dinner menu, Roanoke, Virginia.

[1897]
"New York, July 8.-Five hundred persons at Wappinger's Falls, N.Y., were poisoned at an Independence Day Picnic by eating ham sandwiches, most of which had been cooked in a copper bottomed kettle. Three hundred of the afflicted ones suffered severely and are not yet well, but none has died. In every case, man and child, the symptoms were alike-violent cramps and spasms, nausea and burning fever. The physicians found the meat so thoroughly permeated with the poison that if any one had eaten largely of it the result would surely have been fatal."
---"Many Picnickers Poisoned," Kansas City Star, July 8, 1897 (p. 3)

[1898]
"It is safe to say that the leading feature of the Fourth of July in Decatur this year was the number of picnic parties which went out of the town with a bucket of lemonade and an ice cream freezer under the seat of the hack, buggy express agon or tally-ho."
---"Picnics A Feature," Decatur Daily Review, [IA] July 5, 1898 (p. 2)

[1899]
Fourth of July Dinner, Hygeia Hotel, Old Point Comfort, Virginia.

Hotel North dinner menu, Augusta, Maine.
Hotel Colorado dinner menu, Glenwook Springs, Colorado.

[1901]
"July 4th.--Breakfast: Fresh berries with cream and sugar, broiled Spanish mackerel, buttered toast, escalopped omelette souffle, cream toast. Dinner: Pea soup, roast tenderloin of beef, new potatoes, tomatoes, lettuce a la Mayonnaise, cucumber sliced; pineapple pudding, ice cream, cake. Supper: Small light biscuit, sliced ham, orange tarts, cake and berries."
---Woman's Exchange Cook Book, Mrs. Minnie Palmer [W.B. Conkey Company:Chicago] 1901 (p. 17)

[1903]
"Fourth of July.
Breakfast Red Raspberries and Cream, Fried Chicken, Scrambled Tomatoes, Warmed Potatoes, Tennessee Muffins, Toast, Coffee.
Supper Cold Sliced Lamb, Crab Pie, Water-cress Salad, Cheese Toast, Graham Bread, Sponge Cake, Blackberries, Tea.
Dinner Clam Soup, Boiled Cod with Lobster Sauce, Roast Lamb, Mint Sauce, Green Peas, Spinach with Eggs, Cucumbers Sliced, Chicken Patties, Naple Biscuits, Vanilla Ice-cream, Chocolate Macaroons, Strawberries, Coffee."
---White House Cook Book, Hugo Ziemann and Mrs. F.L. Gilette [Saalfield Publishing:New York] 1903 (p. 468)

[1904]
"The complaint has often been made by very young ladies and frequently by older young ladies, that the Fourth of July was a day much ore enjoyed by boys and young men than by the members of their sex. There are ways, however, in which the young lady may both enjoy and celebrate the occasion. An Independence day party is one of these. Once assembled at the home of the hostess, the guests may enjoy themselves by any of the customary methods adopted by young ladies upon such occasions. They should however, wear some patriotic emblems such as red, white and blue sashes or ribbons, and a very pleasant feature of the occasion would be for each guest to come prepared, by request, to give some information regarding the women of Revolutionary times. The crowning feature of the event should be the lunch. The room in which this is served should be well decorated with flags and bunting of the national colors, while such Revolutionary pictures as George and Martha Washington, the battle of Bunker Hill, the Boston ea party, Washington crossing the Delaware, the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the surrender of Cornwallis, etc., should adorn the walls if they are obtainable. The table should be draped about the edge with tricolored bunting and a knot of this or a flag draped about each chair. If possible, secure a well-mounnted American eagle to place in the center of the table, with a flag draped about the base. At each plate place a paper or muslin flag for a napkin, and upon each plate mount a formidable cannon, made by securing two oranges and a banana with a long wooden or metal in. A tiny flag stuck in the lower end of the banana will add to the effect. The manu should have at the top a flag, either a real one fastened on or one put on with colors. At the bottom a drawing of the cracked Liberty bell would e in keeping with the idea, while at either side attach a genuine firecracker. The lunch menu may be either printed or written, and should read as follows:

[1911]
"Menu No. I: Iced Tomato Bouillon, Salamon Balls, Sweetbread Salad, Lenox Sandwiches, Salad Rolls, Strawberry Biscuit Macroon, Cocoanut Rings, Lady Baltimore Cake, Fourth of July Punch.
Menu No. II: Lucullus Lobster, Jellied Veal, Horseradish Sauce, Finger Rolls, Sembric Sandwiches, Orange Ice Cream with Crushed Strawberries, Nut Wafers, Lemon Queens, Claret Punch.
Menu No. III: Molded Sweetbreads Truffle Sauce, Tyrolienne Halibut, Sweedish [sic] Rings, Graham Sandwiches, Strawberry Ice Cream, Nuremburgs, Fruit Punch."
---Catering for Special Occasions, Fannie Merrit Farmer [David McKay Publisher:Philadelphia] 1911 (p. 107-125)
[NOTE: Recipe for "Fourth of July Punch: 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup water, 1 can sliced pineapple, cut in pieces, Juice 2 lemons, Juice 2 oranges, 1/2 cup raspberry syrup, 1/4 cup brandy, 1 pint Moselle wine, 1 pint bottle Apollinaris. Boil sugar and water five minutes and add remaining ingredients. Pour over a cake of ice." (p. 113).]

"Old Fashioned Fourth of July Barbecue and Picnic...Roasted Oxen, Sheep and Pigs, Free Dinner for All. Athletic Contests, Sports, Swings. A Program of Speaking and Music. Free Band. Concerts Morning, Afternoon and Evening. Evening Dance by Colville Band."
---display ad, Colville Examiner, [WA], July 1, 1911 (p. 7)

[1914]
"July Fourth: Roast Ham, Green Onions, Rye Bread with Green Chili Cheese, Dill Pickles, Sugared Red and White Currants, Iced Tea, Sugar Cookies, Rhubarb Punch."
---The Calendar of Luncheons, Teas and Suppers, Elizabeth O. Hiller [P.F. Voll and Company: Joliet IL] 1914 (unpaged, calendar presented in day order)

[1925]
"An informal porch party, with the right sort of hostess, will rouse enthusiasm...More strenuous but quite as well worthwhile, are community picnics...Refreshsments... should be hoemade if practicable. Too often our fashions for public luncheons aare settled by the caterers, and what they find it most convenient to serve. Wherever there is a historical aspect about our picnic...why not plan the food to be served to fit the period as carefully as we do the costumes? Few would be ready to lend choice, old china, even to decorate the tables, but it may be there are some pewter platters and pitchers, that would not be injured by use, and would lend an 'air' to the whole feast. Pies and doughnuts, loaf cakes and cookies are to be chosen rather than the ices and angel cakes of the present day, and often will win applause because they are less common than ice cream. Since ice cream cones have become daily food, it is no longer a rarity, a 'treat,' in the old sense of that word."
---"Summer Celebrations," Anna Barrows American Cookery, June-July 1925 (p. 23-26)

[1926]
"Bretton Woods, N.H.--July Fourth celebrations in the country towns of the White Mountains are attracting any number of people from the cities, and many are making their journeys by motor to the hills at this time to enjoy the novelty of the old-fashioned merrymaking...Over the border in Maine many White Mountain tourists went on Saturday to hear Mellie Dunham, Henry Ford's old fiddler, who came from his home at Norway, Me., to play for a real old-time barn dance...Life in the White Mountains' resort centres is always most informal until late July and there are many motor excursions, picnics, trout and bass fishing expeditions and mountain climbing parties...Cooking trout over fires on the lake and brook shores and barbecues of lamb will be indulged in by many parties coming to the hills to spend the July 4 holidays."
---"Mountain Season Early," New York Times, July 4, 1926 (p. X8)

[1927]
"Fourth of July Dinners.
Cantaloupes Filled with Raspberries, Broiled Fresh Salmon, New Potatoes, Green Peas, Clover Leaf Rolls, Cucumber Salad, Toasted Crckers Vanilla Ice Cream with Crushed Strawberries, Sponge Cake.
Jellied Canned Tomato Soup, Broiled Lobsters, Stuffed Potatoes, Luncheon Rolls, Fresh Asparagus, Stuffed Green Pepper Salad, Cherry Pie."
---Good Housekeeping's Book of Good Meals, Katharine A. Fisher [Good Housekeeping:New York] 1927 (p. 238)

"Fourth of July Dinner: Pineapple Sherbet, Lemon Wafers, Escaloped Chicken, New Creamed Peas, Browned Potatoes, Vegetable Salad, Caramel Rolls, Frozen Custard, Lady Fingers, Iced Tea, Mints."
---The Farmer's Guide Cook Book, Laura E Shanks [Farmer's Guide:Huntington IN] 1927 (p. 184)

[1928]
"Patriotic Sandwich (for July Fourth). Make a filling of butter and canned red pimentos put through a sieve. Place between thin slices of white bread and tie with blue ribbon."
---Seven Hundred Sandwiches, Florence A. Cowles [Little, Brown, and Company:Boston] 1928 (p. 196)

[1929]
"Menu for July Fourth: Grapefruit Baskets, Boiled Salmon, Egg Sauce, Potato Balls, Green Peas, Finger Rolls, Cucumber Salad, Raspberrry Ice, Peanut Kisses, Coffee. Or, if we are planning to spend the day out of doors, we shall want a variety of sandwiches, cake and a cold beverage, together with fruit, a salad, &c., so suppose we give you a few sandwich suggestions and other recipes for the picnic basket. Picnic Sandwiches: Deviled Egg Sandwiches, Liverwurst Sandwiches, Nut Bread and Peanut Butter Sandwiches, Lettuce and Tomato Sandwiches, Chopped Chicken Sandwiches, Cream Cheese and Nut Sandwiches."
---"Independence Day Menus For Stay At Home Family Dinner or the Picnic Meal," Brooklyn Daily Eagle, July 2, 1929 (p. 25)
[NOTE: Recipes included: Sour Milk Chocolate Cake, Peanut Kisses, Fruit Cookies, Mint Julep (alcohol free, ginger ale base), Fruit Punch, Grape Juice Punch (White).]

[1932]
"Boys of St. Joseph's Home and School who had been dreaming for the past several weeks of a real outdoor 'weenie roast' on Independence Day awoke with saddened faces yesterday as they saw the rain. However, their disappointed expressions were soon turned to broad grins when they were told that the feast was to be held indoors. Absence of the odor of burning leaves and an improvised stove made with stones did not detract from the success of the celebration inside the home. The weenies, and there were hundreds of them, tasted just the same, the lads testified. The picnic was a revelation to a number of visitors. They saw a group of healthy, sturdy, real American boys who have been permitted to develop naturally under the guidance of the corps of Sisters of the Holy Cross."
---"St. Joseph's Home Holds Weenie Roast Despite Rain," Washington Post, July 5, 1932 (p. 4)

[1933]
"The Fourth of July has a way of becoming a holiday for everyone but mother unless she diverts the current. The children want picnics or parties, and father wants a good time. So does mother for that matter, only a good time is a bit more difficult or her because she is responsible for the food for family and friends who may drop in. Her good time depends on her forethought. She really can act with surprising ease as a magic combination hostess, mother and dispenser of favors. That is, she can if she plans the main dish or two she can prepare the day before, and if she buys plenty of paper plates, cups, glasses, napkins and so forth to do away with dishwashing and other service on what often proves to be a boiling hot day. To our grandmothers, Fourth of July meant lamb and green peas. Here is an adaptation of the menu Robinson Crusoe immortalized in wrestling it from the virgin soil of a South Sea isle: Jellied Lamb and Green Peas, Potato Chips, Isle of Cream Cheese in Strawberry Jam, Crusty Rolls, Chocolate Milk, Radishes, Olives, Loganberry and Vanillla Special."
---"Fourth of July Menus," Floris Culver Thompson, Christian Science Monitor, June 30, 1933 (p. 6)
[NOTE: recipes for Jellied Lamb and Green Peas, Isle of Cream Cheese in Strawberry Jam, Homeade Corned Beef, Potato Salad, Blueberry Cake, Salmon and Cucumber Loaf and Spaghetti and Mushrooms are included in this article.]

"Tomorrow's the Fourth, the Cousins are coming, and what shall we have for dinner? If you're stalking a red, white and blue color scheme, there are grand possibilities in the offing. To start with blue, the most difficult of the trio-apparently nature didn't intend us to eat much blue from the dearth of foods painted that hue. But we can approach blue in grape juice, blueberries, and a few such foods. Let's restrain ourselves from blending blue coloring with gelatins and such unreceptive mediums. As a rule we'll find the table accessories-dishes, glassware, flowers, or doilies best set off this color note. Red invites itself generously into menus in the form of baby beets, pimientos, dashes of paprika, red-skinned apples, cinnamon-candy-tinted apples and pears, red cabbage, tomato dishes, red radishes, pinky slices of ham and all sorts of cherries, berries and other rosy appetite tempters. In addition, there is always the convenient bottle of red coloring. White isn't hard to effect. But now for particulars. The following menu has been planned with one eye on the color scheme and the other on schemes for keeping mother out of the kitchen as much as possible during the holiday. Fourth of July Dinner: White Grape Cocktail with Raspberry Juice, Jellied Ham, Chantilly Potatoes, New Green Peas with Mint Sauce, Celery Aspic on Tomato Slices, Clover Refrigerator Rolls, Red Radish Roses and White Icicle Radishes, Pineapple and Cherry Refrigerator Cake, Iced Tea or Coffee. First, sweetened red raspberry juice poured over halved white grapes in stemmed sherberts and footed with small blue doilies will give the patriotic atmosphere without6 quite obliging the guests to stand up and salute. The jellied ham loaf and the refrigerator rolls may be prepared ahead of time and kept in the refrigerator. Garnish each slice of the jellied meat with a dainty sprig of parsley. Chantilly potatoes are simply glorified left-over mashed potatoes. Warm the mashed potatoes over a pan of hot water and whip a little hot milk into them. Pile four cups of these potatoes into a casserole and spread over them one-half cup of cream, beaten stiff, topped with one-half cup of grated cheese. Place the casserole in a hot oven and bake until the cheese is melted and the cream a delicate brown. Alternate the crdesip red radish roses with the long white icicle radishes on your prettiest relish plate. New green peas are minted by adding one-quarter cup of finely chopped mint leaves to a thin hot white sauce which is served over the cooked peas. Small round molds of lemon gelatin containing finely chopped celery and unmolded on large slices of red tomatoes form a delectable salad course. And, finally, mix plump red maraschino cherries into the pineapple refrigerator cake when you prepare it. Slice the cake crosswise so that the cherries will show and serve on blue paper doilies or on blue glass plates. Tip with snowy whipped cream."
---"Let Patriotic Colors Rule Holiday Menu," Mary Meade, Chicago Daily Tribune, July 3, 1933 (p. 11)

[1934]
"You can't have too many ideas for the Fourth of July picnic. Whether you go away or stay at home for the celebration, the food should be festive and tempting. Today, however, let's concentrate on the stay-at-home picnic. Set the scene under a big shade tree or on the screened porch, with a table for the food and a few comfortable porch chairs or cushions. Place at one end of the table, the paper napkins, plates and cups and just the necessary flat silver. Visualize a big salad bowl with a crisp vegetable salad, a tray of cold spreads and sliced meats for sandwich fillings, a cutting board holding all the necessary sliced bread and crackers to satisfy the biggest appetite, one hot casserole dish, if the day is not too warm and a big pot of hot coffee or pitcher of ice tea with a tray of paper cups close by. Dessert may be a big cake-brought out at the close of the meal, a big bowl of fresh fruit, a short cake or frozen dessert.
Porch Picnic Menu. Assorted breads, rye white, graham and finger rolls; assorted meats and spreads including salami cut in thin slices, spiced gold tongue, ground ham with grated pineapple and chopped walnuts spread, cream cheese and green pepper spread. Arrange on a chop or cold meat plate with the sliced meats around the edge and the spreads in the center. Salad bowl-Cucumbers, tomato quarters, head lettuce, radishes and celery dressed with French dressing. Arrange in large crockery or wooden bowl. Jelly and pickles. Bowls of creamed butter and mustard butter. Shoe string potatoes. Cocoanut cake with orange custard filling. Hot tea or coffee.
Porch Picnic Menu. Hot ham shortcake, pineapple and cucumber gelatin salad, ripe olives, cheese crackers, iced tea, raspberries and sliced bananas, ice box cookies."
---"Capital Kitchen: Here are Some Tempting Menus for July 4th 'Porch Picnics'," Susan Mills, Washington Post, July 2, 1934 (p. 13)
[NOTE: recipes for Hot Ham Shortcake and Creamed Ham are included.]

"Fourth of July...brings up the subject of picnics. For what's an Independence day if it means a lot of overcooked ladies and hours of extra labor in the kitchens, preparing feasts and foolishness...In keeping with this spirit of emancipation let's change the order of outgoing and make the sandwiches where and when we picnic, not stew over them at home. So make it a buy-it-as-you-go picnic and do it buffet style. Stop at the grocer's and supply yourself with butter, sliced bread or buns, cheese, jams, peanut butter, assorted cold meats, a jar of salad dressing, and a head of lettuce. A good delicatessen will furnish the salad or a few ingredients in the way of fresh vegetables or fruits may be poked into a bag and the salad made 'on location.'...
Dinner for Campfire Picnickers. Kabobs, Baked Potatoes, Toasted Rolls, Radishes, Pickles, Tomato and Lettuce Salad, Fresh Fruit, Crackers and Cheese, Coffee."
---"Fourth of July Picnic Needn't Shackle Cooks," Chicago Daily Tribune, July 2, 1934 (p. 19)
[NOTE: Recipes for Tuna Fish Sandwiches, Egg and Olive Sandwiches, Kabobs and baked campfire potatoes "wrapped in wet leaves, mud, or in wet grocery paper and bury them under the burned-down coals. Allow about an hour for baking medium sized potatoes."]

[1935]
"How about a July Fourth picnic? Here's a menu for twelve. Ham Loaf, Potato Salad, Assorted Sandwiches, Pickles, Radishes, Olives, Raspberry Ice Cream, Chocolate Cake, Fruit Cookies, Coffee, Iced Tea, Buttermilk."
---"Independence Day Picnic Planned by Miss Manners," Marian Manners, Los Angeles Times, July 2, 1935 (p. A6)

[1936]
"Going on a July 4th picnic? Then glance through this list for hits for your outing...First of all the equipment to be taken: 1. Plates, cups, napkins and 'silverware.' [Paper is the most practical material for the first three. 2. Salt, pepper, and sugar in shakers. 3. A vacuum bottle or two, depending on the menu. Soups, as well as hot or cold drinks ask to be 'vacuumed.' 4. A reliable can opener, bottle opener, and cork screw all in one. 5. A good sharp stainless steel knife. [Sure it's sharp?] A good sized tablespoon [long handled preferably] for stirring coffee or cocoa. 6. A stout pocket knife for cutting toasting wands-if you're fond of fire building and toasting is part of the program. 7. A long handled frying pan and fork, a kettle or coffee pot, a handy wire grill, and hot pan holders. 8. Toasting forks when nature does not supply the desired wands. 9. Such things as waterproof cushions, oil cloth luncheon sets, folding tables with attached seats, and so on if you want to be rather civilized on a picnic. Don't spoil the fun with too many highbrow gadgets, though."
---"Picnic Tips," Chicago Daily Tribune July 3, 1936 (p. 14)

"Independence Day Luncheon. You may, of course, expect warm weather for the Fourth and what could be more fun than to entertain with a picnic for your friends? Tell the each to bring one kind of food or, if you are ambitious, you take all of the lunch. Also, it is fun to make favors suitable to the day, fireworks, ideas and prizes for games, red, white, and blue lunch cloths and a flag of our country. Everyone will adore a small flag-raising with salute and allegiance. If any Girl or Boy Scouts are along they will attend to this ceremony for you. A portable phonograph will furnish music...July is the time of year when a wafer, a glass of tea, and a deck of cards just about fill the bill. But, as just a little food is required, that little must be extra good and attractively served. Above all, the whole process must be simple enough so that the hostess may be as cool as her guests. Had you ever noticed how patriotic our gardens are at this time? There are any number of red and blue flowers in many shades in bloom at this season...The food for this affair...is distinctly seasoned, good to look upon and so easily prepared. 'Firecrcackers' and 'sparkle' punch! Small individual jelly rolls wrapped in red celophane and a zippy fruit drink both make for a safe, sane, and noiseless Fourth! You may, in most cities, buy the small jelly rolls at about 60 cents a dozen. (Be sure they are made with red jelly.)

Firecrcacker Jelly Rolls
3 eggs, yolks and whites separated
1/2 cupful of sugar
1/2 teaspoonful of vanilla
1/4 teaspoonful of lemon extract
1/2 cupful of sifted pastry flour
1/8 teaspoonful of salt
Strawberry jelly
Beat egg whites until stiff; add sugar gradually, beating constantly. Beat egg yolks until thick and lemon colored, and fold in egg whites and flavoring, using long deep strokes. When well blended, fold in gradually the flour and salt, which have been sifted once together. Line the bottom of two 6- by 10-inch pans with wax paper. Pour in the batter to a depth of 1/4 inch. Bake ten minutes at 375 degrees F. Watch carefully, as it bakes quickly. Turn out quickly onto a damp cloth, trim crust from edges, and remove wax paper. Spread the strawberry jelly and roll up, starting at one side so that you have long, narrow rolls. Wrap up tightly in the cloth and let remain until cool. Cut each roll into three pieces, three inches long. Repeat recipe to make 12 individual rolls. It will cost in the neighborhood of 35 cents to make 12 rolls. When cool, wrap each roll in red Cellophane, twisting one end to simulate the fuse of the firecracker...Leave the other end open and trim close to the jelly roll shortly before serving. This will make them easier for the guests to unwrap. Serve each one on a white or glass dessert plate.

'Sparkler' Punch
(serves 12)
2 No. 2 cans pineapple juice
2 No. 2 cans of grapefruit juice
2 16-ounce bottles of ginger ale
Chill all the ingredients thoroughly, and mix just before serving. For a extra color touch use 'two-toned' ice cubes in each glass. 'Two-toned' ice cubes start out to be just ordinary ice cubbes. Proceed as usual, but when the ice 'shell' is formed in all the cubes take from the refrigerator and empty the remaining water from the tray. Tint this water with red vegetable coloring; fill up the ice 'shells' again and finish freezing. This gives a silvery red effect that is pleasing to the eye. The fruit juice costs 13 cens a can, the ginger ale 17 cents a bottle, brining the total cost for the punch to 90 cents. The total food cost for the 12 guests will be between $1.25 and $1.50. That's easy, too! Prizes may be wralled in white over red tissue, and tied with blue ribbonn. Incidentally, a gorgeous Roman candle makes an appropriate consolation prize!"
---Sunset's Hostes Handbook for Western Homes, Sunset Magazine [Lane Publishing:USA] 2nd edition, 1936 (p. 36-37)
[NOTE: A "No. 2 can" was 2 1/2 cups or 20 ounces.]

[1938]
"The summer beverage parade starts with the Fourth of July. A punch bowl suggests fun and hospitality. Knowing this the hostess will welcome the delicious Sunkist Iceberg Punch...It is suitable for holiday entertaining on July Fourth as well as on many other warm days not nationally celebrated. The tea infusion gives it a subtle flavor which guests will relish. The oranges and lemons proide the valuable and necessary fresh fruit juices. Fortunately California produces a bountiful supply of juicy Valencia orannges, therefore punch parties for patios and picnics are in order. Picnic Menu: Chicken Noodle Casserole, Olives, Celery, Radishes, Toato and Cucumber Salad, Lettuce Sandwiches, Cherry Pie, Sunkist Orange Punch.
Sunkist Iceberg Punch
2 cups boiling water
8 teaspoons jasmine tea
1 1/2 cups sugar
5 cups orange juice
1 cup lemon juice
2 quarts ice water, gingerale or charged water
1 quart Lemon Serbet
Orange slices and cherries or berries for garnish
Pour boiling water over tea. Steep 5 minutes. Strain and add sugar to warm liquid. Stir to dissolve sugar and cool. Add chilled fruit juices. Put in punch bowl Just before serving, add ice water or carbonated beverage. Garnish with orange slices and fresh cherries or berries. Float sherbet on top. This recipe makes 1 gallon and fills an ordinary punch bowl. Provides 32 small punch glasses."
---"Punch for Summer Parties," Betty Barclay, Philadelphia Tribune, June 30, 1938 (p. 14)

[1939]
"Hyde Park (N.Y.)...On the shaded lawn of a field stone cottage on their family estate, President and Mrs. Roosevelt gave a typical Fourth of July picnic today for nearly fourscore guests. Mrs. Roosevelt superintended the broiling of hot dogs over an open fire and their distribution in quantities, and moved busily about the tables set under evergreen and birch trees, seeing to it that plates were well filled and that the guests were enjoying themselves...In addition to hot dogs, the picnic punch provided Boston baked beans, cold meats and lettuce and tomato salad, watermelon, coffee, soft drinks and beer."
---"Roosevelts Serve Hot Dogs at Fourth of July Picnic," Los Angles Times, July 5, 1939 (p. 3)
[NOTE: In June of 1939, the Roosevelts served hot dogs to the King and Queen of England.]

[1940]
"This particular year we are probably going to celebrate Independence day more thoroughly than in the past several years. If not at the club or a restaurant, right in the home with a very special Day for this very special cake.
Independence Day Cake
2 cups sifted cake flour
2 teaspoons double-acting baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2/3 cup of butter or other shortening
2 egg yolks, well beaten
1/3 cup milk
teaspoon vanilla
3 egg whites, stiffly beaten.
Sift flour once, measure, add baking powder and salt and sift together three times. Cream butter thoroughly, add sugar gradually and cream together until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks and beat well; add flour alternately with milk, a small amount at a time, beating after each addition until smooth. Add vanilla, fold in egg white. Bake in two greased 9-inch layer pans in moderate oven (375 degrees F.) 25 to 30 minutes. Cover tops and sides of cake with Pink Frosting. Decorate around base of cake with Fourth f July ornaments.
Pink Frosting
2 egg whites, unbeaten
1 ½ cups sugar
5 tablespoons water
1 ½ teaspoons light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
Combine egg whites, sugar, water and corn syrup on top of double boiler, beating with rotary egg beater until thoroughly mixed. Place over rapidly boiling water, beat constantly with rotary egg beater, and cook 7 minutes, or until frosting will stand in peaks. Remove from boiling water, add vanilla and beat until thick enough to spread. Add coloring to hot frosting to give a delicate shell-pink tint. Just a tiny speck of coloring on the end of a knife, or a few drops of liquid coloring is enough."
---"Independence Day Cake," Frederick News Post [MD], July 3, 1940 (p. 9)

[1942]
"The Fourth of July traditionally has been the occasion for the grownups to put the children into the family car and start out to visit the folks down on the farm, or to take a picnic lunch to the dunes or just stay at home with a pitcher of lemonade and enough firecrackers to annoy the neighbors and endanger the children's arms and eyes...But this year times have changed. This year the family is too busy fighting a war to keep the nation which grew from those 13 states free of oppression to take a day off. In many cases, father, mother and even the older children are giving up their celebration to stay at their machines turning out tanks, guns and bullets. Brother in the army won't get home this Fourth and the home front stands firm behind him. Bathing suits hand limply in the closet, as Chicago lathes, drill presses and forges roar out the victory tune. On Saturday at the Stewart-Werer plant, 1218 Diversey Parkway, thousand so workers and the officials will work to fill vital orders for the nation's armed forces, under a poster proclaiming 'Every minute I Waste Is a Help to the Enemy.' Quietly, with no fanfare, these Americans are doing their share in the war effort. 'We're going to have a real celebration-- we're going to work harder all day. There's no time for a ceremony, for we're just getting into the rhythm now,' thus George F. Thomas, plant superintendent, described the factory's plans for the holiday."
---"W-o-r-k Spells Fourth of July at Arms Plant," Chicago Daily Times, June 28, 1942 (p. N1)

"The Fourth of July always means food, and plenty of it, usually connected with a rousing good picnic. Altho ham is not mentioned on the list of best buys, you'll find it featured in all the groceries for the holiday. It seems to be quite a favorite. It ranges in price from almost moderate to substantially high, depending upon the cut you want. Qhole hams cost less than portions, and the butt end is higher priced than the shank end. You may obtain cooked hams for not too high a price. Sliced ham, however, is expensive. If you're just going to stay at home to enjoy the Fourth, you may wish to take advantage of a bargain in rib roast of beef or beef pot roast, or buy one of them for Sunday dinner. Some stores in the city offer a pork loin roast priced not too high. Other markets have boneless corned beef brisket and boneless stewing beef in the moderate range. One economy piece of meat is plate boiling beef. Chicken giblets are offered at some stores very moderately, but the chicken livers alone cost considerably more. You'll be paying a few cents a pound more for choice sirloin and porterhouse steaks this week-end than customary. Skinless frankfurters are being featured by some stores for a moderate price, and assorted cold meat cuts remain moderately high. Fish prices are rather high for the holiday week-end, with the Selkirk whitefish, a Canadian variety, and yellowpike being the only moderately priced ones for now. Somewhat higher than these two are lake trout, whitefish, yellow perch, halibut, and shrimp. All will probably cost less after the Fourth. You'll probably leave the fruit and vegetable markets with an overloaded basket. The red and black raspberries alone are enough to make your mouth water. The red are higher priced than the black. There are luscious red plums, some moderate, the Formosa variety, some higher in price, Santa Rosa being the choicest. Strawberries, alas, are almost out of season, with the best of them being only fair in quality. But blueberries, tho still high, are becoming more plentiful. Sweet cherries tempt you with their red or deep, almost purple coloring. Bing cherries are more plentiful than the other kinds. Peaches are a trifle lower, and you can now obtain freestones as well as the clingstones which are large and red cheeked. Cantaloupe and honeyball and honeydew melons are all reasonably priced. Watermelons are lower than they have been and are plentiful. New green apples are a trifle lower, while the good quality old apples mount in price. Grapefruit also is high. Nectarines and figs now are available tho expensive. There are a few currants on the market, priced about the same as cherries per box, and gooseberries are available quite reasonably. Gooseberries must share rhubarb's lack of attention because they, too, require so much of our precious sugar. Lemons and limes are moderate, and oranges have come down a bit in price. Brown skinned avocados look like a worthwhile buy. Besides the best buys listed in vegetables, asparagus is moderate, and in the smaller asparagus is really cheap. Broccoli from California, carrots, caulflower, and celery are all moderate. The quality of cauliflower is mostly good. Corn still holds its rather high price, and egg plant is scarce. Altho cucumbers have risen slightly, they're moderately priced just the same. Since iceberg lettuce costs a little more, you might try reasonable endive or escarole. Alternates for moderately high spinach are mustard greens and turnip tops. Green peppers are moderate, dry onions are cheap, and bunch turnips and white squash are reasonable. Acorn and yellow squash are relatively expensive, and both green peas and mushrooms demand a high price."
---"Favorite Picnic Foods Featured for 4th of July," Mary Meade, Chicago Daily Tribune, July 3, 1942 (p. 12)

[1943]
"July 4 Porch Supper. Pickles, Olives, Radishes, Platter of sliced cold meats, Au gratin potatoes, Tomato aspic with cottage cheese, Strawberry shortcake with whipped cream, Coffee."
---Lily Wallace New American Cook Book, Lily Haxworth Wallace [Books, Inc.:New York] 1943 (p. 850)

[1944]
"Hints for a Festive Fourth of July. Consider a buffet dinner...These foods are simple to serve, indoors or out...
Red, White and Blue Breakfast: Red Raspberries or Sweet Cherries, Cooked Cream of Wheat and Whole Milk, Blueberry Muffins, Butter or Fortified Margarine, Coffee and Milk.
Pack This as a Picnic Lunch: Fried Chicken, Potato Salad, relishes (Carrot strips, tomato wedges, pickles), Buttered Whole Grain Bread Sandwiches, Buttered Baked Brow Bread Sandwiches, Sandwiches of Lettuce on Enriched White Bread, Inexpensive Cocoa Cake, Coffee and Milk.
Serve This 'Company Dinner'! Fried Chicken with Gravy, Creamed or Buttered New Potatoes with New Peas or Parsley Potatoes Pickles, Snappy Cole Slaw, Baking Powder Biscuits, Economy Ice Cream with Fresh Red Raspberry Sauce, Coffee or Milk.
Decorate the Table: Have a centerpiece of American or United Nations flags--or use an arrangement of red, white and blue garden flowers. For place decorations stick red or blue birthday candles into marshmallows. Or stick small American flags into marshmallows, cookies or cupcakes."
---Health For Victory Meal Planning Guide, July 1944 (p. 21)

[1947]
"Box luncheons neatly packed with sandwiches and cake, or more elaborately, with half a broiled chicken and vegetable salad, may be helpful to many Fourth of July excursionists whether their trip is by car, train, plane, boat or via subway to a cool picnic spot near by. The Schrafft stores among the places here, where prepared lunches are available. In a special carton that opens to make an individual tray, Schrafft's offers any one of eight different combinations ranging in price from 85 cents to $1.50. For example, selection No. 1 consists of chicken and fresh vegetable salad, queen olives, sweet pickles, potato chips, buttered finger rolls and apple pie. Napkins and other equipment are included, all for $1.50. You may leave your thermos bottle at the store, and it will be filled with a hot or iced drink. It's best to order the day before, although for simple sandwich combinations you may call up before 10 A.M. of the day that you wish them. There is no delivery, but many Schrafft stores will be open July 4-twelve in Manhattan, one in the Bronx, two in Brooklyn, one in Newark, one in New Rochelle and one in White Plains...Just because you live in a hotel room with no facilities for making sandwiches doesn't mean that you can't have a picnic on the Fourth. The Cookery, 947 Madison Avenue, makes up a special basket with a pie like a hat box. The price depends on what you order. It may be sandwiches (turkey, ham, etc.) or fried chicken, a slice of home-made chocolate cake, cole slaw, etc. Or if you're stumped for ideas the Cookery has a number of interesting suggestions. For one thing the store makes its own ice cream, which it packs in dry ice to go along on the trip. Paper spoons and forks are provided too...For people who are going to spend the week-end at a country cottage, the Casserole King, 782 Madison Avenue, assembles a picnic basket that will relieve them of most of the cooking for the entire time they are there. Casseroles of beef a la mode or roast turkey...Or you may order cold dishes that won't require any warming up if you prefer. With these main courses come a mixed green salad and French rolls. The price is about $1.95 a person. Soup and desserts are offered for an additional 30 to 35 cents a portion." ---"News of Food: Neatly Packed Box Luncheons Available to Fourth of July Excursion Parties,"
New York Times, July 2, 1947 (p. 20)
[NOTE: Article ends with this tidbit: "The first sizable shipment of Swiss cheese since the war [50 tons], unloaded form a liner yesterday, is scheduled to pass through customs."]

[1948]
"For that immortal masterpiece, the Declaration of Independence, we have a birthday celebration every year on the Fourth of July. It is one day on which it is well to think about what freedom means. Hunt up a copy of the Declaration of Independence and take time to read it through. Gather around the piano and sing The Battle Hymn of the Republic and My Country, 'Tis of Thee as they should be sung. From these great and beautiful words of the past renew the courage and the conviction that our forefathers had. And for the menu of such a birthday dinner give a little thought to those days. Life wasn't just red-white-and-blue bunting and paper napkins then. There are a thousand books I suppose, written and being written about our colonial beginnings. What they wore, what they ate, those aristocrats of our early days. And without waiting another minute I may tell you that they did themselves well. Such royal Dresden china, such superb linens, the magnificence of their mahogany...Menu: Ham Whets ham salad on toast canapes], Broiled Salmon, Sauce Verte, Pease, Watermelon Pickles, Pickled Walnuts, Whigs, Geranium Jelly, Dressed Saad, Blancmange With Fruit, Poundcake, Tea."
---"For Freedom's Birthday," Ann Batchelder, Ladies Home Journal, July 1948 (p. 59-59, 130)

"Traditional food for the Fourth of July feast varies somewhat in different parts of the country. The correct menu in some parts of New England, particularly around Boston, is fresh salmon, new peas and potatoes. Strawberry shortcake is served for dessert. In the Midwest, when we were growing up there, the big ice cream freezer (operated by boys or man power) was put into use on the Fourth. Ice had been cut from the pond during the winter and stored in sawdust in our own icehouse and we made ice cream for the first time on Independence Day. Long tables were set up on the lawn for this early summer family festival. Great platters of crisp fried chicken, baked ham from our smokehouse, big bowls of pale, green coleslaw, stuffed eggs, and mother's finest coconut layer cake all were certain to appear."
---"Fourth of July Maintains Traditions in Feasting," Marian Manners, Los Angeles Times July 4, 1948 (p. D5)
[NOTE: Recipes for Orange Honey Ham and Betsy Ross Cake (made with white cake mix and packaged vanilla pudding) included.]

"Watermelon is, as usual, a Fourth-of-July special for this week-end. Nut there won't be as much of the fruit around as there was a year ago. The Florida season, which started early this spring, is about over the Georgia and South Carolina, now the principal sources, report crops as much as 50 per cent smaller than those of last summer...One of the most plentiful varieties on the market is the Tom Watson. It's Maple green in color, and shaped like an overgrown sausage."
---"News of Food: Some Last-Minute Ideas on Gadgets for 4th of July Picnics and Campfires," New York Times, July 1, 1948 (p. 20)

[1949]
"The color scheme is easy--red, white, and blue. The menu--a little more difficult. So choose one of these delightful menus. It should go over with a bang! Somebody's Birthday: Fourth-of-July Coconut Cake, Strawberry Ice Cream, Starred Pop [blue paper stars taped on top of each bottle of soda pop]. A Family Affair: Cold Sliced Roast Beef, Whole Red Ripe Tomatoes, Hot Corn on the Cob, Potato Chips, Rye Bread and Butter, A Slice of Each--Blueberry Pie, Cherry Pie. Picnic Style. Baskets especially designed for carrying pies are now on the market. Or serve Devil's-Food Cake and a bowl of chilled ripe cherries. Carry corn in pot in which you'll cook it...Watermelon Guzzle. Food. Watermelon--that's all. Equipment. Sharp knife, salt shakers. Planning. Watermelons are both food and drink--which makes life simple for the hostess. Serve them chilled, or to be eaten in noonday heat. Or make them the high spot of an evening party...A Clambake--Indoors or Out. The clambake--perfect for the Fourth--has been handed down from the Indians through several generations of New Englanders..."
---"Entertaining on the Fourth," Good Housekeeping, July 1949 (p. 116)

[1950]
"Fourth of July was a day for community celebration till the automobile broke up the crowd and hurried each family away for its own private partying. The gathering used to be big; so was the menu and, apparently, the appetites. Forty-five years ago today, at the first Independence Day dinner of Atlantic City's new Traymore Hotel, guests sat down to a meal that stands in colossal contrast to the sandwich-with-beer of today's picnic. Somewhat abbreviated, the bill of fare follows-and do not ask this column how Blue Point oysters and venison were procured in July:
Choice of: Blue point oysters, Little neck clams, Cream soup, Consomme, Olives, Radishes, Nuts, Choice of: Filet of sole, Smoked tongue, Choice of: Roast beef, Roast lamb, Roast duck, Potatoes, Carrots, Choice of: Venison, Soft-shell crabs, Punch, Squab, Sliced tomatoes, Lettuce, Choice of : Steamed pudding, Huckleberry pie, Orange cream pie, Fruits, Cheese, Wafers, Coffee.
---"News of Food: Resounding Patriotism and Colossal Eating Made Old-Time Fourth Expansive Occasion," New York Times, July 4, 1950 (p. 9)

"It's the custom in New England to serve cold salmon steaks on the Fourth of July. No one know where it started, or why, but the custom is spreading to all parts of the country. Perhaps the color was responsible, but we think it more likely that it's because salmon fishing is at its height in July."
---"Cold Salmon Steak Becomes a Fourth of July Tradition," Mary Meade, Chicago Daily Tribune, June 12, 1950 (p. D5)
[NOTE: Recipes for Cold Salmon Steaks and Quick Chocolate Mousse follow.]

[1955]
"Progressive Fourth of July (each course served in a different garden): Steamed Clams (with butter sauce, clam broth in paper cups, crisp crackers, Barbecued Salmon Steaks, Grilled Best Corn Ever, Olive Coleslaw, Blueberry Pie with Spiced Sour Cream, Hot Coffee (instant)."
---Good Housekeeping Cook Book, Dorothy Marsh editor [Good Housekeeping Institute:New York] 1955 (p. 600)

[1956]
"Fourth of July Brunch. Tomato Juice with Olive Kabobs, Date-Filled French Toast with Bacon, Choice of Syrups, Milk, Coffee.
Date-Filled French Toast with Bacon: Spread 4 bread slices with 2 3-oz. pkg cream cheese. Top with 1 6 1/4 o. pkg. pitted dates, snipped, then with 4 bread slices. In a pie plate, mix 2 eggs, 1/3 cup milk, 1/4 teasp. salt; into this, dip both sides of each sandwich. Brown sandwiches on both sides in 14 cup hot butter in skillet. Meanwhile, start heating oven to 400 degrees F. Separate 12 bacon slices; place on rack in shallow pan. Bake 12 min., or until crisp; use to garnish toast. Makes 4 servings."
---"Book of 50 Special Summer-Menu Surprises," Good Housekeeping, July 1956 (p. 87)
[NOTE: Rge recipe above is the "surprise" element of this menu.]

[1957]
"Declare your independence from plain fare this year. Serve a fancy broiled steak with a tangy sauce. Juicy, thick, broiled steak will make any Uncle Sam doff his high silk hat. It's the No. 1 choice for cook-outs...corn runs a close second. If there's enough of these two foods, very little else needs to be added to keep everyone on a Fourth of July picnic as happy as a firecracker. The steak-out menu pictured-2 inch-thick steaks on the charcoal grill, fresh corn on the cob in the blue bowl, and assorted raw relished, is the kind of picnic men like. They like to cook it as well as to eat it. So, if you're planning a family get-together for the Fourth, plant, plan a steak-out. See if the head of the house doesn't volunteer his services as chief cook. And if he needs any pointers, you can brief him on the secrets of success of any steak-out-thick-cut steaks, proper seasonings and the right kind of fire. Porterhouse, sirloin, rib or club steaks are all good for outdoor open-fire cooking. Some of the less expensive cuts, such as prime grade top round and rump, will come out quite well if they are marinated. Allow ¾ to 1 pound of steak per person for hearty appetites. And have steaks cut thick for broiling. A lemon butter sauce, its rich flavor heightened by the addition of Tabasco's subtle pepper piquancy, makes a perfect spread for steak, and it goes equally well with corn..."
---"Steak if Fancy Fare for This Week's Fourth of July," Elinor Lee, Washington Post and Times Herald, July 2, 1957 (p. C1)
[NOTE: Recipes for Tabasco sauce for Steak, Tabasco Butter, Zesty Tomato Spread, Mustard Hamburger or Steak Spread, Steak Marinade, Foil Broiled Steak and Corn on the Coals are included.]

[1959]
"What's more fun than a Fourth of July picnic? Two Fourth of July picnics--one for the adults and one for the children! Most small-fry like to eat picnic chow seated on a spot of shady grass, unhampered by knife, fork or spoon. But by the time people are mommies or daddies, a chair is mightly comfortable and finger-food has lost a lot of appeal. So if you're planning a large picnic for family and friends this Fourth, why not divide the youngsters from the oldesters. Pack box lunches for the children and send them down to that big shade tree at the far end of the garden. Serve the adults, buffet style, on the terrace. That's what the Shoreham Hotel is doing Saturday, at its picnic for some 150 house-party guests...Since an old fashioned, grand and glorious Fourth picnic was never complete without fried chicken, executive chef, Edward Dziura has made it thee main item for both picnic menus. And since Hawaii is receiving a special salute (along with Alaska) at the Fourth of July fireworks display at Washington Monument, Eddie says his fried chicken--and a few other dishes on the picnic menu--will go Hawaiian...there will be deviled eggs, ham sandwiches, tuna fish sandwiches, apples and bananas...a large crock of pink lemonade...a tray of cup-cakes iced in red, white and blue, and arranged in the shape of a flag... On the buffet, will be large platters of Fried Chicken Hawaiian, and Corn Fritters, Island Style; Shoreham Potato Salad--nothing Hawaiian about that but what's a picnic without potato salad--Boston lettuce, tomato and cucumber salad with a choice of dressings; and Dessert Polynesian."
---"Double Up on Picnis for Fourth of July Fun," Winzola McLendon Washington Post and Times Herald, July 1, 1959 (p. C2)
[NOTE: recipes for Fried Chicken Hawaiian (featuring coconut, not pineapples), Corn Fritters Island Style (with pineapple) and Shoreham Potato Salad (with sour cream) included.]

[1960]
"London, July 4-It was just like a Fourth of July back home, almost! The American sergeants who run Douglas house, a club for enlisted airmen in London, wondered if some of their 50,000 mates in Britain might be homesick for a real Independence day picnic. They started asking and soon 8,000 names were on the list. So the sergeants borrowed, from London county council, Battersea gardens with its amusement park, or 'fun fair' as the English call it. They ran up Old Glory over the entrance and put a big sign saying 'chow' over the biggest tea pavilion. They scattered 8,000 balloons about. There were star spangled paper hats and tiny American flags. They rolled in trucks with 21,000 hot dobs, a little less than a ton of potato salad, and almost as much baked beans. They roasted sides of beef and park. They borrowed the air force's biggest refrigerated truck and filled it with 21,600 cans of American beer. At noon they threw open the gates. In an hour and a half, 8,000 had arrived and still they came. The sergeantsrushed back for new supplies. American airmen came from all over England. They brought their wives, children, aunts, and dogs. A band played. In little groups the families spread over the lawn. They talked and ate and slept. The kids ran about. They all rode the ferris wheel and had fun on the roller coaster even though it was called the big dipper...Yes, it was almost like a Fourth of July picnic back home, except there was no ball game, the amplified music was interrupted now and then for cricket scores, and O, the shame of it all-on the top of the pole from which old glory flaunted its 50 stars so proudly was a golden royal English crown."
---"GIs celebrate Fourth at Big London Picnic," Arthur Veysey, Chicago Daily Tribune, July 5, 1960 (p. A4)

[1964]
"The World's fair celebrated the Fourth of July yesterday in the traditional manner, with fireworks, the ringing of bells, patriotic words, singing, dancing and a program by the Boy Scouts...At the Festival '64 Restaurant in the Gas Pavilion, George Lang, director of the restaurant, came up with a meal served by Abigail and John Adams at their home July 4, 1776. Actually, the Adams family first served this meal in 1773...The menu consisted of green turtle soup, New England poached salmon with egg sauce and apple pan dowdy. Mr. Lang offered the same menu yesterday for $6.75."
---"Fourth of July Glorious as Usual, But Especially Glorious at Fair," New York Times, July 5, 1964 (p. 44)

"Fourth of July Party. This is the perfect day for a children's parade and a picnic...Menu: Favorite Fancy Franks, Pink Eggs and Pickled Beets, Potato Chips, Icy Watermelon Wedges, Brownie S'Mores...Patriotic Birthday Party. Paper axes for place cards on a red-white-and-blue tablecloth...Menu; Baked Ham Slices, Potato Chips, Sweet Pickles, Carrot Sticks, Buttered Rolls, Star Cake, Cold Milk with Peppermint Sticks."
---Betty Crocker's Parties for Children, Lois M. Freeman [Golden Press:New York] 1964 (p. 160)

[1965]
"A Fourth of July Picnic. This is a far cry from the old-time picnics with the traditional fried chicken, homemade potato salad and all the provender of the early 1910's and 1920's. Here, were are going to be unorthodox and elegant. If you begin with chilled champagne, continue with it thoughout the meal. Or serve a white wine cassis followed with a very young Boujolais, lighty chilled. With the drinks serve small frankfurters (if you have a means of heating them) and crisp rolls. Or serve a fine bologna and liverwurst and crisp rolls. Pass hot mustard and salad mustard. Tiny Frankfurters and Crisp Rolls, Cold Lobster with Spicy Mayonnaise, Glazed Fillet of Beef, Rice Salad, Vegetable Salad, Cherry Tomatoes, Pumpernickel Bread and Butter Sandwiches, Homemade Bread with Garlic Butter, Glenna McGinnis Lane Cake, Fresh Strawberries or Raspberries with Kirsch."
---James Beard's Menus for Entertaining, James Beard [Dell Trade Paperback:New York] 1965 (p. 319-320)

[1966]
"A Buffet for July Fourth. Salmon in Aspic, Green Mayonnaise, Stuffed Hard-Cooked Eggs, Rice and Peas Salad, Romaine and Boston Lettuce, Corn Bread, Molasses Walnut Pie, Iced Tea, Beer, Champagne.
"A Dinner for July Fourth. Chilled Salmon Bisque, Cucumber Spread, Toast Rounds, Chicken Loaf Nivernaise, New Potatoes with Parsley, Asparagus Vinaigrette, Peaches Romanoff."
---New York Times Menu Cook Book, Craig Claiborne [Harper & Row:New York] 1966 (p. 49)

"For a Yankee Doodle Supper for the Fourth, take a tip from the U.S. Navy and serve Chili Mac and Cucumber and Sour Cream Salad. These two new recipes are featured in a suggested July 4th menu in the July issue of Navy Food Service, a publication of the Navy Subsistence Office. The menu includes Beef Julienne Soup with crackers, Chili Mac, Buttered Green Beans, Cucumber and Sour Cream Salad, hard rolls and butter, and for dessert Cherry Pie a la Mode with a choice of coffee, iced tea, or milk. The recipe for Chili Mac was submitted by the USS Madera County (LST-905). The other new recipe, crisp Cucumber Salad comes from the NAS Miramar. These recipes will be included in a future revision of the Navy-Marine Corps Recipe Service, according to Mary Dwyer, head of the Program Branch, Navy Food Service Division. Miss Dwyer says that Navy recipes are always written in 100 portion size. But for the benefit of landlubbers who might like to try them, she has broken down...to 10-portion size...
Chili Mac (10 portions)
2 1/4 lbs. ground beef
3/4 cup onions, chopped
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/4 teaspoons pepper
1 1/4 cups macaroni (elbow)
2 1/2 cups tomato puree
3/4 cup tomatoes, canned
3/4 tablespoon chili powder
Cook beef, onions, salt and pepper in skillet over low heat until browned. Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain. Add tomato puree, tomatoes, macaroni and chili powder to browned meat. Simmer 30 minutes. Makes 10 portions, 1 cup each."
---"Yankee Doodle Dandy," Washington Post, June 30, 1966 (p. C13)
[NOTE: Happy to send the Cucumber and Sour Cream Salad upon request.]

[1968]
"One of the fascinating aspects of charcoal cookery is the undaunted zest with which most outdoor chefs approach their task. The man who normally shuns pots and pans and who couldn't find the pilot light on a gas range achieves a ramrod self-assurance standing before a backyard brazier The irony is that charcoal grilling, in theory at least, has far more variables than a kitchen range. But with all its pitfalls a sturdy firebox is the greater adventure, aand it is reasonable to assume that more charcoal will be burned this Fourth of July weekend than in any other comparable period of the year. Popular grilling depends on many factors, and it is best done on a spot well sheltered from the wind. Food cooks slowly or rapidly, depending on the itensity of the charcoal heat and the priximity of the coals to the food. But whatever the factors and whatever the results--and heaven knows they vary from grill to grill--the out-of-doors does whet the appetite. Even burnt offerings seem to have something going for them. Here is a sampling of recipes for Indpendence Day weekend. There are drinks and appetizers and two for the grill--striped bass with rosemary and a chili-flavored hamburger."
---"It's Fourth of July and That's an Occasion for a Barbecue," Craig Claiborne New York Times, July 4, 1968 (p. 20)
[NOTE: recipes for Diana Kennedy's Ceviche (Pickled raw fish), Grilled Chili Burgers, Hot Potato Salad with Herbs, Orange Frappe, Sanrgrita and Salty Dog follow.]

[1970]
"A Fourth of July picnic is as traditional as Uncle Sam's striped trousers. Ever since July 4, 1776 when the Continental Congress approved the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia, palate-pleasing collations have been as much a part of the festivities as parades, patriotic speeches and pyrotechnics...This year's Honor America Day celebration in the Nation's Capital will feature Dr. Billy Graham, Bob Hope, a Walt Disney production, band concerts and a display of fireworks on the Washington monument grounds...good food is a must for the Fourth. Why not plan both an indoor and outdoor meal? Then you'll be ready for rain or shine...Grilled Dill Steak is a new and easy-to-prepare variation. A 2-inch-thick slice of top raound or flank steak (London Broil) is marinated overnight in a tanngy sauce of sliced dill pickles, olive oil, garlic and pickle liquid...Served with baked potatoes or corn on the cob (wrapped in foil and grilled over the charcoal), and plenty of pungent pickles cut into fan-shape with inserts of thinly sliced carrots, this meal will pamper palates. Or if smoke gets in your eyes and you prefer a porch or patio picnic, try our alternate choice: Planked Beef Fiesta. This is just ground beef patties glamorized with bright toppings and duchess potatoes. Vegetable cole slaw with creamy dressing, buttered green beans, french bread and butter, milk and Strawberry Dessert Mold complete the menu that's high in flavor and food value but moderate in cost."
---"A Glorious Fourth," Elinor Lee, Washigton Post, July 1, 1970 (p. D1)

[1971]
"A typical Fourth of July picnic involves sending husband or teenage son to the local chicken house for fried chicken and ptato salad and then slicing tomatoes and a watermelon. For the slighty more energetic, fresh sweet corn can be cooked and slathered with butter. Dull? Maybe so, but good. Traditional? Almost as traditional as you can be, except for New Englanders or Pacific Northwesterners who remember fresh salmon and green peas from some dim Fourth in the past. The 1971 fried chicken menu beats any picnic for ease...But for the picnic host or hostess who likes to cook or is bored with the same old fare might choose another route,. We've designed two menus to provide a change for the Fourth of July...Turkey Picnic: Celery, Cucumber Dip, Hefty Turkey Sandwiches, Potato Chips, Apricots, Sugar Cookies...Glorious Picnic: Cold Meat Platter Onnion Tart, French Bread Flutes, Fruit and Cheese Tray.'
---"Easy-Does-it Cookery Makes 4th of July Picnicking a Breeze,' Jeanne Voltz, Los Angeles Times, July 1, 1971 (p. I1)

[1972]
"To celebrate the Fourth of July, many Westerners traditionally plan a family or neighborhood gathering. Barbecued chicken with hearty accompaniments will feed a hungry dozen or more. For visiting vacationers, we suggest a refreshing Scandinavian-style supper you can assemble quickly. Or is family members have departed for camp or summer jobs, and Italian-style dinner for two might be the order of the day...
Fourth of July barbecue: Assorted Raw Vegetables, Grilled or Spit-Roasted Chicken, Macaroni Salad, Parmesan Buttermilk Rolls, Butter, Lemonade, Iced Tea, Ice Cream, Assorted Sundae Toppings...
Scandinavian-style supper: Appetizer-Salad Board, Creamed Scallops with Grapes, Patty Shells or Hot Cooked Rice, Fresh Fruit Tray, Cookies...
Italian-style dinner for two: Veal Strips with Artichokes, Buttered Green Noodles, Sliced Tomatoes and Avocado, Oil and Vinegar Dressing, Bread Sticks or Crusty Rolls, Butter, Melon Wedges with Fresh Lime."
---"July Menus," Sunset, July 1972 (p. 104-109)

[1975]
"With a can of Miller High Life beer in his hand, United States envoy George Bush presided over an Independence Day picnic that broke the Peking diplomatic community's tradition of staid national day celebrations. About 500 guests gathered on the lawn in front of the U.S. liaison office for hot dogs, beer, soft drinks and recordings by singers Johnny Cash and John Denver. Although a few diplomatic eyebrows were raised, Bush's party was a hit with the majority of the guests- diplomats, journalists, American visitors and the Chinese guests who happily consumed the drinks and food flown in for the occasion. Attired in fire-engine red slacks and a blue golf shirt, Bush awarded door prizes to half a dozen guests. Most guests later attended a showing of the American movie 'That's Entertainment.'"
---"Beer and Hot Dogs in Peking on the 4th," Washington Post, July 5, 1975 (p. A9)

[1976: America's Bicentennial]
New York City's Windows on the World opened its doors on floor 107 of the World Trade Center's North Tower.

"Birthdays, holidays and other rites give life the diamond-shine of legend. They are a time to pause, to mark, to reconsider. And also to celebrate; joy and sentiment are the absolutes! This July fourth, at exactly 2 P.M. EDT, our entire nation will burst into bell-song. In Philadelphia, exactly two centuries to the minute after it pealed its original message of independence, the repaired Liberty Bell with again sound the call. Simultaneously, churches, schools, town halls, fire stations and homes--wherever there is a bell or carillon--will join in the joyful noise for two glorious minutes. Listen to the bells. They are tolling for you, and for the beginning of the third century of our American nation...Happy Bicentennial, America. Your citizens sometimes treat you shabbily, focusing on your faults and failures. Your media dwell too much on the disparities and not enough on the unity. It is time for a Bicentennial celebration, to reach down under the cynical glaze. A familiar flag ripples on its pole, and evokes deep memories. The ringing of the bells reverberates within the chambers of the heart. A child stands, awed and silent, before the Lincoln Memorial, and we are all caught in the web of continuity. Happy Birthday, America. May we all find our own way to celebrate--with joy and with pride. ---"The Art of Celebration: Ringing In A Joyous Bicentennial," Ladies' Home Journal, July 1976 (p. 67) [NOTE: this issue offers two food features from Sue B. Huffman, Food Editor: (1) "In Love With Strawberries," recipes: Dips for Fresh Strawberries, Strawberry Bavarian, Strawberry-Rose Mold, Strawberry Meringues, Dieter's Delight, Strawberry Wine Bowl, Strawberry Ice, Strawberry Shortcake & Strawberry Tart. (2) "Picnic Salads," recipes for Sweet 'N' Sour Cole Slaw, Szechwan Broccoli and Beef Salad, Tuna-Lime Bean Salad, Macaroni and Salami Salad, Health Salad, Salad Russe, Tarragon-Green Bean Salad & Italian Cheese Salad.---(p. 72-88).]

"Vichyssoise, Broiled Salmon Steaks with Dill Butter, Parsleyed Potatoes, Butter-Steamed Peas, Tomato Aspic, Luncheon Rolls, Watermelon Bombe, Napa Fume Blanc '74."
---"Fourth of July Luncheon," Gourmet, July 1976 (p. 48-54)

"Fourth of July Picnic: Old-fashioned food at its best, with all the traditional picnic favorites, from homemade relish to home-baked pie....Pineapple-Glazed Baked Ham, Oven -Fried Turkey Strips, Corn Relish, Potato Salad, Braised Pepper Salad, Anadama Bread, Buttermilk Chocolate Cake, Pecan Pie, Watermelon, Milk, Lemonade, Peanuts...Backyard Barbecue: Fun and easy for the whole family because everyone can help grill the chicken and potatoes, make the homemade ice cream. Deviled Barbecue Chicken, Fried Potato Wedges, Corn on the Cob, Tossed Green Salad with Sliced Radishes, Homemade Banana-Nut Ice Cream, Iced Tea...Picnic for Two: Simple little pack-up-and-go picnic with the romantic loaf-of-bread, jug-of-wine tradition. Salmon Loaf with Creamy Dill Sauce, Caesar Rice Salad, Sesame Crackers, Cucumber Squares, Cantaloupe Wedges, Bol Paese Cheese, Thermos of Coffee, Wine: Pinot Blanc."---(p. 92-101) [NOTE: this issue also reprints selected recipes from Charlotte Turgeon's Saturday Evening Post All-American Cookbook c. 1976. "Remember When Home Cooking Recipes feature Rhubarb-Strawberry Pie, Boiled Fresh Corn on the Cob, Homemade Bag Sausage, Aunt Charlotte's Nut Bread, Old-Fashioned Potato Soup, Ambrosia, Real Apple Pie, & A Good Fried Egg."
---"The All-American Picnic," Good Housekeeping, July 1976 (p. 78-91)

"Whether a simple back-yard party of the lavish 'frolics' often held in the early 19th century, the picnic is an American institution. It is as traditional to the Fourth of July as the 'illuminations,' John Adams specified to be an appropriate observance of the day. The idyllic scene opposite has all the ingredients for a happy outing, whatever century you're in--baskets of good food and wine, children, music and a lovely landscape, a few flowering flirtations and probably some uninvited ants. In the same tradition, Redbook has packed four different kinds of picnics, all in the spirit of 1976...Great American Barbecue Picnic: Mint Juleps, Shandygaffs, Cuba Libres, Grilled Chicken Legs With Lemon Basil Marinade, Steak Sandwiches on Garlic Bread, Flowerpot Salad with Creamy Guacamole, Trash-Can Corn, Banana Split Firecrackers, Cold Beer, Lemonade, Iced Tea...Natural Foods Picnic: Chick-Pea Soup, Pita Bread and Raw Vegetables, Spinach Pies, Supertabouli, Parsley Salad, Fantastic Fruit Thing, Coconut Shortbread Cookies, Cool Herb Tea...Serendipity Picnic: Whether it's Ibsen in the ampitheater, Miss Bette in the band shell or skinny dipping in the swimming hole, this no-recipe picnic can be as ambitious or as fussless as you like. Carry crystal stemware or paper cups; spread out a blue linen cloth or use the gras as a backdrop. Make the menu from the best of what's available in route--from supermarket delicatessen, health-food store or fast-food chain. For example: Southern Fried or Spit-Barbecued Chicken, marinated Artichoke Hearts (speared from the jar), Ripe Plum Tomatoes (take salt and pepper), Fresh Rye Bread, Muenster or Monterey Jack Cheese, Black and Green Grapes (or any summer fruit), Linzer Sandwiches (spread tea cookies with a thin layer o raspberry jam: sandwich then with a thin chocolate bar), Cool White Wine, Coffee Spritzer (Half fill a glass or paper cup with chilled low-calorie coffee soda; top with ice-cold milk)...Elegant Wicker-Basket Picnic: Cream of Water Cress Soup, Country Pate, Tiny Radish and Cucumber Sandwiches, Fresh Cherries and Apricots, Almond Crisps, Chilled White Wine."
---"Great American Picnics," Redbook, July 1976(p. 101-118)

"We bring you three remarkable meals from three families living in different parts of the West. Each mixes into the menu a little melting pot history...1. From Santa Fe, the Lopez Beef Barbecue: Barbecued Beef Short Ribs, Green Chiles, Red Chile Sauce, Pinto Beans, Zucchini with Corn and Peppers, Santa Fe Flour Tortillas, Butter, Mixed Green Salad with Tomato and Avocado, Fruit and Cookies...(2) From California (via Louisiana), Sarah's Grill: Red Snapper, Shrimp, and Chicken with Smoky Barbecue Sauce, Hot Water Corn Cakes, Dirty Rice, Mixed Greens Salad, Fresh Peach Cobbler, Whipping Cream...(3) From Hawaii, the Daligocon's Rib Barbecue: Papaya Wedges, Pineapple Chunks, Mangoes, Strawberries, Barbecued Spareribs Hawaiian, Steamed Rice, Banana Poi, Sweet Potato Banana Casserole, Aloha Pineapple Cream Squares." ---"Fourth of July Barbecues," Sunset, July 1976 (p. 56-61, 118)

[1980]
"All-American Picnic favorites...A salad of Carrots, Zucchini and Mushrooms; Dill Bread in Clusters; Oregon Baked Lima Beans; Potato Salad; Pork and Veal Pie; Fried Chicken; Apple Nut Cake; Coleslaw-filled Cabbage; Deviled Crab; Onion Casserole."
---"All-American Cooking: Oregon's Richard Nelson Salutes the Fourth of July with a Showstopping Picnic," Carol Field, Bon Appetit, July 1980 (p. 42-43)

[1981]
"Hundreds of thousands of people celebrated the nation's 205th birthday...and close friend of President and Mrs. Reagan held a barbecue to honor her 58th birthday...The menu included cold fried chicken, baby pork barbecued spare ribs and chili brought to Washington from Chasen's Restaurant in Los Angeles. Among the guests...[was] Frank Sinatra."
---"Washington Celebrates on a Rainy Fourth of July," Irvin Molotsky, New York Times, July 5, 1981 (p. 1)

[1983]
"No matter what the weather is like on this coming Fourth of July, I am planning a picnic. Needless to say, I have made that kind of declarative statement in the past and usually ended up cracking open the deviled eggs and uncorking a thermos of gazpacho on my shaggy living room rug, when Mother Nature had other ideas on the subject. This Independence Day... I am determined to dine alfresco even if it means dragging alog an inflatable life raft instead of a blanket and supplying umbrellas for every member of the party. I suspect I came to their prediction for eating in forest ladies and meadows by inheritance. My father who was by no stretch of the imagination a naturalist, relished open-air meals. Say cookout or barbecue, and his taste buds instantly flowered. Indeed, before the Depression sapped his social inclinations, I suspect he joined all the fraternal orgaizations he was conned with...just to get a crack at the lodge picnics these various organizations gave on national holidays...These outings usually took place in some lakeside glen or wooded camp, a good half-day's ride from our home in Queens. To a chronically carsick kid (like me) that journey was an ordeal..When it was almost time for food, the be-fezzed bretheren (and their captive famlilies) would crcam together at long trestle tables. Stationed there, the lodge members drank enormous quantities of beer and sang off-key and off-color songs...Vast platters of gilded chicken and rosy beef, cheek by jowl with lobsters, clams, osters and so shell crabs. And...at either end were porringers of pickled beets, potato salad, coleslaw and a sizzling pot of sugar-crusted baked beans. Fare for a regiment, it was demolished by everyone but me. The finicky eater (then, not now), I would deight to eat only a peanut butter-and-jelly sandwich, wax-paper wrapped and brought from home..."
---"Bert Greene's Kitchen; Taste Buds Have a Yen for Holiday Dining in the Great Outdoors," Los Angeles Times, June 30, 1983 (p. 58)
[NOTE: This article features recipes for Roman Potato and Cheese Mayonnaise, Spicy Texas Meat Loaf, & Moravian Orange Bread.]

[1984]
"Chicken is one of the most versatile meats for light summer eating. The 4th of July can be celebrated in an Oriental fashion with these chicken breasts that have been marinated in fresh lemon juice, ginger and soy sauce. They may be cooked on the grill if you wish. Served with a bed of rice laced with crunchy green vegetables and juicy broiled tomatoes, this menu could be served for a casual company dinner."
---"Ginger-lemon marinade gives Oriental flavor to the Fourth of July chicken," Beverly Dillon, Chicago Tribune, June 28, 1984 (p. WC_A7A)
[NOTE: Recipes for Ginger-lemon chicken breasts, Rice with crisp vegetables, Sesame broiled tomatoes and Mandarin yogurt ice follow.]

[1985]
"A recent lunch at the Four Seasons restaurant in New York City inspired this menu for the 4th of July. The main course is similar to a hamburger patty but it's jazzed up by using ground lamb instead of beef and by adding pine nuts and lemon rind. Instead of the usual mustard and catsup accompaniments, the restaurant serves a spicy chutney similar to the one that follows. Plenty of thick, toasted French bread slices can be served with the burgers to soak up the delicious juices. The corkscrew noodles are mixed with red, yellow and green peppers that are cooked to a crisp-tender stage. The peppers give this simple pasta dish a truly festive flair."
---"For the 4th, lamb burgers with plum chutney," Beverly Dillon, Chicago Tribune, June 27, 1985 (p. F4)
[NOTE: Recipes for Grilled lamb burgers, Plum chutney and pasta with three peppers included.]

[1988]
"Trust super-hostess Martha Stewart to come up with a fabulous Fourth of July menu that's mostly cook-ahead-for real kitchen independence! Shrimp Wrapped in Snow Peas, Beet and Cucumber Soup, Baked Ham with Herb-Honey Mustard, Corn on the Cog with Lime Butter, Confetti Salad, Garden Salad with Pears and Blue Cheese, Butter-Caraway Rolls, Raspberry-Rhubarb Pie, Star-Spangled Cake, Watermelon Fruit Basket."
---Family Circle, June 28, 1988 (p. 53)

[1992]
"Chilled Tomato Basil Soup, Garlic Baguette Toasts, Grilled Seafood Salad Nicoise, Summer Berry Mint Cream Tart. Greenwood Ridge Johannisberg Riesling '91."
---Gourmet, July 1992 (p. 82)

[1994]
"Fourth of July Family Reunion Picnic: Corona beer, Tomatillo and Yellow Tomato Salsa with Tortilla Chips, Chipotle Mayonnaise Dip with Carrots, Sutter Home Cabernet Sauvignon '91, Pink Lemonade, Grilled Turkey Burgers, Homemade Tomato Ketchup, Grilled Sausages, Tomato Cucumber and avocado with Lemon Vinaigrette, Herbed Tricolor Pasta Salad, Cumin Corn on the Cob, Orange and Sour-Cream Drop Shortcakes with Assorted Berries, Date Walnut Yogurt Ice Cream."
---Gourmet, July 1994 (p. 88)

[1995]
"There's no better way to celebrate than by serving up true American originals like grilled steak and New England baked beans. And though every dish is delicious, you'll hear three cheers for the Red, White and Blueberry Cake."
---"The Great American Cookout," Ladies Home Journal, July 1995 (p. 108-109)

[1999]
"The year was 1916, the place Coney Island,. Beneath the blazing Fourth of July sun, a crew of gastronomic pioneers gathered to launch the first Nathan's hot dog eating contest. The winner, Jim Mullen, lives only in hot dog history-but 83 years later, his legacy endures. Nathan's annual holiday chowdown survives as the granddaddy of publicity stunts, and event that's all-beef and pure Americana."
---"Hot dog! A holiday tradition continues," Philadelphia Tribune, June 29, 1999 (p. 2A)

[2001]
"On the Fourth of July, our nation celebrates in a big way. From backyard barbecues to the mega-gathering on The Mall in Washington, D.C., we come together to share our pride of place, patriotism and love of a good party...Wherever you plan to be, you'll need food. Use this menu to adorn your picnic blanket with a delicious but doable meal. Make the coleslaw, potato salad, grilled vegetable salad, pie, brownies and lemonade on July 3. Roll the sandwiches the morning of the picnic, or bring the ingredients with you, and let each person make his or her own."
---"Independence Day Picnic," Donna Florio Southern Living, July 2001 (p. 132)
[NOTE: Recipes for New Potato Salad, Philly Firecrackers (wrap sandwiches), Creamy Dill Slaw, Grilled Marinated Vegetable Salad, Homemade Lemonade, Granny Smith Apple Pie and Chocolate-Glazed Brownies included.]

[2002]
"All American: This patriotic Fourth of July feast meshes flavors from all over the world. And it doesn't have to be done in a rush: Fizzy Sour Cherry Lemonade, Shrimp with Orange Tomato Cocktail Sauce and Green Goddess Dipping Sauce, Grilled Chicken with Lemon, Garlic and Oregano, Grilled Sweet Potatoes with Lime Cilantro Vinaigrette, Creamy Corn with Sugar Snap Peas and Scallions, Tomato, Cucumber, and Pita Salad, Handley Anderson Valley Pinot Noire Rose '01, Berry Tart with Ginger Cream, Schramsberg Cremant Demi-Sec '98."
---Gourmet, July 2002 (p. 90-91)

[2005]
"What luck! This year the Fourth of July falls on a Monday, giving you two long and lazy weekend days to decide how to celebrate. So, what'll it be? Hot dogs and ice cream, or rigs and cola cake?...Choose the food: Easy now. With sparklers to light, this is no time to fuss in the kitchen. Consider baked beans you don't have to bake. Or tap into a versatile marinade that goes with whatever your pleasure: ribs, chicken, or pork roast. Too complicated? Hot dogs'll do because frankly, franks are just perfect for the Fourth. Choose a recipe or two, then fill in the rest with easy options like potato chips and ice cream. This holiday is all about independence, so do it your own way."
---"Four Steps to a Fabulous 4th," Better Homes & Gardens, July 2005 (p. 191, 193)
[Recipes include: Red, White & Blueberry Ice Cream Dessert, Three-Way Marinade and Sauce, Jalapeno Firecrackers, Skillet White Beans, Hot Dogs and Texas Tomato Chutney, Double-Berry Cooler, Firecracker Coconut Dip, Potato Salad with Fresh Stir-Ins, Watermelon Cooler, Fourth of July Cherry-Cola Cake.]

[2009]
"Texas meets the Carolinas meets the Gulf Coast in this blowout holiday menu that serves up the best of the South... Grilled Shrimp with Molasses-Guava Glaze, Sweet Tea with Vodka and Lemonade, Coffee-Rubbed Cheeseburgers with Texas Barbecue Sauce, Watermelon, Feta and Arugula Salad, Heirloom Tomatoes with Shell Beans Vinaigrette, Sweet Potato and Poblano Salad, Beer, Chocolate Cake with Ganache and Praline Topping."
---"Star-Spangled 4th of July," Bon Appetit, July 2009 (p. 88)

[2014]
"Celebrate the sweet land of liberty with a patriotic palette of stunning desserts. These techniques and flavors will dazzle at your summer bash. Shooting Star Cookies: These surprise-inside super-sandwich cookies are made with dough tinted and layered to create an impressive stripe effect. Break off a piece to release a shower of colorful sugar. Firecracker Party Cake: A striped tower of cinnamon cake and ultra-creamy mascarpone brings sweet heat to the dessert course. Each mouthful of this layered confection is like munching on cinnamon candies. Prepare and assemble the cake a day ahead in a trifle bowl and proudly escort this scoopable dessert to the table on party day...Berry Flag Tart: Sugared stars and stripes laid over a field of blueberries and raspberries pay delicious homage to the flag...prepare this super-easy crowd-size tart in a 15X10-inch baking pan, and serve each spice with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for an all-American finish. Coconut Cream Punch: A constellation of star fruit bobs in a creamy rum and coconut punch...Grapefruit soda lends a tangy, citrusy kick. Fresh blueberries stirred in just before serving add a cool pop. Frozen Yogurt Icebox Cake: The ultimate in make-ahead desserts, this fresh take on icebox cake has a shining surprise inside. Nestled between layers of berry-flavored frozen Greek yogurt is a creamy vanilla star. Build it in a bread pan for photogenic strait-edge and sprinkle with coconut chips for contrasting crunch."
---"Stars & Stripes," Better Homes & Gardens, July 2014 (p. 103-106)
[NOTE: Recipes for the above items are included in this issue and online.]

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