Okay, here's a not very difficult, but slightly offbeat, puzzle. A Texas surveyor had a connection with both of the objects seen in the photos below. What is inscribed on his gravestone?
Gail Borden, Jr.
Born November 9, 1801
Died January 11, 1874
Amoung other things possibly.
Loyal
Gail Borden, Jr.
> Gail Borden, Jr.
> Born November 9, 1801
> Died January 11, 1874
Yes, the building is the county courthouse of Borden County in Gail, Texas. Gail Borden's connection with condensed milk is that he invented the commercially successful process for making it after failing at the meat biscuit business.
Among Mr. Borden's other inventions may be the phrase "Remember the Alamo", which some histories have attributed to him. But what does his gravestone have to say about it all?
Gail Borden, Jr.
I tried and failed. I tried again and again and succeeded.
Gail Borden, Jr.
> I tried and failed. I tried again and again and succeeded.
How about "I tried to make doce de leite and failed. I tried again and again and succeeded. I know it's bad for my blood sugar level, but I love it!"
I can't think of Brazil without thinking of doce de leite. It's basically sweetened condensed milk that's been further condensed by stirring constantly over low heat. I usually overcook it, forgetting that it thickens a lot when cooled. The ideal consistency when cool is such that it won't drip from a spoon, though some prefer it runnier. A lot of Americans find it too sweet, but I was raised on it. Yum!
Gail Borden, Jr.
I had not used condensed milk in years until this past weekend. I really wanted an easy to make banana pudding and found a recipe that included it. Man, that was good....and rich....maybe again in a few years....
Gail Borden, Jr.
A search revealed that it can also be made very simply in the can. Remove the label, place the can directly in a large pan filled with water, bring to a boil, then simmer for two hours, then place in a refrigerator for three to four hours, cut out both ends of the can and slide out the good stuff. It can then be sliced.
Milk candy.
Gail Borden, Jr.
Just as a note of interest (or not), Mr. Borden was a native New Yorker.
He was born in Norwich, situated centrally between Albany, Syracuse and Binghamton.
Another well-know native was Harry Stack Sullivan, famous psychiatrist who developed the theory of interpersonal psychoanalysis.
.
Gail Borden, Jr.
> Just as a note of interest (or not), Mr. Borden was a native New Yorker.
Here's a link to the biographical sketch of Gail Borden, Jr. found in The Handbook of Texas
It looks as if Mr. Borden left New York as soon as he heard about Texas. :>
Gail Borden, Jr.
But he came back to NY, to be buried at Woodlawn Cemetery......;-)
Gail Borden, Jr.
> But he came back to NY, to be buried at Woodlawn Cemetery......;-)
And what a great advertisement that is for New York, eh? :>
Gail Borden, Jr.
He's in good company......
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodlawn_Cemetery_%28Bronx,_New_York%29
Nelson Jacobs La Coste, City Surveyor
Brigadier General Charles Kinnaird Graham, surveyor of the port of New York, also helped layout Central Park.
Matthew Alexander Henson, African-American Surveyor, geographer and explorer, companion of Peary on his trip to the North pole. Henson is reputedly the first person to actually reach the Pole, beating Peary by about 45 minutes. (Later re-interred at Arlington National.)
John Anderson Bensel, surveyor for the Pennsylvania RR, and Surveyor/Engineer in charge of North (Hudson) River waterfront construction.
Major General (CSA) Mansfield Lovell, generally blamed for the loss of New Orleans to the Union, resumed his career as a civil engineer and surveyor in NYC after the War.
Herman Melville, who worked as a surveyor on the Erie Canal.
Gail Borden, Jr.
> He's in good company......
I take it that few of these folks ever worked in Texas, then? :>
Gail Borden, Jr.
Well, Graham served in the Navy in the Gulf of Mexico during the Mexican-American War, and after 1857 was the constructing engineer of the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
Lovell was severely wounded during the Battle of Chapultepec in the Mexican-American War, and returned to NYC to be a street commissioner before the War Between the States, when he enlisted asan officer in the Confederate Army.
So they were in the neighborhood........
Borden was a tough act to follow
> So they were in the neighborhood........
Well, admittedly they would have had a hard time beating the record of Texas surveyor Gail Borden, Jr. I mean, he'd already invented condensed milk and had determined that the meat biscuit wasn't commercially viable. What was left? Light Beer? Fortunately for James Coburn's career on television commercials, none of them thought to patent the idea and had to work at the lesser endeavors already mentioned such as the search for Eskimos or Mexico.
AHA! Did You Mention Beer?
Well, Woodlawn has the Schaefer brothers, Frederick and Maximilian, the guys who brought Lager beer to the USA.
Up until the early 1970's, "Schaefer (was) the one beer to have when you're having more than one."
AHA! Did You Mention Beer?
> Well, Woodlawn has the Schaefer brothers, Frederick and Maximilian, the guys who brought Lager beer to the USA.
>
>
> Up until the early 1970's, "Schaefer (was) the one beer to have when you're having more than one."
Okay, I'm considering conceding the point - for now. LOL!
Gail Borden, Jr.
When I was a kid, Borden County only had one school. We played against them in 8 man football. The last time I was thru there, things hadn't changed much. I think the football may be 6 man now.
James
Lizzie Andrew Borden
Did she swing a hatchet or a Sling Blade?
DDSM
(hold my beer and watch this:beer: )
