Fonds XR1 MS A700001-074 - Edna Staebler fonds

Edna Staebler (1906-2006) is the author of the successful Schmecks cookbook series, beginning with “Food that Really Schmecks” in 1968, based on the food and culture of the Mennonite communities of Waterloo County, Ont. Born in Kitchener, Ontario, she became a well-known journalist in the 1950s and was later recognized as one of the nation’s leading voices on the lifestyles of Canadians coast to coast, primarily for the Hutterite colonies on the Prairies, miners in Northern Ontario and the descendants of refugee slaves in Nova Scotia. Staebler’s articles appeared in Maclean’s magazine beginning in 1948, and in 1950 she wrote an article about Mennonites, “How to Live without Wars and Wedding Rings”, which won her the Canadian Women’s Press Award for Outstanding Journalism. To research this article, she stayed with a Mennonite family and prepared meals with women in the community, which later inspired her to write cookbooks about their food. She was also a regular contributor to Chatelaine and Saturday Night magazine, among others. Her books include "Cape Breton Harbour", a description of the east-coast fishing town of Neil’s Harbour, “Haven’t any News: Ruby’s Letters from the 50’s”, and several cookbooks. An avid diary writer, she began keeping diaries at the age of 16 and continued throughout her lifetime. She received many honours including an Honourary Doctor of Letters from Wilfrid Laurier University in 1984, the Governor General’s Commemorative Medal in 1993, and the Order of Canada in 1996.