Cookbooks

About Vintage Cookbooks

Until the 1800s, most cookbooks were written for chefs by other chefs. That's when upper-class women began writing cooking instructions for common families. The cookbook genre as we know it today, however, was developed in the late 19th century by Fannie Farmer.

Farmer, the Director of Miss Farmer's School of Cookery, taught practical cooking to housewives and self-published The Boston Cooking School Cook Book in 1896. Whereas recipes used to call for a "sprinkle" of this and a "pinch" of that, Farmer implemented uniform measurements and syntax that is still in practice today. Versions of her book are still being printed...

Until the late 1700s, cookbooks in America were published in England or featured English foods. The first all-American cookbook was American Cookery by Amelia Simmons, published in 1798. These distinct recipes used foods natively grown in the U.S., such as pumpkins.

In the 1800s, cookbooks also contained information about how to keep your house, how to make soap, how to set the table, produce home remedies, and so on.

Big names in 20th Century cookbooks include The Joy of Cooking and Betty Crocker. Good Housekeeping published their first cookbook in 1903, and in the 1940s and '50s, other magazines and newspapers began publishing cookbooks.

Other collectible cookbooks are those created by churches or charities. Usually spiral-bound and created to be used as fundraisers, charity cookbooks date back as far as the late 1800s. The majority of cookbooks are soft-cover (although some do come in hardcover), and most were written by women.

With collecting cookbooks, the possibilities are endless - and you can put your collection to work and actually use the recipes!

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Interviews & Articles

An Interview with Rare Book Collector and Appraiser Ken Sanders

I don’t remember a time when I didn’t read books. In grade school, I devoured library books. I also loved comic boo… [more]

An Interview on First Editions with Vintage Book Appraiser Matthew Haley

Strictly speaking, a book’s edition refers to the setting of the text. So the first time you set the text and print… [more]

An Interview With American Cookbook Expert and Rare Book Curator Peter Berg

Special collections is where we keep non-circulating rare materials which have to be used in the reading room. Our … [more]

An Interview With Children’s Book Curator Rita Smith

I started working as the curator of the Baldwin Library of Historical Children's Literature in 1994, but I’d worked… [more]



Best of the Web (“Hall of Fame”)

Vintage Cookbooks Photo Pool

Vintage Cookbooks Photo Pool

This Flickr photo pool features over 2,000 photos and scans of vintage cookbooks and old recipes from the 1940s to … [read review or visit site]

Feeding America

Feeding America

This archive of 76 influential American cookbooks from the late 1700s to early 1900s, assembled by the Michigan St… [read review or visit site]

Google Book Search

Google Book Search

Want to do one quick search and pull up the mother lode of vintage books? Try Google Book Search, a database filled… [read review or visit site]

Baldwin Library of Childrens Literature

Baldwin Library of Childrens Literature

If you’re interested in collectible childrens books, check out this special digital collection from the Universit… [read review or visit site]

Gallery of Book Trade Labels

Gallery of Book Trade Labels

Greg Kindall's collection of over 2100 colorful and historic book labels, pasted into books by publishers, printers… [read review or visit site]

Vintage Kids' Books My Kid Loves

Vintage Kids' Books My Kid Loves

This great blog, by an anonymous mom in Texas, is an ongoing bibliography of hundreds of vintage childrens books, c… [read review or visit site]

Rare Karate Book Collection

Rare Karate Book Collection

This visually interesting and highly specialized collection from the Hawaii Karate Museum focuses on rare and histo… [read review or visit site]

Czech Book Covers

Czech Book Covers

This Smithsonian microsite showcases Czech avant-garde book cover designs from the 1920s and 30s, complete with hig… [read review or visit site]

Bookscans.com

Bookscans.com

Bruce Black's gallery of paperback book covers from the 1940s and 50s. With help from numerous contributors, he's a… [read review or visit site]


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Clubs & Associations: Books


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Essential Cuisine By Michel Bras$119.00 Ends in 4 hours 3 bids 9 watchers
Julia Child Mastering The Art Of French Cooking - 1961 $100.99 Ends Saturday 7 bids 21 watchers
Complete Set 54 Time-life Foods Of The World Cookbooks$79.00 Ends Saturday 3 bids 10 watchers
Vintage Handwritten Recipe Box Double Sides Pa.dutch$70.00 Ends Saturday 9 bids 11 watchers
The Cuisine Of Hubert Keller By Hubert Keller, John ...$61.00 Ends in 3 hours 7 bids 7 watchers
Mastering The Art Of French Cooking Julia Child 1961 $61.00 Ends in 5 hours 17 bids 30 watchers
Art Culinaire # 2 Fall 1986 (focus On New York) $51.00 Ends Sunday 9 bids 5 watchers
The Magic Of Fire By William Rubel (2002, Hardcover)$49.95 Ends Saturday 1 bid 3 watchers
Betty Crocker's New Picture Cookbook - First Edition'61$41.00 Ends Saturday 4 bids 11 watchers
Mastering The Art Of French Cooking Julia Child 1st Ed.$41.00 Ends Sunday 9 bids 18 watchers
Gloria Pitzer Recipe Detective Secret Recipe Cook Books$40.50 Ends Wednesday 6 bids 1 watcher
Vintage 1969 Betty Crocker Red Pie Cookbook Excellent 1$39.87 Ends in 23 hours 24 bids 12 watchers
Art Culinaire -- 6 Issues, New Condition$39.50 Ends Tuesday 1 bid 1 watcher
Culinaria - The Caribbean$36.00 Ends Saturday 11 bids 10 watchers
Signed Julia's Kitchen Wisdom By Julia Child, 2000 Mint$36.00 Ends Saturday 9 bids 27 watchers
Southern Living Hb Annual Recipe Books 2004-2008$35.99 Ends Monday 7 bids 3 watchers
Lot Of 28 Organization, Charity, Cookbooks, Cook Books$31.59 Ends Tuesday 3 bids 1 watcher
Weight Watchers Slow Good Super Slow - Cooker Cookbook$30.99 Ends Tuesday 2 bids 11 watchers
400 Calorie Fix $30.00 Ends in 19 hours 1 bid 5 watchers
Sushi Kit And Gift Set$29.99 Ends Sunday 4 bids
Super Rare Sleepy Eye Cookbook Very Hard To Find Look$29.99 Ends Saturday 1 bid 1 watcher
7 Southern Living Annual Recipes Hardback Cookbook$29.00 Ends in 44 mins 12 bids 3 watchers
Large Lot Of 16 Pampered Chef Cookbooks, New & Euc!$27.77 Ends Friday 9 bids 14 watchers
Weight Watchers Slow Good- Super Slow Cooker Cookbook$26.32 Ends Sunday 11 bids 20 watchers
Julia & Jacques Cooking At Home 1st Ed. Signed J.child$26.00 Ends Sunday 7 bids 13 watchers
Mastering The Art Of French Cooking.1961 Copyright$26.00 Ends Saturday 3 bids 10 watchers
Vintage Betty Crocker Red Pie Ring Binder Cookbook$26.00 Ends in 15 hours 5 bids 8 watchers
Julia Child Mastering The Art Of French Cooking Vol.1&2$26.00 Ends Saturday 9 bids 14 watchers
400 Calorie Fix By Liz Vaccariello, Mindy G. Hermann...$25.16 Ends Friday 10 bids 17 watchers
Mccall's Cooking School Binders Set Of 3$25.09 Ends in 43 mins 11 bids 4 watchers
Cook's Illustrated "how To Cook" 21 Book Set$25.00 Ends Wednesday 1 bid 4 watchers
Mastering The Art Of French Cooking 1963 Julia Child Db$24.99 Ends Wednesday 1 bid 3 watchers
1956 Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book Near Mint Cond$24.99 Ends Wednesday 1 bid 3 watchers
Encyclopedia Of Cookery(woman's Day)12 Vol. Set A$24.99 Ends Friday 1 bid 2 watchers
Weight Watchers Pure Comfort Cookbook Very Nice !$24.95 Ends Wednesday 1 bid 1 watcher
The Pillsbury Family Cook Book, 5-ring,1963$24.95 Ends in 3 hours 1 bid 4 watchers
23 Community Church Junior League Cookbooks Lot Spiral$23.55 Ends Saturday 5 bids 8 watchers
Mastering The Art Of French Cooking Julia Child Vol. 2$22.51 Ends in 4 hours 5 bids 11 watchers
Blown For Good - Marc Headley$22.50 Ends Saturday 4 bids 8 watchers
The Loaves And Fishes Cookbook By Pump 1985$22.50 Ends Saturday 7 bids 6 watchers
The Professional Chef - Culinary Institute Of America$22.50 Ends in 1 hour 8 bids 4 watchers
Mastering The Art Of French Cooking 1979 Julia Child $22.49 Ends Sunday 4 bids 14 watchers
Mastering The Art Of French Cooking Vol 1 Ex Cond.$21.49 Ends Sunday 2 bids 2 watchers
America Cooks Cookbook Hb/dj 1967 1st Woman's Clubs$20.52 Ends in 17 hours 4 bids 8 watchers
Weight Watchers Slow Cook It Momentum Plan Cookbook New$20.50 Ends in 3 hours 8 bids 4 watchers
Mastering The Art Of French Cooking Julia Child $20.50 Ends Sunday 3 bids 14 watchers
400 Calorie Fix By Liz Vaccariello, Mindy G. Hermann...$20.50 Ends Friday 9 bids 14 watchers
Autographed! Paula Deen Cookbook$20.50 Ends Friday 5 bids 1 watcher
Mastering The Art Of French Cooking By Julia Child, ...$20.50 Ends in 23 hours 17 bids 11 watchers
Large Lot Of 70 Cookbooks$20.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 3 watchers

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