yesterday's tennessee

makin' molasses

from the collection of Athalia Boroughs Taylor

The making of sorghum molasses starts on a fall day with the stripping of the fodder from the sorghum cane. A hand made, wooden sword is sometimes used to speed the process. Otherwise, the cane is grabbed at the top and stripped to the bottom. The fodder needs to be dead and dry for this process to be effective. A good set of gloves is also very important. The weather is usually still warm so the fodder and the sweat make for an irritating combination.

The sorghum cane is cut and loaded on a mule drawn wagon. The seed head is removed to be ground and used for cattle feed in a special mixture. The sorghum cane is hauled to the processing yard and the process below followed to convert the sorghum cane into sweet brown molasses. Get the hot biscuits and fresh butter ready!