Chalk on the Blackboard: Buffalo, ND

Happy New Year greetings from the Historic 1916 Buffalo High School located at 303 Pearl Street in Buffalo, North Dakota, just three miles north of I-94 at exit 314. After closing in 1978 the school was listed on the National Register of Historic Properties In 2001, the same year it became the property of the Buffalo Historical Society, a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation. It has undergone many years of renovations and repairs to make it a viable and important part of our community once again.

Snow and cold started the winter season early in December; however, the weather did not hinder a social gathering at the school on New Year’s Eve to celebrate another successful year for the Buffalo Historical Society. The bitter cold afternoon was warmed by an abundance of delicious food and fellowship shared with friends.

The school has a long history of providing good food. In 1916 the two story brick high school was added to the west section of the existing 1902 school building. The basement area provided rooms for the home economics department and a lunch room, as well as the manual training department. Through the years the location of the rooms changed. In 1959 the lunch room was relocated several blocks away in the newly constructed Buffalo Elementary School. Many great cooks, who were our mothers, grandmothers, neighbors, and friends, prepared the hot lunches for the hungry students. We fondly remember Dora Buttke, Clara Grieve, Edna Johnson, Nora Johnson, Mary Larson, Winnie Miller, Alma Nudell, Lottie Pavlik, Josephine Pfeifer, Stella Tabor, Margaret Von Bank, Claudia Von Bank, and our beloved Beverly Jager who was named the “World’s Greatest Lunch Lady” when she retired after forty years of service.

The home economics department moved from the basement to the large west room on the main level of the high school and in 2021 was named the “Carolyn Pfeifer Room” in her honor. We have many favorite memories and recipes from our home economics classes and are grateful to Carolyn Pfeifer for her many years of teaching students to prepare and serve great food. The cookbooks and recipes of the past contain a history and heritage worth reading, and of course they are an inspiration to create a bit of comfort during this season filled with shorter days, snow and cold temperatures.

A classic cookbook, Favorite Recipes of Home Economics Teachers, Dessert Edition from 1963, is a treasure. I want to share an easy recipe from this book, CAKE N’ PUDDIN’. Mix together 1 cup brown sugar and ½ cup cocoa in a 13x9 oblong pan and stir in 2 cups water. Snip 12 regular size marshmallows into quarters and scatter over this. Prepare 1 devil’s food cake mix according to package directions and spoon over the mixture in the cake pan. Sprinkle ½ cup chopped nuts over the top and bake according to the cake mix instructions. This sweet treat will have a rich pudding under the cake, marshmallows will blend and some will rise to the top. Enjoy with plenty of whipped cream or ice cream.

I encourage you to visit www.buffalond.com, connect with us on Facebook @ Buffalo, ND, or please contact me at 701-412-4485 for more information and to learn about the Historic 1916 Buffalo High School.