Here is what we know about the untimely and dramatic death of Captain Jackson. Dated Sunday, August 11 in the American Weekly Mercury in Philadelphia, PA: It was received in Boston, the news of Captain Newark Jackson’s death. In Barbados, Captain Jackson took aboard his schooner three Portuguese men. One night when the ship was […]
Guest inquiry: conching chocolate
Conching chocolate was a major development for chocolate, invented by Rodolphe Lindt. He wanted to improve the flavor and texture of eating chocolate. In 1879, he developed the process of conching, which produced superior chocolate aroma and melting characteristics. The conche aerates and removes moisture from the chocolate, drives off unsuitable flavors, and turns the […]
In Honor of Father’s Day
Our Founding Fathers and Chocolate George Washington was a documented chocolate lover. Chocolate was a favorite drink at Mount Vernon in George Washington’s lifetime. His first recorded order for chocolate was for 20 pounds of the delicious treat, which arrived from England in 1758. He continued to buy chocolate throughout his life, in quantities as […]
My dear friend and neighbor, Jane
Nothing is grander than spending a beautiful spring afternoon with a delicious cup of chocolate and my dear friend and neighbor, Jane. Mrs. Jane Franklin Mecom, the youngest sister of our famous Benjamin Franklin, lives in a small two-story brick house built by Ebenezer Clough (ca. 1716), just behind the Old North Church on Unity […]
Who was Captain Newark Jackson and why is there a chocolate shop named after him?
Captain Newark Jackson was a mariner and merchant in Boston’s North End during the 1730s and ’40s. But he truly enjoyed his work as a chocolate maker. He owned a chocolate mill and made and sold chocolate in his shop near what was Mr. Clark’s Shipyard. Besides selling chocolate and other goods, he was also […]