A few online sources claim Ernie Edwards (sometimes listed as “Earnie”) of the Pig Hip Restaurant along Route 66 in Broadwell, Illinois, was the inventor of his famous pig hip sandwiches.
However, recent research effectively refutes that claim.
First, a little background. Edwards ran what was the Pig Hip Restaurant in Broadwell from 1937 until 1991, when he retired. His pig hip sandwich, according to the Illinois Route 66 Association, consisted of fresh, uncured ham, tomato, lettuce and a proprietary sauce, served on a toasted bun. The sandwich became so popular, he renamed his restaurant — once known as the Wolf’s Inn — after it.
Gary Williams wrote in a recent post on the Historic Route 66 group on Facebook that his research found a restaurant in Amarillo, Texas, might have served the first pig hip sandwich along Route 66 in the late 1920s or early 1930s.
“First location Opened on 6th street in late 20s second location later on pierce st 1931,” Williams wrote, “many many years before the old coots pig hip in Broadwell IL. A little research an article suggests the pig hip was a very early chain and another says the Pig Hip sandwich was copyrighted around 1930. Earnie would have been what 12 or 13.”
In the comment thread, Nolan Stolz produced a clipping of a 1971 newspaper article about the Pig Hip Drive-In in Amarillo that reported the restaurant opened in 1931.
A perusal of the massive Newspapers.com archive led to one definitive conclusion — that Edwards did not invent the pig hip sandwich. In fact, it seemed to be a pretty popular dish or name of a restaurant in the Southwest in the 1930s.
Here’s a non-comprehensive list of Pig Hip restaurants, their location and the year it was mentioned in a newspaper article or advertisement:
- Pig Hip Cafe, Henryetta, Oklahoma, 1934
- Pig Hip Cafe, Lubbock, Texas, 1935
- Pig Hip sandwich stand, El Paso, Texas, 1933
- Pig Hip sandwich shop, Pampa, Texas, 1934
- Pig Hip Cafe, Amarillo, Texas, 1934
A 1934 article in a Frankfort, Kentucky, newspaper also mentioned “Pig Hip stands” in Arkansas and Oklahoma.
And a 1936 clip from a newspaper in Klamath Falls, Oregon, mentioned a KC Waffle House serving a pig hip sandwich.
The evidence suggests the pig hip sandwich was a relatively popular offering at restaurants during the 1930s.
Narrowing the search to the 1920s for “pig hip” generates little, except for terms referring to non-restaurant items such as coats or railroad cars.
Based on that, it appears pig hips primarily were a Depression-era dish.
So … it’s apparent Edwards did not invent the pig hip sandwich, nor was his restaurant the first with that name.
However, his Pig Hip apparently lasted the longest. And because of his outsized personality and his role in Route 66 lore, pig hip sandwiches remained in the public eye far longer than what could be expected.
So famous was Edwards’ restaurant, it was visited by former president Jimmy Carter, pro golfer Arnold Palmer and other celebrities.
For a few years after Edwards retired, the Pig Hip remained open as a museum.
The building was destroyed in a fire in 2007. A historical marker was installed at the site later.
In 1990, Ernie was among the first to be inducted into the Route 66 Association of Illinois Hall of Fame. Edwards died at age 94 in 2012.
(Image of the sign at the former Pig Hip Restaurant site in Broadwell, Illinois, in 2013 by Richard Bartiaga via Flickr)
I looked at a few city directories on Ancestry.com, and found some early Pig Hips for your list:
Note: In a genealogy class years ago, I was told that information in city directories were usually collected during the year prior to its publication date, which would mean that these Pig Hips could have been operating as early as 1930. They were not in the 1930 Amarillo City Directory.
It looks like my use the “greater than” sign (“>”) in front of a text paragraph caused a change in its font & format. Who knew?? 🙂 I’ll try to remember not to do that in future comments.
— Mike