Note: this is the second part of my interview with Connie Lapallo, author of Dark Enough to See the Stars in a Jamestown Sky. When you’re done reading about how the Jamestown women survived on acorns, I highly recommend that you stop by Connie’s site to read her daughter’s detailed account of making acorn flour
The ladies in this story survive in large part because of their acorn stockpile. They knew that the Native Americans used acorns as a food source, but how did they know how to prepare them properly?
Acorns were an important food source during lean times for the Natives, but in England they had also been food for the poorest peasants—a supplemental grain when rye and barley were in short supply. In fact, since the Stone Age, many cultures have eaten acorns as food. The main thing is to peel them and leach out the tannic acid. Then they can be ground up like any other grain.
The women probably already knew how to leach acorns, but Pocahontas may have confirmed to Anne Laydon that the Natives also ate acorns and how they prepared them. In fact, Pocahontas probably would have been enthusiastic about acorns as a supplemental food—which may have been helpful to the women to hear.
The breakthrough for these women (at least in my telling) was when it dawned on them that their prayer for manna—daily bread—from heaven, might come in a source they had previously viewed as fit for only hogs and the poorest of the poor. Could they humble themselves? Were they willing to work for it? Could they accept God providing in such a way?
Joan had collected acorns half-heartedly until she realized that they were falling like rain—bread from heaven, just as they had prayed for.
I had written about the women collecting nuts of all kinds before I, like Joan, was struck by the volume of acorns available all over the ground here in Virginia. It hit me as forcibly as it did Joan and in much the same way. A quote from John Smith sprang to mind:
“…of 500 [settlers] within six months after [my] departure there remained not past 60 men, women, and children–most miserable and poor creatures. And those were preserved for the most part by roots, herbs, acorns, walnuts, berries, now and then a little fish.”
Smith goes on to list all the horrendous things that the settlers had eaten, but I’d never before noticed that he distinguishes those who survived as being “preserved for the most part” by plant foods, including acorns. And the nuts and acorns would have been most available in the fall—waiting until winter’s severe hunger set in would have been too late. So the ones with foresight, like the women in my story, worked and gathered before they were into full starvation. That was the key.
But then I wondered—what about Jamestown suffering the worst drought in 500 years (as research now proves). Would there really have been many nuts and acorns? I researched it and found that nut trees have their top-producing years—mast years—in severe drought! So I knew I was on the right track.
Also, to my surprise, I learned that acorns contain fats and proteins as well as carbohydrates, and they’re extremely high in B vitamins, amino acids, and minerals. Suddenly it made sense to me—the whole oak was in the acorn! Far from being a “poor” food, the acorn was rich beyond words, dense in the nutrition the settlers sorely needed. Those who ate acorns may have found themselves healthier for more reasons than one. The women’s instincts were right.
Your children are homeschooled. Has having an author as their mom provided them with any unexpected lessons? Has your passion for writing and research inspired any projects for your kids?
They learned that a big project requires patient research and belief that “there’s a book in there,” even when you can’t see it. It’s about thinking in the long-term, knowing that single footsteps take you to your goal.
They each critiqued the manuscript. I took their comments and suggestions seriously and incorporated quite a few.
My oldest daughter (who was 16) painted the ship on the book’s cover. After photographing it, she had to learn Adobe Illustrator to create the rest of the cover and the spine. Then she had to adapt to critiques of her artwork and make changes for artistic and practical reasons. The cover design took an entire summer—and about a case of dark chocolate! She designed my website, business cards, and signing banner as well. She also designed and sewed 17th century costumes for herself, her sister, and me, which required that she research materials and patterns. (I don’t sew at all, so I was no help!) She now plans to make a career of this type of work—graphic design and marketing.
We all put our heads together to come up with a way to create visually appealing, accurate maps. We found the solution in satellite maps and Ultimate Paint.
All four children (the youngest was 10) began to grasp what it meant to format a book, edit it, and tend to details even when everyone was tired. They began to understand the meaning of market appeal, of being on deadline, and of choosing priorities. I often asked their opinions as it progressed.
My two girls also turned our kitchen into an acorn-flour mill for a week. (Sarah’s version of the story and her pictures are on my website.) They decided to use 17th century techniques—discovering it was not nearly as fun as the geometry they were escaping! It was hard, tedious, finger-cutting work. After a while, it became a mission to finish and actually get the flour made, which they did. They created a bread recipe of half acorn flour and half cornmeal, as we suspected they made at Jamestown. This made a hearty, brown, tasty bread.
My two girls accompanied me to Houston for a week of presentations and signings. They hauled inventory, counted money, kept records, greeted people, and set up displays. More hard work, but a good way to see the business of a book come full circle.
