Stove Top Stuffing Obit
posted by Dave Hoffman
Ruth M. Siems, lead inventor of stove top stuffing, died last week. Her obit in the Times was, sadly, patronizing and somewhat nasty. Margalit Fox writes that Siems’ invention will make its appearance in homes tomorrow, “welcome or otherwise”, that it is “[c]omforting or campy,” and it is an “enduring emblem of postwar convenience culture.”
Look. I’m not a huge fan of this stuff, but – like other parts of the “postwar convenience culture” – it has made it possible for Americans to spend less time at the stove, and at pursuits that they apparently find more rewarding. Like working. Or spending time with children. And, it seems that snarking at the product misses an interesting life story. The obit gives us a few facts:
Ruth Miriam Siems was born in Evansville, Ind., on Feb. 20, 1931. She earned an undergraduate degree in home economics from Purdue University in 1953, and after graduation took a job at the General Foods plant in Evansville, where she worked on flours and cake mixes. She moved to the company’s technical center in Tarrytown, N.Y., not long afterward. Ms. Siems retired in 1985.
Besides Ms. Porter, of Copley, Ohio, Ms. Siems is survived by another sister, Rosemary Snyder, of Chicago; and a brother, David, of Milford, Mich.
November 23, 2005 at 10:57 am
Posted in: Current Events
Print This Post
Responses (1)
pat - October 29, 2006 at 5:08 pm
I feel that stove top stuffing is one of the products that makes my day much more easier, having the busy life style that I have. I come in add my own extra ingredients and my family love it. If it can please my whole household, its all right with me.
Leave a Reply