Lillian Harris Dean, aka Pigfoot Mary (c. 1870-1929) embodies the promise of the American dream. She became one of Harlem’s most successful food vendors by selling pigs’ feet.
Lillian Harris Dean, aka Pigfoot Mary (c. 1870-1929) embodies the promise of the American dream. She became one of Harlem’s most successful food vendors by selling pigs’ feet.
Food has been a unifier for millennia, not just gathering people together to share a meal, but acting as a warm introduction to new histories and traditions. This February on Womanica, we’re celebrating Tastemakers - the Black chefs, cooks, and food historians who created new foodways and preserved important culinary stories of the past. The impact of chefs like Pig Foot Mary, Mama Dip, and Georgia Gilmore stretch far beyond the culinary scene - uplifting their local communities and inspiring those who came after them.
History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.
Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.
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Hello! From Wonder Media Network, I’m Chef Kia Damon.
I'm a Florida born chef, writer, host and recipe developer. I served as an executive Chef of New York City restaurant Lalito at the age of 24, and became Cherry Bombe magazine's first Culinary Director at 25. Since leaving I've founded Kia Feeds The People, a budding mutual aid effort. I’ll be your guest host for this month of Womanica.
This month, we’re talking about Tastemakers. We’re celebrating the Black chefs, cooks, and food historians who created new foodways and preserved important culinary stories of the past.
Today we’re talking about a woman who embodies the promise of the American dream.
She became one of Harlem’s most successful food vendors by selling pigs’ feet. Let’s talk about Lillian Harris Dean!
Lillian Harris was born in the Mississippi Delta sometime between 1870 and 1873. We don’t know much about her early life. But we do know three things – she loved pigs’ feet, she was the oldest of a handful of siblings, and her dream was to have enough money to buy a place to live when she got old. When she was still just a kid, Lillian decided that the Mississippi Delta was not where she would turn her dream into reality.
So she left and drifted between northern cities for about 15 years. In 1901, Lillian landed in New York City. She took a job as a maid, but it didn’t last for long. After all, it was just a means to an end. At this time, many African Americans made their living as street food vendors. It didn’t take long for Lillian to join the movement. In one week as a maid, she made five dollars. She used each dollar strategically – a few dollars for a used baby carriage, a little bit for a large tin pot, and the rest for pigs’ feet.
With these items, Lillian began her journey to financial prosperity. She cooked the pig’s feet in the pot over a charcoal stove, put the pot in the baby carriage, and hit the streets. Every day Lillian would park herself on a corner near Columbus Circle and sell pigs’ feet from sunrise to sunset. Almost like the original food truck.
The pig’s feet were an instant success. Black southerners who had migrated North longed for this culinary staple from their roots. But the pigs’ feet were not exactly a delicacy. They didn’t have a ton of meat, nor were they particularly juicy. But they reminded African Americans of home in a place that felt so foreign. Lillian’s success came with financial gains and a new name – Pig Foot Mary.
After a couple of years, Pig Foot Mary upgraded from a baby carriage to a portable stove and relocated to Amsterdam Avenue between 61st and 62nd street. Here business boomed. People would line the block. She sold more than 100 pigs’ feet a day during the week and more than 300 on Saturdays. But Pig Foot Mary didn’t go on a spending spree with this influx of cash. She lived modestly and saved all the money she made. She hadn’t forgotten her dream of owning a home.
Eventually, Pig Foot Mary married newspaper stand owner John Dean. The story is that John proposed after trying one of her pigs’ feet. They ended up selling their wares side by side.
Pig Foot Mary spent many years on this Upper West Side corner before moving north to Harlem. Harlem was becoming a mecca for Black intellectuals and artists and a popular destination for those who were part of the Great Migration. It was a natural move. Her next and final stop was on 135th street and Lenox Ave.
Pig Foot Mary added hog maws, chitlins, and corn on the cob to the menu. These smells and tastes of home gave her customers a sense of belonging. It grounded them in a new place and connected them to the culture they left behind. She also made a name for herself among the artists, writers, and entrepreneurs that flocked to the cultural hub of the Harlem Renaissance. And once again, she was frugal with the money she made.
Eventually, that frugality paid off. With her husband’s encouragement, Pig Foot Mary entered the real estate business. She was able to purchase a five-story apartment building in Harlem for about $42,000. She rented to anyone who needed a place to stay. Six years later she sold it for $72,000. But that wasn’t her only property. As she made more money, she bought more buildings. Pig Foot Mary couldn’t read or write, but she knew how to cook, and she was financially savvy. Today, some of the buildings she once owned look a little different – they now house the Harlem Hospital, a Salvation Army location, and St. Mark the Evangelist Church.
In 1923, Pig Foot Mary took some time to travel around the west coast. Shortly after, she retired there.
Pig Foot Mary died on July 16, 1929, in Los Angeles. Her net worth of $375,000 would have been more than $6 million today.
All month, we’re talking about tastemakers. For more information, find us on Facebook and Instagram @womanicapodcast.
Special thanks to Jenny and Liz Kaplan for inviting me to guest host this month of Womanica.
Talk to you tomorrow!