BIO

My name is Ashley Slone and I am from Knoxville, TN. I am primarily interested in political science research, specifically political socialization, but I enjoy learning about history as well. After completing my degree in Political Science with a minor in History, I plan on attending law school and becoming an attorney. Outside of school, my hobbies include running, playing volleyball, watching documentaries, reading, and playing with my two Boxers.

Catherine Murat: The Princess of Tallahassee

Abstract

In early 19th century territorial Florida, Tallahassee was a developing and diverse city. Among its prominent first citizens was Princess Catherine Murat, better known as Kate, the leading socialite in Tallahassee widely known for hosting balls and dinners. Considered American royalty by being the grandniece of President George Washington and French royalty by being a princess of France as a result of her marriage to Prince Achille Murat (son of Caroline Bonaparte and nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte), Catherine led quite a dualistic lifestyle as a princess living in frontier Florida, as seen in her frontier style home with bare walls yet furnished with the finest French furniture straight from Paris. In exploring her unique life, this project examined historical documents authored by or related to Catherine Murat to create a more accurate depiction of both her personal life and life in territorial Tallahassee in general. Four pages of recipes written by Catherine were discovered and transcribed, and an analysis of these recipes further shows the duality of Catherine’s life as a princess living in Tallahassee. Traditional Southern foods such as Minced Meat and Cottage Pudding reveal Kate’s Virginian roots while a recipe for plant fertilizer shows her role as a gardener. These documents show not only the foods that Kate would have cooked and potentially served at her parties, but also details about life in 1820s Tallahassee. Further research on southern cooking, specifically in territorial Florida, can contribute to a deeper understanding of lifestyles in the early 19th century.

Keywords: Tallahassee History Murat Florida