Victoria Rumble can create and implement or update interpretive activities for living history sites and historic home museums on a consulting basis. Her specialty is the rural farming class family which was the backbone of the early American economy, and the day to day activities that were inherently a part of that lifestyle.

One of her major focuses is on American culinary history and cooking techniques as related to various socioeconomic classes in 19th century America. This includes the use of spices, herbs, seasonings, wild plant foods, simple made-dishes, as well as upscale foods prepared for a social gathering.

Mrs. Rumble has assisted numerous novelists and authors in providing realistic and accurate descriptions of 19th century homes, activities, crafts, material culture, and personas for their books.

Victoria has researched the early foods and period cooking techniques of Scotland and while there began a collection of antique Scottish cookery vessels.  Her newest book, expected to be published by McFarland in 2008, will share some of what she’s learned.  The flip side of her heritage is Native-American and her forthcoming title will include those foods and cooking techniques as well.

Victoria is a member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, the Southern Food Alliance, the Appalachian Writer’s Society, and she is a regular contributor to the Civil War Courier and Citizen’s Companion..  Her articles pertain to various aspects of 18^th and 19^th century material culture. 

Her book, Outdoor Recreation and Leisure in 19^th Century America, was featured in the spring 2007 issue of Women and the Outdoors Magazine, and the April/May 2007 issue of Citizen’s Companion.  Plans are being made for a series of articles on outdoor activities to be published in Citizen’s Companion.

Signing invitations in 2007 include, among others, book signings at the Midwest Civilian Conference in Joliet, IL, Shiloh National Military Park, Mansker’s Station Colonial Trade Faire, Pope’s Tavern, Florence, AL, Jeff Davis Park, Irwinville, GA, Cracker Country: A Rural Florida Living History Museum, and Westville 1850.  

Victoria is honored to have been chosen for a scholarship to help with setting up a display of the Hope MacDougall collection of historic artifacts at Dunollie House in Oban Scotland, and to work at the historic museum on the Isle of Lismore off the Scottish coast this summer. 

She will be a presenter at the Midwest Civilian Civil War Conference in Joliet, IL, in January 2008, and her topic will be camping and outdoor life during the Victorian era.

More information will be added as it becomes available. 

Cooking Classes:

Note: All cooking classes may be prepared in a modern kitchen if preferred.

Soups Through the Ages, (18th and 19th century):  This topic can be given as a lecture with visual aids, or if a hearth or fire pit is available combined with the actual preparation of a selection from a list of period soups dating from the Middle Ages through the 19th century. When soups are prepared participants are encouraged to assist in the preparation and partake of the repast. Participants will receive hand-outs for the soups they choose.
Choose one or more: Scottish cock-a-leekie, French lemon, hodge podge, split pea, Irish stew, turtle bean soup, German lentil soup, or oyster stew (subject to availability of oysters).

Outdoor Foods, (18th and 19th century):  This topic can be given as a lecture with visual aids, or if a hearth or fire pit is available combined with the actual preparation of a selection from a list of prepared dishes suitable to either the 18th or 19th century. The most commonly prepared dish is fish chowder or roasted game with a vegetable dish. The latter is subject to the availability of wild game or meat of choice.

Not by Bread Alone?  It has been said man does not live by bread alone, but for some that is debatable. Learn about the origins of your selections while learning to bake biscuits, cornbread, scones, Scottish oatcakes, or Irish soda bread. Making fresh butter is offered for those who are interested. This requires a hearth or fire pit.

Early Native American: This topic can be given as a lecture with visual aids, or if a hearth or fire pit is available combined with the actual preparation of hominy or succotash and bean bread. This topic can, if preferred, center around food preservation.

Scottish fare (18th and 19th century):  This topic can be given as a lecture with visual aids, or if a hearth or fire pit is available combined with the actual preparation of your selection from the following:  Shortbread and Gingerbread, Scotch-eggs and Welsh Rarebit, Haggis with Tatties and Neeps (Haggis recipe is somewhat modified for American palates), or Fish Cakes and Colcannon.

Cordially Yours:  Participants will learn the history of cordials and take home the cordial they make. Non-alcoholic beverage classes include shrub, ginger water, tea, and blackberry nectar.

A Sweet Ending:  This topic can be given as a lecture with samples provided, but it is recommended it be given in the presence of a hearth or fire pit so that the desserts can be prepared and enjoyed. Choices include: Steamed Pudding with sauce, fried pies, and ice cream made in a hand-cranked churn.

Lectures:

The importance of Salt in 18th and 19th Century America. Learn how salt was more than a seasoning and its importance in food preservation in the days before refrigeration.

Sweeteners Beyond Sugar.  Learn the basics of sugar preparation in the 19th century and alternative sweeteners. Hand-outs include recipes and instructions for baking with alternative sweeteners.

They didn’t have that!  Victoria uses photographs and her collection of cookware and utensils to illustrate what is appropriate for various time periods. Using cookware that post-dates the era being portrayed ruins any historical interpretation. Learn what is appropriate, how to care for it, and where to get it.

The Evolution of the Hearth.  Learn how to build and maintain a cook fire, fuels through history, and the evolutionary process by which central fires gave way to the modern fireplace. We will touch briefly on the role of the fireplace in modern outdoor living spaces, and the basics of building your own bee-hive oven and how it is used.

Shortages and Substitutions in the War-time South.  Learn how every-day necessities became scarce to non-existent during the American Civil War and the ways housewives overcame the shortages. A historically documented display aids in understanding the extent of these shortages.

Vegetables, Herbs, and Seasonings: When, Where, and How were they used?  Learn the origin and history of your favorites and not-so-favorites, the art of seasoning a dish, and if you like, prepare a period seasoning blend or herbal vinegar for use in your own kitchen. A hand-out is included with the basics of culinary herb gardening, a packet of seeds (subject to availability), and instructions for drying, and storage.