Here is a short article I ran across recently while reading my Mining Engineering newsletter from the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration:
Quote:Mining History in another vein…
SME members and student members attending the Scotch Nightcap at the 2013 Annual Meeting received a tasty bit of mining history, courtesy of Jeanne Anderson of Golden, Colorado. Anderson brought 500 Cornish pasties to share with the nightcap attendees, along with bits of mining lore about the edible symbol of the Cousin Jack miners who emigrated from Cornwall to work in the mines of Colorado. The famous Cousin Jack pasty is a pie made with meat, potatoes, and vegetables baked inside a pastry dough shell. As the miner unwrapped his lunch, he would refer to the pasty as a “letter from ome.”
Pasty (pronounced pass-tee) recipes have been found dating back to 1100 A.D. They vary slightly by geography, but the basic concept of a handheld, complete meal remains the same. Miners often left a bit of the crust from the pasty for the fairies, or Tommy Knockers, who lived in the mines, so they wouldn’t play mischievous pranks.
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