The University of Delaware Library has in its collections—and also provides access to—many resources for historic recipes. Use the strategies on this page to finding historic recipes as well as resources for putting them in historical context.
Finding Historic Recipes
Find historic recipes in books, periodical (magazine or newspaper) articles, manuscripts, and other sources. Locate the books in the Morris Library stacks or in Special Collections. Locate the articles in print or online. Recipes in manuscripts are in Special Collections.
Books
Many cookbooks providing old American recipes are shelved at the call number TX715 in the Morris Library stacks. Others are shelved in Special Collections. The call number TX715 corresponds to the Library of Congress subject heading “Cookery, American.” Do a search on that or related subject headings in DELCAT to get a list of relevant titles.
You may browse the shelves in the Morris Library stacks at this call number area. Many of the titles will be post-1930, so be sure to find one published before 1930 or else one that contains reprints of pre-1930 recipes. [Recipe for Pineapple Cream.]
You must fill out call slips in Special Collections for books to be retrieved for your use there.
Periodicals
In addition to being printed in books, historic recipes can also be found in magazines and periodicals. These resources are the magainzes themselves or indexes to them:
Godey’s Lady’s Book
Find a mid-19th century recipe in Godey’s Lady’s Book. Search on the words “receipt” or “recipe.” Print issues of Godey’s are in Special Collections at Spec AP2 .G64.HarpWeek
An important 19th-century American general-interest periodical. Try searching on the keyword “recipe.”
APS (American Periodical Series) Online
One of the periodicals included is Ladies’ Home Journal, an important magazine for women. There are many others as well.Black Studies Center
The International Index to Black Periodicals included in BSC covers scholarly and popular Black Studies journals, including full text for many titles.Readers’ Guide Retrospective
Find citations to recipes published in popular magazines. Search for “cookery” and limit dates to 1890-1930. Once you have a list of results, consult DELCAT to determine the call number for the referenced periodical.
Newspapers
Many newspapers published recipes, especially in the period 1900-1930. They were generally in the feature section, on the “women’s page,” in the Sunday issue. You will can browse for recipes in a national newspaper (such as the New York Times); a local newspaper (such as the Delmarvia Star); or in an ethnic newspaper (such as the Chicago Defender, an African American newspaper).
The New York Times is available in a fully digitized edition. Many other local and regional newspapers are included in the America’s Historical Newspapers database. You will find in them, for example, many recipes for “Indian pudding.”
Explore early Delaware newspapers in microfilm. You can find a complete list of the Delaware Newspapers in the University of Delaware Library. There is no index to Delaware newspapers: be prepared to spend a little time in browsing Sunday issues.
An important African American newspaper was the Chicago Defender. This newspaper is available in the Black Studies Center database.
Other historic newspapers are available on the Web.
Databases
The Library subscribes to many online databases that are not searchable on the “open Web.” Databases are listed on the Library Databases page.
Early American Imprints, Series I: Evans, 1639-1800
Digitized page images from early American publications (before 1800). Enter the term “cookery” (Example: To make a Tansy to bake)Early English Books Online
To find a really old recipe (i.e., before 1700) try searching EEBO under the subject keyword “cookery” or under the title keyword “receipts.” If you check the Oxford English Dictionary, you will discover that “receipt” is an archaic word for “recipe.”
Putting Historic Recipes in Context
DELCAT and WorldCat Local
DELCAT and WorldCat Local are the two “flavors” of the University of Delaware online library catalog. DELCAT provides detailed information about material in the University of Delaware Library. In some cases the information in WorldCat Local may be preferable to that in DELCAT, because WorldCat Local provides information not only on University of Delaware Library holdings but also on material held in libraries worldwide. The parts of University of Delaware Library collections not shown in WorldCat Local include items not cataloged (on order or in process), the Browsing Collection, course reserves, and physical objects.
Browse the “subject begins with ...” cookery to find books on subjects about cooking—and explore other related subject headings, such as “food habits,” “food—history,” specific types of foods, nutrition, etc.
“Foodways” is an anthropological term describing the eating habits and culinary practices of a people, region, or historical period. Unfortunately it is not a term used in the LC cataloging system. However, if you browse subject headings beginning with “foodways,” a Heading Information record leads you to the subject heading actually used: “food habits.”
Here are some specific subject headings that might be productive:
food—social aspects—[geographic place]—history—[chronological
period]
food consumption—[geographic place]—history—[chronological period]
food habits—[geographic place]—history—[chronological period]
Bibliographies and Encyclopedias
These titles provide listings of historic American cookbooks and contextual information.
Brown, Eleanor Parker. Culinary Americana: Cookbooks Published in the Cities and Towns of the United States of America During the Years from 1860 through 1960. New York: Roving Eye Press [1961]
Z5776.G2 B7
The Cambridge World History of Food. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2000.
Ref TX 353 .C255 2000
Encyclopedia of Food and Culture. New York: Scribner, 2003.
Ref GT2850 .E53 2003
Lowenstein, Eleanor. Bibliography of American Cookery Books, 1742-1860. Worcester [Mass.]: American Antiquarian Society, 1972.
Z5776 .G2L68 1972
Newman, Jacqueline M. Melting Pot: An Annotated Bibliography and Guide to Food and Nutrition Information for Ethnic Groups in America. (Garland Reference Library of Social Science; v. 708) New York: Garland Pub., 1993.
Z7914 .F63 N48 1993
The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 2007.
Ref TX349 .O94 2007
Books
African American Foodways: Explorations of History and Culture, ed. by Anne L. Bower. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2007.
TX715 .A2428 2007
Camp, Charles. American Foodways: What, When, Why and How We Eat in America. (The American Folklore Series) Little Rock: August House, 1989.
TX357 .C257 1989
Diner, Hasia R. Hungering for America: Italian, Irish, and Jewish Foodways in the Age of Migration. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2001.
GT2853 .U5 D54 2001
Eating in Eden: Food and American Utopias, edited by Etta M. Madden and Martha L. Finch. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2006.
TX631 .E37 2006
Edge, John T., ed. Foodways. (The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture, v. 7) Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2006.
F209 .N47 2006 v.7
Fisher, Carol. The American Cookbook: A History. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2006.
TX715 .F534 2006
Food: The History of Taste. (California Studies in Food and Culture; 21)
Berkeley : University of California Press, 2007.
TX353 .F668 2007
Janer, Zilkia. Latino Food Culture. (Food Cultures in America) Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2008.
TX716.A1 J36 2008
Laszlo, Peter. Citrus: A History. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2007.
See also his Salt: Grain of Life.
SB369 .L37 2007
Ozersky, Joshua. The Hamburger: A History. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2008.
TX749.5 .B43O94 2008
Willard, Pat. America Eats! On the Road with the WPA: The Fish Fries, Box Supper Socials, and Chitlin Feasts That Define Real American Food. New York: Bloomsbury, 2008.
Streaming media from the NPR series entitled “‘America Eats’: A Hidden Archive from the 1930s” is available. Recipes and other material are also available at the NPR site.
TX715 .W71125 2008
Databases
Some of the databases previously listed as sources for historic recipes can also serve as resources for information that puts your recipe in context. The databases listed below are useful for fiinding articles that will put your recipe in context.
Academic OneFile
Journal articles in all subject areas.America: History and Life
Use this database to find articles published in history journals.AnthroSource
Anthropology journals from the American Anthropological Association.Anthropology Plus
Provides indexing to the scholarly literature in anthropology.ARTstor
Images for research and pedagogical purposes.General OneFile
News and periodical articles.JSTOR
Back issues of hundreds of scholarly journals.
In most cases, you cannot search these databases all together as a group. You have to search each one individually and take advantage of its unique searching features.
See also Databases for History, Databases for African American Studies, and Databases for Anthropology. There are often relevant “trial” databases to search as well.
Resources on the World Wide Web
Culinary History: A Research Guide
From the New York Public Library. The site includes a A Selective List of Works on the History of Food, Beverages, and Cookery.Feeding America: The Historic American Cookbook Project
From Michigan State University, this is an online collection of the most important and influential 19th and early 20th century American cookbooks.Key Ingredients: America by Food
Explore regional traditions and international influences.New York Food Museum
On the navigation bar at the left, click on “Exhibits” then on “How New York ate 100 Years Ago.”Not by Bread Alone: America’s Culinary Heritage
An online exhibit featuring images from the culinary collections of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Division at Cornell University Library.- The Olde Cookery Book
Collects pre-1900 cooking and home brewing recipes. “Most of the recipes presented here are transcripts of the original recipes. This means that ingredients may be rare or exotic.” Women, Men, and Food: Putting Gender on the Table
Podcast of a conference held at Harvard University in 2007 on the relationship between food and gender, from production, to preparation, to consumption.
Selected Bibliography of Materials in Special Collections
This list of historic cookbooks (print and manuscript) represents only a small portion of the resources available in Special Collections on cooking and dining. Additional resources are listed on:
- An American Feast: Food, Dining, and Entertainment in the United States from Simmons to Rombauer
- Defining Her Life: Advice Books for Women
- Delaware Cooks: A Selection of Cookbooks Published in Delaware
- Etiquette: Selected Primary Resources
Printed Works: Books and Magazines
Alcott,William Andrus, 1798-1859. The Young House-Keeper, or Thoughts on Food and Cookery. Boston: Charles D. Strong, 1838.
Spec TX145 .A35 1838
American Cookery. New York: Whitney Publications.
(periodical).
Spec TX1 A6
Andrews, Wesley R. The American Code of Manners: A Study of the Usages, Laws and Observances Which Govern Intercourse in the Best Social Circles, and of the Principles Which Underlie Them. New York: W. R. Andrews, 1880.
Spec BJ1852 .A52 1880
Apicius. Caelii Apitii, Svmmi Advlatricis Medicinae Artificis De Re Culinaria Libri … Lvgdvni: Apvd Seb. Gryphivm, 1541.
Spec TX713 A635 1541
Beecher, Eunice White Bullard, “Mrs. Henry Ward Beecher.”
Motherly Talks with Young Housekeepers. New York: J. B. Ford, 1873.
Spec TX9 .B41
Beeton, Mrs. (Isabella Mary), 1836-1865. The Book of Household Management. London: Ward, Lock, and Tyler, 1869.
Spec TX717 .B4 1869
A Book of Good Manners: for Girls and Boys. Providence [R.I.]: Daniels, 1845.
Spec PS991 .A1 B65 1845
Briggs, Richard. The New Art of Cookery, according to the Present Practice … Philadelphia: Printed for W. Spotswood, R. Campbell, and E. Johnson. 1792.
Spec TX703 B7
Carnation Milk Products Company. One Hundred Tested Recipes. Seattle: The Company, 1923.
Spec In Process (2323817)
Carter, Susannah. The Frugal Housewife, or, Complete Woman Cook. Philadelphia: Printed by J. Carey,
1796.
Spec TX705 C335x 1796
Carver, George Washington, 1864?-1943. How to Make Sweet Potato Flour, Starch, Sugar Bread and Mock Cocoanut. [Tuskegee, Ala.]: Experiment Station, Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute, 1918.
Spec SB211 .S9C37x 1918
Christian, Eugene, 1860-1930. Uncooked Foods & How to Use Them. New York: The Health-culture Company, 1904.
Spec TX 392 C55
Club Aluminum Co. The Recipe Book for Club Aluminum Ware with Personal
Service. Boston: The Company, ca. 1926.
Spec In Process (2325778)
Corson, Juliet. Family Living on $500 a Year: A Daily Reference Book for Young and Inexperienced Housewives. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1890.
Library Annex - Special Collections Use Only TX715 .C67x 1905
The Family Receipt-Book. London: Printed for the editors, and published by Oddy and Co., 1799.
Spec TX151 F35 1799
Farmer, Fannie Merritt, 1857-1915. The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1896.
Spec TX715 F234 1896
Goodrich, Samuel G.. What to Do, and How to Do It: Or, Morals and Manners Taught by Examples. / By Peter Parley. New York: Wiley & Putnam, 1844.
Spec BJ1631 .G6 1844
Charles L. Hadley (Firm). Catalogue of Strictly First Class White and Decorated French China: and White English Porcelain Dinner, Tea, and Chamber Sets, Etc., Etc. ... : Silver Plated Ware, Cutlery, Tea Trays ... New York: The Company, [ca. 1900].
Spec Trade Catalog
Hale, Sarah Josepha. Mrs. Hale’s Receipts for the Million ... Philadelphia: T. B. Peterson, 1857.
Spec TX153 .H16
Harper’s New Monthly Magazine. New York: Harper & Brothers, [1850-1900].
Spec AP2 .H37
Harrison, Sarah. The House-keeper’s Pocket-book: and Compleat Family Cook … Dublin: E. Exshaw, 1738.
Spec TX705 H3 1738
The Hygienic Cook Book. Battle Creek, Mich.: Office of the Health Reformer, 1875.
Spec TX651 H43
Leslie, Eliza, 1787-1858. Directions for Cookery. Philadelphia: E. L. Carey & A. Hart, 1837.
Spec TX715 L627 1837
Lincoln, Henry E., firm, Boston. ... Catalogue of Hardware & Cutlery, Britannia, Tin, Wooden, Iron and Fancy Hardware and Housekeeping Goods ... Boston: John Putnam, 1844.
Spec Trade Catalog
M. J. Ivers and Co. Home-Made Cook Book. New York: The Company, ca. 1880.
Spec In Process (2322863)
Manning, Bowman & Co. Catalogue of Perfection Granite Iron and Decorated Pearl Agate Table Ware: For Sale by the Hardware and House Furnishing Trade of the United States and Foreign Countries. New York: The Firm, 1886.
Spec Trade Catalog
The Modern Method of Regulating and Forming a Table Explained and Displayed: Containing a Great Variety of Dinners Laid out in the Most Elegant Taste. London: Printed for J. Hughes, ca, 1780.
Spec Folio TX871 .M63
Mrs. Winslow’s Domestic Receipt Book. Boston: G.C. Rand & Avery, printers. (periodical).
Spec TX715 M678
Prudential Cook Book. Newark, N.J.: Prudential Insurance Company of America, 1910.
Spec In Process (2325801)
Randolph, Mary, 1762-1828. The Virginia Housewife … Baltimore: Plaskitt, Fite, 1838.
Spec TX715 R215 1838
Rhodes, Susie Root. The Economy Administration Cook Book. New York; London: Syndicate Pub. Co., 1913.
Spec TX715 .R48 1913
Rundell, Maria Eliza Ketelby, 1745-1828. A New System of Domestic Cookery: Formed upon Principles of Economy, and Adapted to the Use of Private Families. Exeter [N.H.]: Printed by Norris & Sawyer, 1808.
Spec TX717 .R95 1808
Scraps in Friendship’s Name: [Cigarette Cards, Trade Cards, Etc.] [s.l. : s.n., 1902?].
Spec Folio NC1002.C4 S36
Simmons, Amelia. American Cookery. Hartford: Hudson & Goodwin, 1796.
Spec TX703 S5
365 Breads and Biscuits; a Bread or Biscuit for Every Day in the Year, selected from Marion Harland. Philadelphia, G. W. Jacobs & co. [1905].
Spec TX769 .T53
Trinity Parish Cook Book: Choice and Tested Recipes Contributed by the Ladies of Trinity Church, ed. and pub. by the Ladies Parish Aid Society. Wilmington, Del: J.M. Rogers’ press, 1892.
Spec TX715 W739
W. M. The Compleat Cook: Expertly Prescribing the Most Ready Wayes, Whether Italian, Spanish or French, for Dressing of Flesh and Fish … London: Printed by J. Winter, for Nath. Brooke, 1668.
Spec AG104 Q3 1668
Walsh, J. H. A Manual of Domestic Economy: Suited to Families Spending from £100 to £1000 a Year. London: G. Routledge & Co., 1857.
Library Annex - Special Collections Use Only TX145 .W22 1857
Worthington, Mary Andrews. The Home Chef. Dover, Del.: The Richardson & Robbins Co., 1921.
Spec TX715 W95
The Young Man’s Own Book: A Manual of Politeness, Intellectual Improvement and Moral Deportment, Calculated to Form the Character on a Solid Basis, and to Insure Respectability and Success in Life. Philadelphia: Desilver, Thomas, 1835.
Spec BJ1671 .Y7 1835
Manuscripts
Manuscript recipe book, dated between 1867 and 1888. (MS97, No. 102)
Food receipt book of Sarah K. Fotterall, dated circa 1864. (MS97, No. 107)
American cookery and household receipts, dated between 1835 and 1858. (MS97, No. 145)
Recipe book, dated between 1852 and 1878. (MS97, No. 150)
Recipe book of Mary Baker, circa 1730 (MS97 No. 156)