[Ads-l] sofky

Bill Mullins amcombill at HOTMAIL.COM
Sat Aug 1 23:36:08 UTC 2026


not in OED



sofky -   A porridge made of alkali-treated corn, or the liquor from it.


[Mathews' "Dictionary of Americanisms" has a 1796 citation
https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofamer00math/page/1591/mode/1up?q=sofky ]



1822 Western Carolinian 2 Jul 3/3

At the point of time, when the romantic part of her history commenced, our heroine had been made a widow; but whether her first husband died from wounds received in battle, or from having eat too much Sofkey, we have not as yet been able to learn.

https://www.newspapers.com/image/67732279/?match=1&terms=sofkey



1841 Boston Daily Evening Transcript 26 May 2/3 [genealogybank]

[T]he pot was borne off, to gladden the woman again with the delights of sofky.




1873 Illinois State Register 19 Aug 2/2

Their wants are few and simple; their small fields of corn raise enough to keep them in "sofky" and their ponies and cattle and hogs have to root for themselves or perish.

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1322481652/?terms=sofky


1879 Kansas City Journal 20 May 4/4

"Sofky" is made of pounded corn partially fermented, enlivened with worms and diluted with branch water.

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1022880165/?match=1&terms=sofky



1883 Eufaula Indian Journal 11 Oct 5/4

On his arrest he made a clean breast of the affair, saying Holoran tried to stab hi and he struck him on the head with a sofky pounder, crushing his skull.

https://www.newspapers.com/image/589665383/?match=1&terms=sofky




1909 Louisville Courier-Journal 21 Apr 6/6

"Sofky" is the staff of life of the Creek fullblood, whose fondness for it is not less than the European peasant's liking for black bread.

https://www.newspapers.com/image/119369390/?terms=sofky


1968 C. Portis True Grit 125

Sofky always cooks up bigger than you think.

https://archive.org/details/truegrit0000char_q4e8/page/125/mode/1up?q=sofky


1974 San Antonio News 21 Jun 7D/1

Here is the start of sofkie-making.

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1269771096/?match=1&terms=sofkie



1983 Houston Post 28 Apr 10F/5

The unique flavor of sofkey comes from the ashes of the ash tree.

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1204496462/?match=2&terms=sofkey




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