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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"]%](/image/4224HelvetiaRampSupperPhoto03242816/0.jpg)
- Identifier:
- 4224.HelvetiaRampSupper.Photo.032.4.28.16
- Title:
- Table set with fresh ramps and applesauce for the Helvetia Ramp Supper
- Date:
- 2016-04-28
- Creator:
- Hilliard, Emily
- Subject:
- Wild leek, Festivals, Food habits, foodways, Helvetia (W. Va.)
- Location:
- Randolph County (W. Va.), Helvetia (W. Va.)
![["Helvetia, West Virginia, population 59, is a Swiss community nestled in a high mountain valley along the Buckhannon River in Randolph County. In the 150-plus years since its founding, the Swiss traditions practiced by Helvetians have evolved in various ways. Helvetia 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"]%](/image/4224HelvetiaRampSupperPhoto03342816/0.jpg)
- Identifier:
- 4224.HelvetiaRampSupper.Photo.033.4.28.16
- Title:
- Place setting for the Helvetia Ramp Supper in the Helvetia Community Hall
- Date:
- 2016-04-28
- Creator:
- Hilliard, Emily
- Subject:
- Wild leek, Festivals, Helvetia (W. Va.), Food habits, foodways
- 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"]%](/image/4224HelvetiaRampSupperPhoto03442816/0.jpg)
- 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"]%](/image/4224HelvetiaRampSupperPhoto03542816/0.jpg)
- 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"]%](/image/4224HelvetiaRampSupperPhoto03642816/0.jpg)
- 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.)
![["Ernest Hofer, born in Helvetia in 1950, is from a family with deep roots in Helvetia. His grandfather was the first baby boy born in the community in the 1870s. Aside from serving in Vietnam for two years, Hofer has lived in Helvetia his entire life. Hofer recently retired from working in the mines, and has worked at the Pickens [Helvetias neighboring town] Ramp Supper for forty-two years, and the Helvetia Ramp Supper for twenty-five. He is treasurer of the Helvetia Community Hall Association and is a member of the Pickens Volunteer Fire Department. He retired from working in the mines earlier this year.People aren't going to tell you where the ramp patch isthat's a well-kept secret and I'm not tellin' you where mine's at! And a lot of the property has been closed to ramp-digging due to the lumber companies, leasing the property. Which...has hurt the ramp suppers a lot. So, you just can't dig 'em. 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/"]%](/image/4224HoferErnestIntTranscript43016/0.jpg)
- Identifier:
- 4224.HoferErnest.IntTranscript.4.30.16
- Title:
- Transcript of oral history of Ernest Hofer
- Date:
- 2016-04-30
- Creator:
- Hofer, Ernest
- Contributor:
- Hilliard, Emily
- Subject:
- Coal mines and mining, Wine and wine making--United States, Wild leek, Veterans, Helvetia (W. Va.), foodways, 4-H clubs, Cooking, Swiss, Food habits
- Location:
- Helvetia (W. Va.)
Listen to Audio
- Identifier:
- 4224.RiceHenry.AudioInt.4.30.16
- Title:
- Oral history of Henry Rice
- Date:
- 2016-04-30
- Creator:
- Rice, Henry
- Contributor:
- Hilliard, Emily
- Subject:
- Morels, Canning and preserving, Cheesemaking, foodways, Hides and skins, Restaurateurs, Food habits, Turkey hunting, American ginseng, Helvetia (W. Va.), Deer hunting, Wild leek, Trapping, Tanning, Cooking, Swiss, Pickling
- Location:
- Helvetia (W. Va.)
![["Henry Rice was born in Helvetia, West Virginia in 1978. He is the daughter of Catherine Irene Mailloux and grand-daughter of Eleanor Mailloux, the co-founder of the Hutte. His daughter, Morgan Rice, was also interviewed for this project. Henry Rice cooks for the Hutte Sunday buffet, and works in construction. He is also an avid hunter, trapper, ginseng and ramp digger, morel mushroom hunter, and a collector of old bottles and other artifacts.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/"]%](/image/4224RiceHenryIntTranscript43016/0.jpg)
- Identifier:
- 4224.RiceHenry.IntTranscript.4.30.16
- Title:
- Transcript of oral history of Henry Rice
- Date:
- 2016-04-30
- Creator:
- Rice, Henry
- Contributor:
- Hilliard, Emily
- Subject:
- Canning and preserving, American ginseng, Cooking, Swiss, Wine and wine making--United States, Wild leek, Pickling, Deer hunting, Morels, Cheesemaking, foodways, Food habits, Restaurateurs, Turkey hunting, Tanning, Trapping, Hides and skins, Helvetia (W. Va.)
- Location:
- Helvetia (W. Va.)
![["Henry Rice was born in Helvetia, West Virginia in 1978. He is the daughter of Catherine Irene Mailloux and grand-daughter of Eleanor Mailloux, the co-founder of the Hutte. His daughter, Morgan Rice, was also interviewed for this project. Henry Rice cooks for the Hutte Sunday buffet, and works in construction. He is also an avid hunter, trapper, ginseng and ramp digger, morel mushroom hunter, and a collector of old bottles and other artifacts.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/"]%](/image/4224RiceHenryVideo00143016/0.jpg)
- Identifier:
- 4224.RiceHenry.Video.001.4.30.16
- Title:
- Audio slideshow of Henry Rice, talking about digging ramps and working at the Hutte Swiss Restaurant in Helvetia
- Date:
- 2016-04-30
- Creator:
- Rice, Henry
- Contributor:
- Hilliard, Emily
- Subject:
- Cooking (Sausages), Cooking, Swiss, Forage plants, Bakers, Restaurateurs, Swiss Americans, Helvetia (W. Va.), Pickling, Cooking (Chicken), Restaurants--United States, Wild leek
- Location:
- Helvetia (W. Va.)
Listen to Audio
- Identifier:
- 4224.RiceMorgan.AudioInt.4.30.16
- Title:
- Oral history of Morgan Rice
- Date:
- 2016-04-30
- Creator:
- Rice, Morgan
- Contributor:
- Hilliard, Emily
- Subject:
- Helvetia (W. Va.), Wild leek, foodways, Bread, Restaurateurs, Swiss American women, Food habits, Cooking, Swiss
- 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/"]%](/image/4224RiceMorganIntTranscript43016/0.jpg)
- Identifier:
- 4224.RiceMorgan.IntTranscript.4.30.16
- Title:
- Transcript of oral history of Morgan Rice
- Date:
- 2016-04-30
- Creator:
- Rice, Morgan
- Contributor:
- Hilliard, Emily
- Subject:
- Swiss American women, Food habits, Wild leek, Bread, foodways, Helvetia (W. Va.), Cooking, Swiss, Restaurateurs
- 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/"]%](/image/4224RiceMorganPhoto00143016/0.jpg)
- 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.)
