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["The Swiss community of Helvetia, West Virginia began hosting its annual ramp supper sometime between 1946-1948 (Helvetia native Ernest Hofer who has been working at the supper for at least 40 years, wasnt sure of the exact date). The event is a fundraiser, benefiting the Helvetia Community Hall Association and the Farm Womens Club. For weeks prior, volunteers, including local 4-H kids, work to wash and freeze 60 bushels of ramps, some of which are dug and donated by locals, and the rest are bought from a digger. On the Friday before the event, male volunteers gather outside to cook 400 lbs. of potatoes in iron kettles over a wood fire, while drinking homemade wine. Women volunteers work in the kitchen, cutting 300 lbs. of ham, making cornbread, cooking Navy beans, and defrosting ramps. The Helvetia Ramp Supper is always held the last Saturday in April and draws visitors from across the state and region. The dinner includes fried and fresh ramps, beans, ham, fried potatoes, applesauce, cornbread, coleslaw, drink, and dessert, which guests eat at long tables in the basement of the Helvetia Community Hall. After dinner, a square dance is held upstairs. The documentation of the Helvetia Ramp Supper is part of the Helvetia Foodways Oral History Project in partnership with the Southern Foodways Alliance. Learn more: https://www.southernfoodways.org/oral-history/helvetia-west-virginia/Also see Emily Hilliards piece on Helvetias seasonal celebrations, including the Ramp Supper, via The Bitter Southerner: https://bittersoutherner.com/my-year-in-helvetia-west-virginia and read her piece on the Ramp Supper via the West Virginia Folklife blog: https://wvfolklife.org/2016/05/27/rampfingerprints/For more information, visit: http://www.helvetiawv.com/Events/Helvetia_Ramps/Helvetia_Ramps.htm"]%

265. Helvetia Ramp Supper place setting with fresh ramps, applesauce, and vinegar

Identifier:
4224.HelvetiaRampSupper.Photo.034.4.28.16
Title:
Helvetia Ramp Supper place setting with fresh ramps, applesauce, and vinegar
Date:
2016-04-28
Creator:
Hilliard, Emily
Subject:
foodways, Wild leek, Festivals, Helvetia (W. Va.), Food habits
Location:
Helvetia (W. Va.), Randolph County (W. Va.)
["The Swiss community of Helvetia, West Virginia began hosting its annual ramp supper sometime between 1946-1948 (Helvetia native Ernest Hofer who has been working at the supper for at least 40 years, wasnt sure of the exact date). The event is a fundraiser, benefiting the Helvetia Community Hall Association and the Farm Womens Club. For weeks prior, volunteers, including local 4-H kids, work to wash and freeze 60 bushels of ramps, some of which are dug and donated by locals, and the rest are bought from a digger. On the Friday before the event, male volunteers gather outside to cook 400 lbs. of potatoes in iron kettles over a wood fire, while drinking homemade wine. Women volunteers work in the kitchen, cutting 300 lbs. of ham, making cornbread, cooking Navy beans, and defrosting ramps. The Helvetia Ramp Supper is always held the last Saturday in April and draws visitors from across the state and region. The dinner includes fried and fresh ramps, beans, ham, fried potatoes, applesauce, cornbread, coleslaw, drink, and dessert, which guests eat at long tables in the basement of the Helvetia Community Hall. After dinner, a square dance is held upstairs. The documentation of the Helvetia Ramp Supper is part of the Helvetia Foodways Oral History Project in partnership with the Southern Foodways Alliance. Learn more: https://www.southernfoodways.org/oral-history/helvetia-west-virginia/Also see Emily Hilliards piece on Helvetias seasonal celebrations, including the Ramp Supper, via The Bitter Southerner: https://bittersoutherner.com/my-year-in-helvetia-west-virginia and read her piece on the Ramp Supper via the West Virginia Folklife blog: https://wvfolklife.org/2016/05/27/rampfingerprints/For more information, visit: http://www.helvetiawv.com/Events/Helvetia_Ramps/Helvetia_Ramps.htm"]%

266. Homemade desserts for the Helvetia Ramp Supper, 1 of 2

Identifier:
4224.HelvetiaRampSupper.Photo.035.4.28.16
Title:
Homemade desserts for the Helvetia Ramp Supper, 1 of 2
Date:
2016-04-28
Creator:
Hilliard, Emily
Subject:
Wild leek, Cake, foodways, Helvetia (W. Va.), Festivals, Bakers, Food habits
Location:
Helvetia (W. Va.)
["The Swiss community of Helvetia, West Virginia began hosting its annual ramp supper sometime between 1946-1948 (Helvetia native Ernest Hofer who has been working at the supper for at least 40 years, wasnt sure of the exact date). The event is a fundraiser, benefiting the Helvetia Community Hall Association and the Farm Womens Club. For weeks prior, volunteers, including local 4-H kids, work to wash and freeze 60 bushels of ramps, some of which are dug and donated by locals, and the rest are bought from a digger. On the Friday before the event, male volunteers gather outside to cook 400 lbs. of potatoes in iron kettles over a wood fire, while drinking homemade wine. Women volunteers work in the kitchen, cutting 300 lbs. of ham, making cornbread, cooking Navy beans, and defrosting ramps. The Helvetia Ramp Supper is always held the last Saturday in April and draws visitors from across the state and region. The dinner includes fried and fresh ramps, beans, ham, fried potatoes, applesauce, cornbread, coleslaw, drink, and dessert, which guests eat at long tables in the basement of the Helvetia Community Hall. After dinner, a square dance is held upstairs. The documentation of the Helvetia Ramp Supper is part of the Helvetia Foodways Oral History Project in partnership with the Southern Foodways Alliance. Learn more: https://www.southernfoodways.org/oral-history/helvetia-west-virginia/Also see Emily Hilliards piece on Helvetias seasonal celebrations, including the Ramp Supper, via The Bitter Southerner: https://bittersoutherner.com/my-year-in-helvetia-west-virginia and read her piece on the Ramp Supper via the West Virginia Folklife blog: https://wvfolklife.org/2016/05/27/rampfingerprints/For more information, visit: http://www.helvetiawv.com/Events/Helvetia_Ramps/Helvetia_Ramps.htm"]%

267. Homemade desserts for the Helvetia Ramp Supper, 2 of 2

Identifier:
4224.HelvetiaRampSupper.Photo.036.4.28.16
Title:
Homemade desserts for the Helvetia Ramp Supper, 2 of 2
Date:
2016-04-28
Creator:
Hilliard, Emily
Subject:
Helvetia (W. Va.), Cake, Food habits, Festivals, Wild leek, Bakers, foodways
Location:
Helvetia (W. Va.)
["Morgan Rice was born in Helvetia, West Virginia in 1999. She is the daughter of Hutte cook Henry Rice, and great-granddaughter of town matriarch and co-founder of the Hutte restaurant, Eleanor Mailloux. Ms. Rice is a member of the Helvetia Farm Womens Club and works part-time as a waitress at the Hutte restaurant. In 2015 she created a petition to save Helvetias Ramp Supper.This interview is part of a series of interviews conducted with foodways practitioners in Helvetia, West Virginia, as part of the Helvetia Foodways Oral History Project in partnership with the Southern Foodways Alliance. Learn more: https://www.southernfoodways.org/oral-history/helvetia-west-virginia/"]%

268. Portrait of Morgan Rice

Identifier:
4224.RiceMorgan.Photo.001.4.30.16
Title:
Portrait of Morgan Rice
Date:
2016-04-30
Creator:
Hilliard, Emily
Subject:
Swiss American women, Restaurateurs, Wild leek, foodways, Helvetia (W. Va.), Food habits
Location:
Helvetia (W. Va.)
["Sharon Rollins grew up in Charleston, West Virginia and moved to Dallas, TX when she was thirty years old. Upon retirement in 2010, she moved to Helvetia, West Virginia and has since become involved in a number of community projects. She manages the Ramp Supper, serves as treasurer for the Helvetia Community Fair, and volunteers at the Hutte Restaurant.This interview is part of a series of interviews conducted with foodways practitioners in Helvetia, West Virginia, as part of the Helvetia Foodways Oral History Project in partnership with the Southern Foodways Alliance. Learn more: https://www.southernfoodways.org/oral-history/helvetia-west-virginia/"]%

269. Sharon Rollins fries rosettes in Eleanor Betler's Helvetia kitchen

Identifier:
4224.RollinsSharon.Photo.001.2.5.16
Title:
Sharon Rollins fries rosettes in Eleanor Betler's Helvetia kitchen
Date:
2016-02-05
Creator:
Hilliard, Emily
Subject:
foodways, Helvetia (W. Va.), Bakers, Carnival, Food habits, Cooking, Swiss
Location:
Helvetia (W. Va.)
["Sharon Rollins grew up in Charleston, West Virginia and moved to Dallas, TX when she was thirty years old. Upon retirement in 2010, she moved to Helvetia, West Virginia and has since become involved in a number of community projects. She manages the Ramp Supper, serves as treasurer for the Helvetia Community Fair, and volunteers at the Hutte Restaurant.This interview is part of a series of interviews conducted with foodways practitioners in Helvetia, West Virginia, as part of the Helvetia Foodways Oral History Project in partnership with the Southern Foodways Alliance. Learn more: https://www.southernfoodways.org/oral-history/helvetia-west-virginia/"]%

270. Sharon Rollins on the porch of the Hutte Restaurant in Helvetia

Identifier:
4224.RollinsSharon.Photo.001.3.18.17
Title:
Sharon Rollins on the porch of the Hutte Restaurant in Helvetia
Date:
2017-03-18
Creator:
Hilliard, Emily
Subject:
foodways, Cooking, Swiss, Wild leek, Helvetia (W. Va.), Food habits
Location:
Helvetia (W. Va.)
["Cecelia Coleman Smith was born in Buckhannon, West Virginia in 1949. Originally from Pickens, West Virginia, her family moved away from the Helvetia/Pickens community when she was seven so her father could take a coal mining job. She moved back to Pickens in 2005. Mrs. Smith served in the military and is a member of the local American Legion chapter. She is also part of the Pickens Improvement and Historical Society, the Farm Womens Club, and occasionally volunteers at the Hutte Restaurant.This interview is part of a series of interviews conducted with foodways practitioners in Helvetia, West Virginia, as part of the Helvetia Foodways Oral History Project in partnership with the Southern Foodways Alliance. Learn more: https://www.southernfoodways.org/oral-history/helvetia-west-virginia/"]%

271. Portrait of Cecelia Smith

Identifier:
4224.SmithCecelia.Photo.001.4.30.16
Title:
Portrait of Cecelia Smith
Date:
2016-04-30
Creator:
Hilliard, Emily
Subject:
4-H clubs, Helvetia (W. Va.), Cooking, Swiss, Bakers, Swiss American women
Location:
Helvetia (W. Va.)