Talking turkey: a vintage motorist selects her Thanksgiving dinner

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Thanksgiving and the turkey have a longstanding relationship, which usually ends with a spell in the oven for the turkey. An estimated $983.3 million will be spent on turkeys alone in this year, apparently. That's an particularly specific figure and we've all been rather too busy to check its reliability, but it sounds like millions of Americans are in for a good feast today, so that's something to be thankful for.

"Picking a turkey" (which is the caption accompanying the photograph) wasn't quite such a straightforward job in the past as it is today. The lady seen here had to drive to a turkey farm in order to pick one. And while her fashionable and no doubt expensive clothing makes it seem like she’s ready for a grand dinner already, that can hardly be the case. She still has to attend to the slaughtering, plucking, preparation and stuffing of the turkey before it she can enjoy the sight and smell of it nicely roasted on her plate. That was still to be done, but very possibly not by her but by her kitchen staff. The year was 1927, almost a century ago.

But while her fur coat and luxurious accessories are suggestive of wealth, the car is perhaps something less exciting than we'd expect. We can just about make out a wooden artillery wheel—perhaps this was just the practical motor, meant for drives to the shops and farms?

Have a happy Thanksgiving.

Words: Jeroen Booij
Picture: H. Armstrong Roberts

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