[Ads-l] Most Amazing Cakewalk Fact

Sat Sep 5 20:59:12 UTC 2026

Apparently from his youth, but it's not specified. The segment is entitled "Old times as seen through the eyes of P B Ruff." He refers to a building built in 1804/5 a few paragraphs earlier, but the story of dancing was not dated.  According to an 1888 obituary, he was born in 1819, but according to his recollections written in 1888, he studied medicine in 1829.

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From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of Shapiro, Fred <00001ac016895344-dmarc-request at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: Saturday, 05 September 2026 12:43:43
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Subject: Re: Most Amazing Cakewalk Fact

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Poster:       "Shapiro, Fred" <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU>
Subject:      Re: Most Amazing Cakewalk Fact
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Thanks, Peter, this is very interesting.  Does the Annals of Newberry book =
indicate the time-period he was recollecting ?

Fred Shapiro

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From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of Peter =
Reitan <pjreitan at HOTMAIL.COM>
Sent: Friday, September 4, 2026 14:51
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Subject: Re: Most Amazing Cakewalk Fact

I found a description of the game of walking for the cake, as practiced in =
Newberry South Carolina, which is about 40 miles from Edgefield.

The description is in a book of recollections of the old times by residents=
 of Newberry, called Annals of Newberry.  The story appears in Part II, fir=
st published in 1892, in a recollection by a man named Dr. P. B. Ruff, who =
died in 1888 (as found in  newspapers.com search).  The book is available o=
n HathiTrust.

Ruff's recollections begin on page 483.  In one part he discusses a place a=
long the Broad River, called the Dutch Fork, which he says was settled almo=
st entirely by Germans.  He says that they were very fond of dancing.  On p=
age 488, he describes a wedding dance tradition which he calls "walking for=
 the cake."

"As soon as the bride and groom were married, which was generally about twe=
lve o'clock, then the young folks would walk for the cake hanging up in the=
 house, nearly as large as a grindstone, with a gold finger ring in its cen=
tre.  Each young man would take a partner to walk for the cake, there being=
 generally about a dozen couples.  In walking for the cake they would walk =
around the house, and the man who started in front had a walking stick in h=
is hand, and when he would get around the house to the place where he start=
ed from he would give it to the man next behind him, and he to the next whe=
n they again came round, and so on until they heard the firing of a gun, wh=
en he, in whose hands the stick then happened to be, won the cake."

This game is similar to a game I've seen described elsewhere, referred to a=
s the "Strauss-Cake," which was also said to be of German origin.  The "Str=
auss-Cake" game is more like musical chairs.  In the Cooper's Clarksburg Re=
gister, February 16, 1853, page 2 (which I found on Chronicling America, al=
so available on newspapers.com), described it as:

"A fine cake is prepared for the occasion, and during the evening the floor=
 of the dancing-room is marked off into squares and each square numbered - =
one of which is designated as the "Strauss-Number;" a clock is set to strik=
e in a few minutes, and then the company promenade round the room to music,=
 and the couple who happen to be on the Strauss-number at the time the cloc=
k strikes, wins the cake. . . .  The custom is of German origin, and contri=
buted no little to the hilarity of the company."

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From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of Shapir=
o, Fred <00001ac016895344-dmarc-request at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: Friday, September 4, 2026 3:52 AM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Subject: Most Amazing Cakewalk Fact

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Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Poster:       "Shapiro, Fred" <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU>
Subject:      Most Amazing Cakewalk Fact
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I forgot to mention the most amazing thing about the cakewalk  evidence.  T=
=3D
he Edgefield, South Carolina mentions of "walking for the cake" are not onl=
=3D
y a quarter-century older than any other cakewalk evidence.  They actually =
=3D
state in the 1840s that the custom was already "ancient" at that time.

Fred Shapiro

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