Menu from Camp Funston, 1917

 On this Veterans Day I want to thank all those who are serving and who have served in the military. Your service is appreciated.


So thinking about Veterans Day and its precursor Armistice Day, I started wondering what people were eating during the World War I years. I came across a menu available through a digitized menu collection at the Los Angeles Public Library, for Camp Funston, Kansas.

Camp Funston holds an important place in the history of World War I. Funston saw nearly 50,000 recruits trained there. Also, it was the camp that had the first reported incidence of the Spanish Flu, the flu that was responsible for the 1918 Flu Epidemic. (To learn more about Camp Funston, see Wikipedia)

On December 25, 1917 a special meal was prepared for the 353rd Infantry at Camp Funston.

 

From the Los Angeles Public Library Menu Collection, http://www.lapl.org/resources/en/menu_collection.html

Many of the menu items reflect what we are use to seeing as a traditional Holiday dinner; turkey and stuffing with yams and cranberry sauce, vegetables and desserts. Probably the only thing that looks out of place on a menu are the cigars and cigarettes. This menu reflects its time and what was available in Kansas. I'm assuming the mention of California fruits may have been a special treat.

Checking out a menu collection allows you to see what your family may have ate when they went out. It's a great way to gain some social history perspective on your ancestors.