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Southern Spaces
A journal about real and imagined spaces and places of the US South and their global connections

St. Thomas Church Supper near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940

Emory University
Emory University
Farm Security Administration
Published July 12, 2012

In light of our publication of Elizabeth Engelhardt's presentation "Forgotten Locavores: Letters and Literature of Market Bulletins," we decided to publish this series of photographs depicting preparations for a church picnic supper at St. Thomas Catholic Church, taken by Marion Post Wolcott on August 7, 1940 near Bardstown, Kentucky. We first came across the second photograph in the series, where African American and white men are cooking together, and wanted to know more about what was happening in this integrated outdoor kitchen. Looking at the curated series, where the white workers are called "parishoners" and the black workers are unidentified, it appears that the second image likely fits into expected paradigms of race and labor. The photograph of lamb and beef cooking is also a notable representation of local foodways, as barbecuing mutton is distinct to this area of Kentucky. More photographs in this series can be viewed in the Library of Congress's Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Collection.

Marion Post Wolcott, Poster advertising church picnic near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection, LC-USF33-030987-M4.
Marion Post Wolcott, Poster advertising church picnic near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection, LC-USF33-030987-M4.
Marion Post Wolcott, Cooking a fried supper as a benefit picnic supper which is being given by St. Thomas church, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Collection, E 9026.
Marion Post Wolcott, Cooking a fried supper as a benefit picnic supper which is being given by St. Thomas church, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Collection, E 9026.
Marion Post Wolcott, Barbecuing beef and lamb for a benefit picnic supper on the grounds of St. Thomas' Church, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection, LC-USF33-030968-M5.
Marion Post Wolcott, Barbecuing beef and lamb for a benefit picnic supper on the grounds of St. Thomas' Church, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection, LC-USF33-030968-M5.
Marion Post Wolcott, Parishoners peeling potatoes for a benefit picnic supper on the grounds of St. Thomas' Church, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection, LC-USF33-030969-M3.
Marion Post Wolcott, Parishoners peeling potatoes for a benefit picnic supper on the grounds of St. Thomas' Church, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection, LC-USF33-030969-M3
Marion Post Wolcott, Parishoners preparing food for a benefit picnic supper on the grounds of St. Thomas Church, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection,LC-USF33-030983-M5.
Marion Post Wolcott, Parishoners preparing food for a benefit picnic supper on the grounds of St. Thomas Church, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection,LC-USF33-030983-M5.
Marion Post Wolcott, Table in picnic grove set for St. Thomas church supper, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection, LC-USF33-030983-M5.
Marion Post Wolcott, Table in picnic grove set for St. Thomas church supper, near Bardstown, Kentucky, August 7, 1940. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Black & White Negatives Collection, LC-USF33-030983-M5
https://doi.org/10.18737/M73S4X