The First People of Matthews

Image via Wikipedia

The celebration of American Thanksgiving is often accompanied by stories for children about Pilgrims and Native Americans sitting down for a nice dinner together. As we age we learn that the relationship between the original European settlers and the indigenous people was, at best, complicated, and more frequently hostile.

Image via Catawba Nation

Here in Matthews, we live on the land of the Catawba tribe.  At its height, the Catawba nation had a population over 20,000. The Catawba’s territory stretched throughout the Piedmont region of NC and SC and all the way up to Virginia along the Catawba River, which is why they are also known as the Iswa (Issa/Esaw), or “people of the river”. As European settlers migrated to America in the in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the Catawba began using their warpaths as trading routes. Catawba pottery was much in demand, known throughout the region for its beauty and quality. However, with contact comes contagion, and Smallpox decimated the Catawba nation. As their numbers dwindled, the tribe held on to a 144,000-acre tract of their land titled to them by the King of England. Settlers continued to encroach on Catawba land until only about 100 members of the tribe remained - many of whom left the region for Colorado, Oklahoma, and Texas. At this point, they signed the Treaty of Nation’s Ford, which forced them off most of their ancestral lands with the promise of a new reservation in the future.

Image via Catawba Indian Crafts

So much of the country’s history with Native Americans is discussed in the past tense, but it’s important to recognize there are 573 Federally recognized tribes that are very much alive and active, including the Catawba. Though their population had declined severely by the early 1900s, the remaining members rebuilt their nation and held on to their traditions. The tribal leaders worked for 20 years to regain their Federal recognition (given up in 1959), a feat they accomplished in 1994. The current Catawba Reservation lies on 700 acres just across the South Carolina border outside of Rock Hill. There are over 3000 registered Catawba citizens, living across the United States and abroad, though most live on or near the reservation.

The long-standing Catawba pottery tradition remains strong, with clay being dug from the banks of the Catawba River, some of the clay holes have been in use for hundreds of years. Pieces are hand shaped and fired over an open fire, the clay and the type of wood in the fire give the pottery its distinctive color and look. Bridging to modern times, the Nation sells some pieces on their website: https://www.catawbaindiancrafts.com/collections.

As we celebrate what we're thankful for this Thanksgiving, we're also given the important opportunity to understand a history which predates the charming tales of Fullwood, Stumptown, and what is now known as Matthews, NC.

Image via Catawba Nation

For more information: This information and more is available online on the Catawba Indian Nation’s website.

The Catawba Cultural Center is open to visitors Monday through Saturday (9:00 am to 5:00 pm) looking to learn more about the history and current state of the Nation. Catawba Cultural Center, 1536 Tom Steven Road, Rock Hill, SC 29730.

Fried Turkeys the J Bones Way

Photo courtesy of Jerome Brooks

Jerome Brooks has been married for 29 years. For the first 10 years of marriage, his wife would do all the cooking; he would “grill.”

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

But, in 1999, when he left his job and started working for himself, his days sometimes ended early. He’d soon be responsible for taking care of his two daughters after they got out of school, and also cooking supper for the family (wife, Alicia, is a lawyer). “When she got home,” he said, “the food was ready.”

In the beginning, he’d do “basic stuff” – stuff like spaghetti, fried chicken, beef, cube steaks and Gumbo – basic family food that he’d grown up with in Louisiana.  “I had a pretty good sense of taste,” said Jerome.

After a while, he bought a Kitchen Aid mixer. His wife told him straight-out that she wasn’t going to use it herself.  His answer? “I guess I’ve got to learn how to cook a cake!” And voila – out came his special pound cake with five flavors.

All along, he continued cooking his very special turkeys – both deep fried and smoked - a tradition that began during the holidays with family and friends and extended to his work. Also, his church (Mt. Moriah) came calling.

Photo courtesy Jerome Brooks

“My turkey (cooking) started when deep-frying turkeys (became popular),” said Jerome. He soon learned that aluminum didn’t crisp his turkeys the way that stainless steel pots did. He also purchased a (regular) two-bird electric smoker.  “What made me fall for the frying – I love the crispy taste,” he said. “I love it for the taste and it’s crispy. When you do it in aluminum, sometimes it’s not as crisp.”

In truth, after tasting this new type of cooked turkey, he never went back. “When I first tried a fried turkey, I didn’t want another baked turkey,” he said. Apparently, neither did his friends, family, fellow parishioners, and co-workers. So began the experimenting.

“I started off with one flavor and found another one that was better,” he said. He found the magic taste with “certain seasonings, liquid, apple and hickory wood.”  He says his turkeys are like a Cajun turkey – “with Cajun seasoning, so it’s got a nice little spice to it.”

While he cooked turkeys up to 10 hours, he found the timing was too long; he settled on five hours of cook time. Instead of basting his liquids and seasonings on the outside of the bird, he decided to inject the mixture.  “All of those juices are trapped inside. People are amazed at how good they are,” said Jerome. “Each year, I’m always learning something.”

He originally used peanut oil but found Canola oil as an alternative for those people with peanut allergies.

As time went on, demand for his cooked turkeys continued to soar. So much so that he’d need to start cooking Thanksgiving turkeys a few days in advance, especially if his family was traveling for the holidays. “A couple of years in a row, I did 15, 16 turkeys,” he said, noting that he wanted to give them their cooked turkeys closer to the holiday. “I wanted people to have fresh turkey on Thanksgiving.” Last year, he cooked eight a few days before Thanksgiving and ended up staying up way past midnight.

Then, as things started snowballing, his wife put her foot down. “My wife said ‘wait a minute.” When this went into (our) dinnertime, she said, ‘you’re gonna have to say no.’ More people want me to do them than I have time to do. That’s how I was running into my dinnertime,” he said.

Jerome attributes his popular turkeys to much trial and error and a great cooking technique: the key, he says, is how you drop the bird into the fryer – SLOWLY – so that the oil cannot bubble up and cause a fire.

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

But, then, four years ago, he ate lamb at a friend’s house and didn’t like the strong meat-taste. He said, “I’m gonna come up with a recipe that I like!” and his special lamb dish was born. “It’s not just turkey (now) - my thing is now lamb,” he said, noting that he cooked his signature dish for a Valentine’s Day party this year and also cooks it regularly for his pastor.

In the future, he plans to get a “J Bones” food truck and cook his signature lamb and turkey, in addition to ribs and chicken. “There’s a lot of other stuff I’d like to do,” he said. “But, I’ll start off slowly.”

Morning Minute: November 15, 2018

News About Town: The Town Council has approved an LED Conversion for increasing energy efficiency in facility lighting around Matthews. The original estimate, $51,733.86, did not anticipate needs for improvement to certain areas of the Community Center in poor condition and Hood Room upgrades in town hall. With the additions to the the scope of the project total cost is approximately $60,000, but with increased efficiency will have an anticipated return-on-investment (ROI) in under 2 years.

News Around Town: There’s no shame in dreading a day in the kitchen preparing for a Thanksgiving meal, especially when you know you’ll spend the next day doing all the dishes. This year you have two downtown Matthews restaurants ready to smoke a bird for you. Moe’s BBQ (111 Matthews Station St, 704-814-6637) is offering whole smoked turkeys for $50 and trays of sides for $30, orders have to be in by Monday, November 19. Mac’s Speed Shop (142 E. John Street, 704-444-0332) is offering 2 sizes of birds: the smaller is $55 for turkeys between 12-14 pounds and $110 for a 20-22 pound bird.

One Good Thing: Tonight is the 10th Annual Festival of Trees in the lobby of Novant Health Matthews (for old timers Presbyterian Hospital Matthews). Festivities include the lighting of themed holiday trees decorated by area businesses and nonprofits. Check out the cheery, modern, dog themed tree decorated by Barks and Blooms (sneak peek in their lovely photos above). There will also be holiday classic treats to eat, live music, and a visit from Santa Claus. Want to take something home? Raffles and a silent auction to benefit local area nonprofits can fill that desire. If you’re staring longingly at your holiday decor (ahem Norah, it’s too early for reindeer earrings) tonight is your night. Novant Matthews Festival of Trees, November 15, 5:30 - 7:30 PM, 1500 Matthews Township Parkway, Matthews.