From the Archives - Feb. 15, 2024

This photograph (from the M.P. DeWolf collection) was taken in one of the Bonners Ferry Lumber Company camps ca. 1910. When “Cook” is making meals, biscuits are on the menu! Don’t they look delicious? 

An interesting thing about this photo, are the two wooden boxes on the shelf in the upper right-hand corner — labeled “Yeast Foam.”

In the process of brewing beer, yeast eats sugar and releases CO2, which causes a ton of bubbles to foam up; the foam is called krausen (kroy-zen). The krausen was scraped from the top of vats. As it dried, the “yeast foam” became a soft powder. 

Commercial bakeries at the time were using brewer’s yeast in their baking process. However, brewer’s yeast was not readily available for the modern homemaker or camp cook. In 1919, the Northwestern Yeast Company was formed in Chicago to market “Magic Yeast Foam” to the public. This made it possible for millions to bake homemade leavened bread for their families - the “secret ingredient” being yeast foam. 

The yeast foam, from the two wooden boxes on the shelf, helped “Cook” bake golden brown piping hot biscuits right from the oven. Can you smell that wonderful fragrance? The crew, with mouths watering, probably gobbled them down so fast there was no time to enjoy the smell. In hopes of having more biscuits, the camp crew probably said many “thanks” to “Cook.”

The Boundary County Historical Society and Museum, 7229 Main St., Bonners Ferry, Idaho, sponsors this column.

Visit the museum Thursday-Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., or visit the museum's website at boundarycountymuseum.org or its Facebook page for historical photos and stories, and to see upcoming events. The museum can be reached at doyouremember@meadowcrk.com or by telephone at 208-267-7720. Thank you for your continued support.