50 Years of Changing Etiquette

The changes from Gilded Age dining etiquette to that of the 1930’s in the U.S., were numerous, due to the changes in food preservation, electrical refrigeration and the year ‘round availability of non-seasonal fruits and vegetables. Modernization of canning and freezing methods gave the average American household plenty of dining choices which were unthinkable in 1885, just 50 years earlier. By 1935, large neighborhood grocery stores had replaced more and more specialty food stores and restaurants were flourishing. Most notably, however, in the 50 years between 1885 and 1935, even the most modest of American homes had acquired enough knives, forks and spoons for use by everyone dining at a table. — Historical photo of the Palmer House Grand Dining Room, Chicago History Museum 

Celebrating A Waiter’s Jubilee

The management of the Palmer House, Chicago's historic hostelry, recently observed the completion of a half century of service by an 80-year-old waiter, who had been born in slavery. A gold medal was presented to the waiter in recognition of his long service.

In fifty years of waiting on diners in a hotel, that Chicago man probably observed some great changes in eating customs and etiquette. He had served Presidents Grant, Garfield, Cleveland and McKinley on their visits to Chicago and had known the table desires and whims of many a celebrity.

It was a gracious gesture on the part of his employers to award that medal, and to the hotel’s clientele it struck a human note so often absent from the efficient management of modern institutions. —The Oakland Tribune, 1935

🍽️Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia