Western Waushara County, where I grew up, has long been potato country. The sandy, well-drained soils of this part of the state are especially well suited to growing this crop. During the Depression years of the 1930s, almost everyone in our neighborhood grew potatoes as a cash crop; we grew twenty to thirty acres every year. We planted seed potatoes with a hand potato planter, following a mark in the soil made with a horse-drawn wooden marker that Pa made. We cultivated the field with a one-horse hand-held cultivator several times during the summer; we also hoed them by hand several times, an onerous back-straining task, especially in May, June, and July, when weeds tried to choke out the potato plants. When other work was completed and the haying season ended, we hoed potatoes. When it had rained and we couldn’t work in the grain field, we hoed potatoes. The job was never done—until fall rolled around and it was time for the potato harvest.
The Witt family picking potatoes near Kellner in the early 1900s
We began digging the potatoes in the last days of September. Different from threshing, silo filling, and corn shredding, digging potatoes required a relatively small crew who worked at it for two weeks or more, as all of the work was done by hand. The entire family was involved, along with one or two neighbors who helped out. The country schools in the area closed for “potato vacation” so all the children in the community were available to help with the harvest.
Digging potatoes worked like this. First, Pa used the team and wagon to scatter wooden one-bushel crates across the field. Next, two men—Pa and a neighbor or a hired man—each with a six-tine barn fork, backed their way across the field, digging up two rows of potatoes as they moved along. I followed, picking up the potatoes and putting them into a five-gallon pail. When the pail was filled, I dumped it into the nearest wooden crate. Pa paid me one penny for each bushel of potatoes I picked.
While we worked, the team rested under a shade tree. A few minutes before noon, the diggers quit digging and I finished picking up and dumping potatoes into crates. Pa fetched the team and wagon, and we loaded the crates and hauled them to the cellar under the house. When those bins were filled, we hauled potatoes to the potato cellar, which was built into a hill just west of the chicken house. When the potatoes were unloaded and the horses watered and fed, we filed into the house for the noon meal.
As soon as we had fresh potatoes, we began eating them, usually three times a day. We never tired of eating potatoes, especially because Ma had so many ways of fixing them. Pa never wavered in his praise for how good potatoes tasted and for how good they were for growing boys (and everyone else) to eat.
5 large baking potatoes
½ cup sliced carrots
6 slices bacon
1 cup chopped onion
½ cup chopped celery
2 cups milk
2 cups cream
1½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
Shredded cheddar cheese, for garnish
Chopped fresh parsley (or dried parsley), for garnish
Wash and peel the potatoes and cut into cubes. Cook the potatoes and sliced carrots in boiling water until tender. Drain.
Cook the bacon until crisp. Drain bacon, reserving the fat, and crumble. Sauté the onion and celery in 2 tablespoons bacon fat.
Combine the cooked vegetables, bacon, milk, cream, salt, and pepper in a saucepan. Simmer for 30 minutes, making sure it doesn’t boil. Garnish with cheese and parsley.
6 baking potatoes
2 cups water, divided
⅓ cup vinegar
½ cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
½ pound of bacon, fried, with drippings reserved
1 chopped onion (about ½ cup)
¼ cup chopped celery
¼ cup chopped parsley
Salt and pepper
Wash and peel the potatoes and slice thin. Cook the potatoes in boiling water until crisp tender. Drain.
To make the dressing, place 1½ cups water, vinegar, and sugar in a saucepan. Heat to boiling. Mix the cornstarch with the remaining ½ cup water and add to the saucepan. Boil until the mixture is thick, stirring occasionally. Crumble the bacon and stir bacon pieces and some drippings into the dressing. Pour the dressing over the cooked potatoes and mix. Stir in the onion, celery, and parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm.
6 medium potatoes
3 cups milk
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
2–3 cups cubed cooked ham
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
½ cup grated cheddar cheese (optional)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash and peel the potatoes. Slice them very thin.
In a saucepan, stir together the milk, butter, and flour over medium heat until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat.
Put half of the potatoes in a greased casserole dish. Add some of the ham. Pour half of the white sauce over the potatoes and the ham. Add the remaining potatoes, onion, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle in the rest of the ham. Pour the rest of the sauce over the potatoes. Cover and bake for about 1 hour. Uncover, top with cheese, if desired, and continue baking until the top is brown.
6 large potatoes
3 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoons salt
1 egg, beaten well
¼ cup butter
Wash the potatoes and peel them. Grate them into a bowl. Add the flour, milk, salt, and beaten egg to the grated potatoes. Mix well.
Warm a frying pan and melt the butter. Scoop up some of the potato mixture and form into a pancake. Fry the pancake on one side and then turn it over, cooking until brown, about 4 minutes. Repeat with remaining potato mixture.