A Day of Dining at Doughoregan with Charles Carroll of Carrolton

Charles Carroll (1737-1832) walked to his bath house every morning at 4 AM (more here) and at 8:00 had a breakfast of coffee, tea and chocolate, 2 inch thick johnnycakes, cornmeal pancakes the British visitor called 'cookies', ham shavings and herring.  Then dinner at 3:00 and tea at 7:00... 

In 1823 -

"We breakfasted at eight o’clock, the breakfast consisting of tea, coffee, chocolate, bread of many sorts, biscuits, hot rolls buttered, cookies (Indian corn pancakes like the Scotch oatmeal cakes), johnnycake (a sort of bread or cake of Indian corn also made with milk or eggs, and about two inches thick), scraped ham and an occasional broiled herring

From breakfast-time till two o’clock we did as we pleased, either chatted with the ladies in the drawingroom, or read, or strolled in the garden, or sat in the porch, or made music, or idled in some other agreeable way.  

At half past two or towards three o’clock we dined.  The dinner was in the American fashion, most abundant and of excellent quality, but perfectly plain and without the admixture of anything of the French cuisine.  The second course was a most profuse assortment of creams, jellies, tarts, custards and ices, all extremely nice to the eye and palate, and ruinous to the stomach. 

We sat twenty minutes after the removal of the cloth and then returned all together to the drawingroom where we cozed or played at chess, or sang or amused ourselves in any way we pleased. 

At seven o’clock tea was announced, being the counterpart of breakfast, the meat and eggs excepted.

At nine o’clock the old gentleman retired to bed, and at ten all the rest of the family.  Such was the exact routine of every day, and a very agreeable routine I found it."

Youthful America Selections from Henry Unwin Addington’s Residence in the United States of America, 1822, 23, 24, 25…  Berkeley: U OF CAL Press, 1960.

 
©2016 Patricia Bixler Reber
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