Spot Light on Josephine Cottam SHAW

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Spot Light on Josephine Cottam Shaw

for the

Bob & Lou Shaw Family ReunionJune 2008

with the theme of Family Recipe Book

Keith Shaw writes;

Hi Karen, Maxine, Chyrl, Beth & Bob

I have been asked to interview you and write a one page (probablymore) spot light on Josephine Cottam Shaw for the Bob & Lou ShawFamily Reunion with the theme of Family Recipe Book on July 5,2008.

The 15 interview questions are;1. What did Josephine like to cook?

2. What are the recipes for the things she liked to cook?3. What did you like to eat?4. What one (or more) memory of your mother preparing food(cooking, gardening, canning, etc) would you like to share?5. Tell us about bread and milk.6. Tell us about your mothers hands and heart.7. Tell us about that certain cooking smell you can smell even to thisday.8. Please provide the recipe for one item that you would have likedyour mother to prepare for this reunion (but you will have to trust meto cook it, if you will be unable to attend).9. Please share your mothers favorite (or special) poem.10. What should we know about your mother and cherries?11. What should we know about horse carts?12. Tell us about your mothers childhood. (Especially the part aboutcandy)


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13. In your opinion what son or daughter of your mother cookssomething just like your mother would cook it? (Please includeyourself) Tell us about this.14. Do onions come in any where?15. From your heart, with tears in your eyes, buckle down andhammer something out that we can read that goes to our heart withtears in our eyes. (Let us hear you talk to your Mother).

If it is ok with you, I will take what you send me, make a draft edition,then send it back to you for your review & approval, and then make afinal edition for the reunion. OK?

Love yaKeith

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Maxine Shaw Owen writes;

About our dear Mother One of the things I remember her talking about when they were newlymarried and living in Snowville was being chased by a rabid coyoteand having to jump a fence to get away from it. It sounds scary to me.

Bless her heart she was so kind and sweet and so giving. We werealways poor, but always clean (well, almost always) and I never remember being hungry she always found something for us to eat.

I can still smell her homemade bread big brown loaves and we allwanted the crust. There was always peanut butter, and honey. Andvery often home made butter.

Her pies were delicious, but she couldnt make a very good cake. Ican remember Venis bringing everything for a lemon pie so she couldmake it for her.

Karen has always talked about our fried chicken. Now that is amemory seeing those chickens flopping around on the ground and


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the boiling water ready to dunk them in to remove all the feathers and pin feathers.

We ate a lot of beans and I thought they were delicious.

Oh, I forgot to mention the fried bread She would break off pieces flatten them fold them over and fry them in grease. Nothing better!

I dont remember her using many recipes. She just seemed to make dowith whatever she had and it all seems amazing to me.

Mother had a heart of gold she was always helping others. And sheloved her family especially those two little sisters of ours Karen andChyrl, and, of course Robert Keith. After Bob had polio (in the early

40s, I believe) she spoiled him somethin awful. (Love you Bob.)

We had quite a few bums passing through were we lived (nowknown as the homeless) and they always came to our house becauseshe would feed them, pass by the neighbors and come to our place.She had a few dishes she used for that purpose only and never letthem use our dishes or silverware. I was always afraid of them,naturally because they were sometimes dirty and scary looking but she never seemed to be afraid.

There wasnt a task she couldnt or wouldnt do. From milking cows leading big bulls around by a chain in their noses when they would getout now thats scary.

Working in the fields right along with some older siblings and, of course Dad making sure we stayed in school and taught goodmanners and went to Church even though she go often for variousreasons. She had a deep, abiding faith. Always to the very end of her life here on this earth.

Here come the tears you talked about, Keith.

I just want to say that I was at the foot of mothers bed in the hospitalwith my hands on her feet when she took her last breath and thevery last words out of her mouth were Take care of Karen andChyrl for me please. And little sisters, you sweet beautiful girls I


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tried. I love every one of my sisters and brothers very much. Wehave a good heritage dont we?

Thanks to every one for making this so special.

Maxine Owen

Am I the only one in the family that doesnt have a computer?

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Chyrl Shaw Markworth writes;

I am writing about my dear mother Josephine Cottam Shaw. I was 13

when she passed away, so my memories of her were of her later life inRiverbank, CA. She was a wonderful mother and even tho I onlyknew her for 13 years on this earth, she taught me many things duringthis time.

She loved to tell me about her growing up in Utah and getting marriedand having her children. She loved her husband, children andgrandchildren. She was proud of each one. She was a humble personand loved the gospel. She had a strong testimony of the gospel. Iremember as a child her bearing her testimony when she felt wellenough to attend Fast Sunday. She really laid the foundation for mytestimony.

Mother was a wonderful cook even tho I never saw a recipe book or any recipes in the home. Everything was from scratch. She couldmake a meal out of nothing. If you know what I mean. Sometimesthose meals were the best!

I remember as a young child looking out our kitchen window in

Riverbank and seeing a huge garden. There was everything in thatgarden. It was called a victory garden because it was at the end of thedepression and during World War II. Everyone had a victory garden. Iremember my favorite thing was to go outside and taking a salt shaker and sitting among the tomatoes and eating tomato after tomato and

putting salt on them! Yummy! She would make jam from raspberries,


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strawberries and blackberries. The corn tasted so good withhomemade butter.

During the school year Karen and I would attend primary inRiverbank at a community building and during the hot summer wewould bicycle about 2 miles into Riverbank to attend primary. Iremember bicycling home and turning off the main road onto our lanewhere our 3 room home was. (It had been a chicken coop and dadmade it into a small house.) As we came down the lane soon floatingthrough the air was the smell of fresh home made bread. We would

bicycle faster and faster until we got home and there were warm slicesof bread with homemade butter and jam. We were in heaven. Thishappened every Saturday until mom became very sick. What awonderful memory!

Every night Mom would make Dad Bread and Milk and sugar in alarge bowl. He enjoyed it so much. Mother loved to please him andthen he would finish the rest of the meal. I am sure he did this all hislife.

Mother's favorite recipes which I can remember was her chili, chickenand noodles soup (homemade noodles,) and of course her friedchicken. I know her chicken was so good because she would kill thechicken the day before on Saturday and we would have it everySunday. It was out of this world. If she could be at the reunion Iwould have her bring her fried chicken.

My favorite memory of mother cooking was when she would maketaffy. This was always done outdoors as I remember it. She would

butter her hands and then take the hot taffy and stretch it longer andlonger between her two hands. She loved to tease us as she wouldstretch the taffy almost to the ground and then whip it back up beforeit reached the dirt. We would gasp because we thought she would let it

get to the ground, but she never did. She stretched and stretched ituntil it became white in color. Then she would stretch it out on wax

paper and cut with scissors into pieces. It was so good. I always couldtaste the vinegar taste it had. Yummy!

When we went to Erma's funeral her granddaughters sang In MyGrandmothers Old Fashioned Garden". I didn't know it was one of


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her favorite songs. This was mother's favorite song. She would haveme sing it over and over again. It used to be in the old primary song

book. Also when she wasn't feeling well Karen would play the pianoand her and I would sing hymns to her. This seemed to help her feel

better and comfort her.

Everyday throughout my life I have felt my mother beside me feelingmy joys and sorrows. She has always been there for me to comfort meand to let me know she loves me and still watches over me. I can'ttruly explain it, but I know the veil is thin and she is with us each daywith her love and encouragement.

The siblings who were in Riverbank during her last few years triedtheir best to comfort her and take care of her. Karen, Maxine, Beth,

Bob and my self did the best we could to love and support her. I am sothankful that Mother was in Ogden when she passed away. Venis,Erma, Phyllis, and Maxine were there to care and watch over her

before she passed away.

Here is recipe that is easy to make: I'm sure mom would have lovedit.Cottage cheese Salad: 16 oz cottage cheese,8 oz tub cool whip,1 small jello package,About 2 cups marshmallows,About 2 cups fruit (bananas, pineapple (drained) strawberries(drained) or whatever!Just mix together and enjoy!

My mother's heart and hands go together!Love, Cooking, Taking care of her children and husband and workingso hard all her life.You could put all her earthly possessions in a small box when she left

this life. She left a love of the gospel, love for her family and hardwork and caring for others.

During the depression I remember her feeding the homeless on our kitchen steps. We lived near the railroad and she never turned anyoneaway who needed food.


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She was a wonderful, blessed mother!

Chyrl Markworth

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Beth Shaw Parker Writes

Our Mother, Josephine Shaw, was a very hard working, loving, caringmother. Besides doing any job on the farm that was necessary, youwould often see her moving our mean bull around by the ring in hisnose. She wasn't fearful at all. She would put all of us children in thehouse to keep us safe and we would peer from the windows watchingher move the bull from one field to another.

She made the very best sauerkraut around. There would always be a barrel of sauerkraut at our home. We would eat it straight from the barrel, after pushing the mold away or, if we could afford them, wewould have the sauerkraut with wieners.

Beth Parker

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Robert Keith Shaw writes;

A Sons Tribute to Josephine Cottam ShawBy: Robert Keith Shaw

Id like to pay tribute to my dear deceased Mother, Josephine CottamShaw. She was born in Snowville, Utah, on May 6, 1892. Josieattended a country school, across the State Line, in Stone, Idaho.

Her father, John Cottam, went on a Church Mission to the TexasArea. A true story is about him finding a dime in the Texas dust,allowing the Elders to cross a railroad bridge, which helped them intheir work. They were traveling without purse or script at this time.


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Lillie Rose Cottam (mother) kept ties with her family in PleasantView, Utah. Many of Josies babies were born in the Pleasant Viewand Ogden area.

Josie had a sister, Mabel Cottam Ellis. I feel I have always had a goodrelationship with dear Aunt Mabel and her family.

Josephine and John Riley Shaw were married in the Logan, UtahTemple in 1910. They lived near Promontory Point, Utah, for severalyears. This was a hard life for them. They lived in a wagon bed for sometime. Josies cooking skills were challenged by this type of life.

They moved to a beautiful farm in Pleasant View and lived there for about 15 years. John and William, his brother, became owners, when

their father, Edmund Shaw died. John and Josie had a fine family of nine children. Chyrl was born later, in California.

Josie cooked for the grain threshers. The harvesting crew praised her ample and excellent dinners. Not many modern kitchen applianceswere available, at that time, to assist Josie with her cooking.

The brick house caught on fire due to electrical problems, but wecontinued to live there. The farms were lost during the GreatDepression of the 1930s.

We moved to Grandmother Cottams house on the hill for a time. Itis my understanding that Josie and Mabel inherited the home, orchard,and land after their mothers death.

We moved to Oakdale, CA. to work on Uncle Eugene and AuntHarriet (Shaw) Higgenbothams large rancho. The Higgenbothamstreated us kindly. We lived in a tent with a wooden floor, located intheir massive oak grove. Our tent was located across the highway

from the Higgenbotham home. Living and cooking were difficult inthe crowded tent with our family of six people. The smoke found itsway out of small openings in the tent.

We moved to another Higgenbotham ranch on Langsworth Ave.Later, John bought a twelve acre dairy farm near Riverbank, CA.Here, we had to qualify with the power company to obtain electrical


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service in our home which included purchasing an electrical range. Nomore cooking for Josie on a wood and coal stove on a hot day!

Karen and Chyrl and Bob were younger. We attended Riverbank School and Oakdale High. Chyrl was graduated from Modesto HighSchool. Bob served during World War 11 in the U.S. Coast Guard andhe was later graduated from Modesto Junior College.

Beth and Maxine was older and helped Josie with the cooking andhousehold duties. Josie was very ill, at this time. Beth stayed out of high school for a year to care for her mother and her younger siblings.

The menu usually included breakfast cereal, beans, ham, rice,spaghetti, Ritz crackers, our own milk, butter, eggs, garden produce,

and chicken meat, etc.Beth married Sherman Parker and Maxine married Walter Olsen.Robert went on a mission to the Central States. He later married MaryLou Abbott in 1950.

Josephine died on a trip to Utah with the Olsens in May, 1951. Her death was a terrible upset to the family. Later, Karen married KeithThomas and Chyrl married Carl Markworth.

Josephine was a constant help and protector to me. She assisted mewith my understanding of the scriptures. She had a firm testimony of the Gospel and was able to help other less fortunate families.Josephine had a difficult life but she made the best of circumstances. Ilove her. I appreciate all that she did for me and the family. WithJosephine, it was love unfeigned.

Robert Keith Shaw

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Karen Shaw Blakely writes;

Our Mother never measured anything and all of her food tasted oh, sogood. So, we don't have recipes, as such. I can remember some of myfavorite things. They are:


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Salt water taffy.

Cold bread and milk she would fix our father, John Shaw, everySunday night.

Chili sauce (this was put up in jars and consisted of tomatoes, onions, peppers and other seasonings). We would serve over eggs or as anaccompaniant to meat. It was very delicious and my mouth watersthinking of it.

Delicious fried chicken dinners on Sunday afternoon. This was after she had caught the chicken the day before, cut the head off with anaxe while holding the chicken on a tree stump, letting it flop aroundon the ground until all life was gone, plucking it and skinning it and

cutting it into pieces. She would then brown it in melted shortening,add a little water, cover it and let it steam. She made the best friedchicken and was ahead of her time because she took all the skin off of it and consequently there had to be less calories.

I wish that I had some of her recipes....... Her pies were delicious andher pie crusts the best!!! The very first thing she taught me to makewas a custard pie.

Karen Blakely

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