Thanksgiving Turkey: 1919

that recipes of the day often called for turkey to be roasted in a closed pan (so the bird was steamed) and usually for far longer than we would, so you'd have a dry, overcooked turkey with flabby skin.

Most of what we think of as "old-fashioned goodness" originated in advertisements.

I agree, you might get a city kid to hold the dead turkey, but they sure as heck wouldn't have the big smile on their face while they did it. Kids in the country probably would still be proudly holding a turkey they hunted and killed, even now days.

My father, who was born in 1920 and in his day was an avid hunter and still loves wild game, says that when he was a kid, he used to beg his mother to make something other than turkey, as they were so gamey and stringy back then.

i wonder how much better they tasted back then, not to mention people weren't as spoiled which probably made the bird taste even better. Also i wonder how hard nowadays it would be to get a little kid her age to hold a dead turkey like that.

Compare the shape of this bird to the modern turkey. Most turkeys today have been bred to have mostly white meat. The one in this picture has a relatively small breast and relatively large legs and thighs. Today some people pay a lot of money for "heirloom" turkeys similar to the one shown here.