Joseph R. Haynes - Virginia Barbecue: a History

Published by American Palate

A Division of The History Press

Charleston, SC

www.historypress.net

Copyright 2016 by Joseph R. Haynes

All rights reserved

Cover: Upper-left photo on front is Van Jackson of the Barbecue Exchange in Gordonsville, Virginia. Authors collection.

First published 2016

e-book edition 2016

ISBN 978.1.43965.787.4

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016939301

print edition ISBN 978.1.46713.673.0

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

For all the old-time Virginia barbecue cooks who have passed on.

To all who still proudly cook delicious and authentic Virginia barbecue today.

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to thank all of the people who assisted, encouraged and supported me in my efforts to research and write this book. First, I thank my wife, who rode with me for hours as we made numerous long road trips on weekends while I conducted research meeting great Virginia barbecue cooks and enjoying their delicious Virginia-style barbecue. Second, I thank my family, who tolerated my many dinner conversations about Virginia barbecue history.

I also thank the good people at the University of Virginia Library, the Virginia Tech Libraries, the Library of Virginia, the Boatwright Memorial Library at the University of Richmond, the Boston Public Library and too many historical societies in Virginia to name. I also want to thank Lorraine I. Quillon, who pulled no punches when offering valuable and sometimes painful advice. Dr. Matthew B. Reeves, Ashley Runyon and Jane Friedman went beyond the call of duty in their assistance in making this book a reality. Thanks to Lake E. High Jr. for his advice and his contagious love and passion for authentic southern barbecue. Thanks to Robert F. Moss for the inspiration and encouragement to write this book. My friend Al McNeill has my gratitude for his valuable advice. I also extend my thanks to the good folks at The History Press for their assistance in helping turn my manuscript into a book.

INTRODUCTION

You can find barbecue in Virginia. You can also find Virginia barbecue in Virginia. There is a difference. This book is about authentic Virginia-style barbecue and its history. When I was a youngster, my father often took me to a local barbecue restaurant that served delicious Virginia-style barbecued beef sandwiches. The cooks there would chop the tender meat before adding a hint of slightly sweet and tangy sauce and serving it on hamburger buns. I liked to top mine with coleslaw. The restaurant closed many years ago when the owner retired. Local residents still miss those barbecued beef sandwiches. For several decades, a local politician hosted beef barbecues on his farm, and all were invited. Roadside vendors sold pork and chicken barbecue basted with a thin, vinegary sauce. The barbecue was tender, and the sauce was spiced and tangy. The barbecue served by the local restaurants and vendors are some of my earliest memories of real Virginia-style barbecue.

In 1978, the owner of a local barbecue restaurant hired me to bus the counter and take to-go orders. I worked there on nights and weekends while in high school. It was my first real job. The memories of the people, the aroma of the barbecue and the tangy flavor of the central Virginiastyle barbecue sauce are still vivid in my mind. Long lines and big crowds were the norm. On many evenings, the owner would give me a look and nodthat was his way of telling me to hang up the sold out sign. I kept a close watch for that look and nod because it meant that I would be getting off early that night.

After graduating high school, I resigned from the barbecue restaurant to attend college. Since those days, I have eaten barbecue at some of the finest barbecue restaurants in the United States. I have also enjoyed barbecue prepared by world champion barbecue cooks. Although the barbecue from places like Texas, North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama is delicious, the Virginia barbecue that I grew up eating is as good as the best that I have enjoyed anywhere else in the country.

Over the years, I have cooked my share of barbecue. I have competed in sanctioned contests with good success. I have been the student of some of the finest barbecue cooks in the world today. The largest organization of barbecue and grilling enthusiasts in the world has certified me as a master barbecue judge. Although I have experimented with many styles of barbecue through the years, the style that I have always found myself spending the most time trying to replicate is the Virginia barbecue that I have enjoyed since my youth. Some of it was tangy. Some of it was sweet. All of it was delicious, and I have never tasted anything exactly like it outside the state of Virginia.

Several authors today, such as Robert F. Moss and Bob Garner, have recognized that southern barbecue was born in Virginia while, at the same time, declaring that Virginia-style barbecue has all but disappeared because almost no Virginia barbecue practices still exist. The truth is, Virginia barbecue is alive and well, and Ive never had a problem finding delicious versions of the real thing.

The widespread lack of knowledge about Virginias barbecue and barbecue traditions is what prompted this book. Herein, I write about the how and the why of barbecue in Virginia in addition to the what. The questions explored in this book include:

How did southern barbecue develop in Virginia?

How did the word barbecue come to Virginia?

What are the details of Virginias barbecue traditions?

How has barbecue in Virginia changed over the centuries?

How did barbecue spread from Virginia to the rest of the South?

Where can authentic Virginia barbecue be found today?

What are some authentic and delicious Virginia-style barbecue recipes that I can make at home?

I realize that some may disagree with my conclusions. I am writing about barbecue, after all. I could have taken the approach of simply stating that on such and such a date, so and so held a barbecue, where someone barbecued a lamb or a hog. I could have stopped after writing about the buckets full of vinegar, salt, butter and pepper used to baste barbecue as it cooked. I could have simply mentioned that Native Americans in Virginia cooked on wooden hurdles and in earthen pots without drawing any conclusions as to how such things influenced Virginias settlers. That would have been the safe route. However, at the end of the day, all I would have is a list of X number of barbecues held in X number of years by some people in Virginia. I would certainly know something about the history of barbecue in Virginia. However, the safe route isnt the most interesting or meaningful route. Therefore, I dug deeper into the subject. I read, observed, listened, debated, analyzed, smelled, tasted, experimented and learned. The result of those activities is this book.