Food

Photo of McCall's Cheese

Part of a nation's history lies in what people eat. Artifacts at the Museum document the history of food in the United States from farm machinery to diet fads.

More than 1,300 pieces of stoneware and earthenware show how Americans have stored, prepared, and served food for centuries. Ovens, cookie cutters, kettles, aprons, and ice-cream-making machines are part of the collections, along with home canning jars and winemaking equipment. More than 1,000 objects recently came to the Museum when author and cooking show host Julia Child donated her entire kitchen, from appliances to cookbooks.

Advertising and business records of several food companies—such as Hills Brothers Coffee, Pepsi Cola, and Campbell's Soup—represent the commercial side of the subject

Place: Massachusetts

Chemical Shipping Crate

This shipping crate side originally contained embalming fluid manufactured by the Dodge Chemical Company of Boston, Massachusetts during the early 20th century. The Dodge Chemical Company was founded in 1893 by A.
Description (Brief)
This shipping crate side originally contained embalming fluid manufactured by the Dodge Chemical Company of Boston, Massachusetts during the early 20th century. The Dodge Chemical Company was founded in 1893 by A. Johnson Dodge, who also established a permanent embalming school called the New England Institute of Anatomy, Sanitary Science, and Embalming. The Dodge Chemical Company continues to this day as a manufacturer of embalming fluids.
Location
Currently not on view
referenced business
Dodge Chemical Company
ID Number
1979.0441.361
catalog number
1979.0441.361
accession number
1979.0441

Microwave Egg Cooker

This red, egg-shaped cooker is made of microwave-safe plastic for use in microwave ovens. It takes no time at all to cook an egg in this device: a mere 30 seconds will cook a soft-boiled egg and 50 seconds will deliver the egg in hard-boiled form.
Description
This red, egg-shaped cooker is made of microwave-safe plastic for use in microwave ovens. It takes no time at all to cook an egg in this device: a mere 30 seconds will cook a soft-boiled egg and 50 seconds will deliver the egg in hard-boiled form. This egg cooker was among the gadgets in Julia Child’s home kitchen, collected by the National Museum of American History in 2001.
Julia Child, the beloved American cooking teacher, cookbook author, and television personality, was a self-described “gadget freak.” She collected kitchen tools throughout her long career and received many gadgets as gifts from friends and colleagues. The origin and actual use of this egg cooker is unknown, but, since Julia’s kitchen did not include a microwave oven in 2001, it is safe to assume she kept the microwave egg cooker for some reason other than to use it for cooking one egg at a time.
date made
ca 1990
maker
Precis Plastic
ID Number
2001.0253.0364
catalog number
2001.0253.0364
accession number
2001.0253

Julia Child's Handwritten Recipe

This handwritten recipe for pain de mie, or French sandwich bread, is from the kitchen of cookbook author and television chef Julia Child.Trained at the Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris, Child brought the taste and techniques of traditional French cuisine into American homes.
Description
This handwritten recipe for pain de mie, or French sandwich bread, is from the kitchen of cookbook author and television chef Julia Child.
Trained at the Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris, Child brought the taste and techniques of traditional French cuisine into American homes. Her first series, The French Chef, premiered on Boston public television in 1962. Over her forty-year career, she produced numerous cookbooks and television shows, including three filmed in her own kitchen in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 2001, Child donated her famous kitchen to the Smithsonian.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Stuart Hall
ID Number
2001.0253.0030
accession number
2001.0253
catalog number
2001.0253.0030

Tupperware® "Wonderlier Bowl"

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1954
maker
Tupperware
ID Number
1985.3014.01
catalog number
1985.3014.01
nonaccession number
1985.3014

Whisk, ca 1950

From the moment when, in 1963, Julia Child whisked up an omelet on the pilot for her new cooking show, The French Chef, Americans wanted that whisk for their kitchens, just as they came to want any tool or utensil that Julia used.
Description
From the moment when, in 1963, Julia Child whisked up an omelet on the pilot for her new cooking show, The French Chef, Americans wanted that whisk for their kitchens, just as they came to want any tool or utensil that Julia used. Certainly, egg beaters of all sorts were common in American kitchens, and they whipped up the heavy cream and egg whites (for meringues) as well as eggs. But they didn’t have the leverage offered by the European-style whisks that Julia introduced, and they were especially successful in getting air into those soufflés and omelets they were just learning how to cook.
Although whisks varied in sizes, from tiny to giant, people loved the gigantic balloon whisks Julia had used on television, almost like props, to dramatic and comic effect. Julia loved giant tools, the more outrageous the better. Audience remembered the lessons when Julia deployed her giant whisks, blowtorches, salad spinners, and they learned that some of these tools were actually useful. Still, they especially remembered Julia AND her whisk when next they went to the kitchen store, creating a whole new market for these useful tools. This whisk, a part of Julia’s batterie de cuisine, had served her well in her home kitchen and television kitchen, in some cases the very same space.
ID Number
2001.0253.0638
catalog number
2001.0253.0638
accession number
2001.0253

Child's Spoon

Engraved "Lily" pattern child's spoon having an ovoid bowl and upturned, flared and rounded handle bright cut on front with a right-curving raceme of lily-of-the-valley above three leaves, quatrefoil-in-circle motif and pendant line of paired leaves.
Description
Engraved "Lily" pattern child's spoon having an ovoid bowl and upturned, flared and rounded handle bright cut on front with a right-curving raceme of lily-of-the-valley above three leaves, quatrefoil-in-circle motif and pendant line of paired leaves. Engraved "Charlie." in script lengthwise on terminal back. Back of handle struck "TOWLE.MF'G.CO" and "6oz." in incuse serif letters. From a three-piece child's or youth's flatware set (knife, fork, spoon), 1979.0003.01-.03.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1888 - 1890
ID Number
1979.0003.03
accession number
1979.0003
catalog number
1979.0003.03

Model D-12 Electric Toaster

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1912- 1913
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1992.0338.31
accession number
1992.0338
catalog number
1992.0338.31

potsherds

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
DL.252318.0097
catalog number
252318.0097
accession number
252318

Child's Knife

Engraved "Lily" pattern child's knife; made as one piece with blunt blade and flared, rounded handle having a cordate-pattern stamped bolster and engraved "Charlie." in script lengthwise on back of terminal.
Description
Engraved "Lily" pattern child's knife; made as one piece with blunt blade and flared, rounded handle having a cordate-pattern stamped bolster and engraved "Charlie." in script lengthwise on back of terminal. Bright cut on front with a right-curving raceme of lily-of-the-valley above three leaves, quatrefoil-in-circle motif and pendant line of paired leaves on handle, and matching downward-curved blossoms and trefoil-in-semicircle motif on blade. Back of handle struck "TOWLE.MF'G.CO" in incuse serif letters. From a three-piece child's or youth's flatware set (knife, fork, spoon), 1979.0003.01-.03.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1888 - 1890
ID Number
1979.0003.01
accession number
1979.0003
catalog number
1979.0003.01

Archaeological Objects

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date porcelain made
1750 - 1800
date pipe(s) made
1750 - 1800
ID Number
DL.252318.0044
catalog number
252318.0044
accession number
252318

Soufflé Dish

Sweet (chocolate) and savory (cheese) soufflés, made popular by James Beard and Julia Child in the 1960’s, became “company” dishes used to wow other Americans who’d never seen them unless they went to fancy French restaurants.Inspired by customer demands to have cookware just lik
Description
Sweet (chocolate) and savory (cheese) soufflés, made popular by James Beard and Julia Child in the 1960’s, became “company” dishes used to wow other Americans who’d never seen them unless they went to fancy French restaurants.
Inspired by customer demands to have cookware just like Julia’s, the white porcelain soufflé dish from the French company Pillivuyt was one of the first items Charles E. (Chuck) Williams brought to his customers through his stores in Sonoma, San Francisco, then his catalogues and ever expanding store empire, Williams-Sonoma. This particular soufflé dish is one of Julia’s many soufflé dishes, acquired in France but made by Pillyvuyt, just like all the others in America acquired through Williams-Sonoma and other upscale kitchenware stores.
maker
Pillivuyt
ID Number
2001.0253.0268
catalog number
2001.0253.0268
accession number
2001.0253

Placard, Frites

Julia Child occasionally used French bistro signs as props on the early episodes of The French Chef television series, which first aired in 1963.
Description
Julia Child occasionally used French bistro signs as props on the early episodes of The French Chef television series, which first aired in 1963. This sign, in red and black lettering, advertises “Frites,” or French fries, one of the few French foods she knew her American audience would find familiar. Julia’s introduction of both favorite dishes and unfamiliar cuisine through humor and a sense of adventure brought the message home to viewers in an accessible and memorable way.
ID Number
2001.0253.0742
catalog number
2001.0253.0742
accession number
2001.0253

potsherds

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
DL.252318.0068
catalog number
252318.0068
accession number
252318

Baker's Breakfast Cocoa Tin

This is a Baker's Cocoa tin. At one time, it would have contained cocoa powder for use as drinking chocolate. The tin is primarily yellow, with a brown band at the bottom and blue and yellow writing.
Description
This is a Baker's Cocoa tin. At one time, it would have contained cocoa powder for use as drinking chocolate. The tin is primarily yellow, with a brown band at the bottom and blue and yellow writing. On the front is the Baker's trademark, "La Belle Chocolatiere," which is based upon a painting by Jean-Etienne Liotard of a young woman carrying a tray of drinking chocolate.
In 1764, Dr. James Baker provided the financial backing for John Hannon to begin grinding and making chocolate in a grist & saw mill on the Neponset River outside Boston. Hannon, an Irish immigrant, learned chocolate making in England and brought it to the U.S. where chocolate making was still relatively new. After Hannon’s death in 1779, Dr. Baker bought out his heirs and changed the name of the company to Baker’s Chocolate. In 1824, when Dr. Baker’s grandson, Walter, took over ownership of the company, he renamed it to Walter Baker & Company (often simply called Baker’s Chocolate). During the course of his ownership, he expanded the business and made Baker’s Chocolate a household name. The company was bought in 1989 by Kraft Foods, where the brand still exists today (2013).
Chocolate had been known and treasured by Native Americans in Central and South America for thousands of years prior to the arrival of the first Spanish explorers in the late 1400s and early 1500s. Cacao beans were so highly prized by Mayans and Aztecs that they were used as currency in many areas of the Americas. When first taken back to Europe by the Spanish, the chocolate drink continued to be produced exclusively for the enjoyment of royalty or the extremely wealthy. As the cacao bean gradually made its presence known throughout Europe, it still remained trapped in this exclusive section of society well into the 19th century.
The chocolate trade to North America began more than 300 years ago, primarily centered in or near major port cities of the time, such as New York City, Boston, Philadelphia and Newport, RI. Due to lower transportation costs, chocolate was often less expensive in the Americas than in Europe and therefore had a broader consumer base. The Industrial Revolution radically changed chocolate production and helped propel it into the hearts and stomachs of the working class. Instead of being a labor intensive product, it became entirely machine made reducing costs even further in the late 19th and early 20th century. During this time, chocolate went from being something a person drank to being something to eat, finally becoming a treat for the masses.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Walter Baker & Co. Ltd.
ID Number
AG.77-FT-15.0312
catalog number
77-FT-15.0312
accession number
283681

potsherds

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
DL.252318.0111
catalog number
252318.0111
accession number
252318

Syrup Pitcher

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1963
maker
Washburn Company
ID Number
1993.0397.05
catalog number
1993.0397.05
accession number
1993.0397

Jar

Cylindrical, clear, colorless pressed glass jar with plain rim, vertical S waves on its exterior, and a radiating star on bottom underside. Smooth interior has "PAT'D" in raised sans serif letters at bottom. Jar from pickle caster, 1979.0800.01-.04.Currently not on view
Description
Cylindrical, clear, colorless pressed glass jar with plain rim, vertical S waves on its exterior, and a radiating star on bottom underside. Smooth interior has "PAT'D" in raised sans serif letters at bottom. Jar from pickle caster, 1979.0800.01-.04.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1880s
ca 1880
ID Number
1979.0800.01
catalog number
1979.0800.01
accession number
1979.0800

Soup Plate Fragments

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1740 - 1760
ID Number
DL.252318.0082
catalog number
252318.0082
accession number
252318

Bed Caster and Ceramic Fragments

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date bed caster made
1860 - 1910
date refined earthenwares made
1800 - 1900
date stonewares made
1800 - 1850
date porcelain made
1785 - 1815
ID Number
DL.252318.0030
catalog number
252318.0030
accession number
252318

Education Exhibit on Cocoa and Chocolate

This wooden box with hinged top has a bronze plate nailed to the top which reads "Educational Exhibit, Cocoa and Chocolate: Prepared by Walter Baker & Co. Ltd.
Description
This wooden box with hinged top has a bronze plate nailed to the top which reads "Educational Exhibit, Cocoa and Chocolate: Prepared by Walter Baker & Co. Ltd. Dorchester, Mass." There are four glass containers inside the box containing cacao beans, cocoa nibs (roasted cacao beans with the shell removed), cocoa butter and cocoa powder. Set into the lid are the types of manufactured chocolate produced by Walter Baker & Co., the Baker’s Chocolate bar, German’s Sweet Chocolate bar, Vanilla Chocolate bar and pulverized cocoa powder to be used as drinking chocolate.
Walter Baker & Co. started producing these exhibits as early as 1886 with several different runs in the years that followed. They produced these boxes as an educational aide for teachers who wanted to discuss the transformation of cacao beans into chocolate bars and cocoa powder.
Chocolate had been known and treasured by Native Americans in Central and South America for thousands of years prior to the arrival of the first Spanish explorers in the late 1400s and early 1500s. Cacao beans were so highly prized by Mayans and Aztecs that they were used as currency in many areas of the Americas. When first taken back to Europe by the Spanish, the chocolate drink continued to be produced exclusively for the enjoyment of royalty or the extremely wealthy. As the cacao bean gradually made its presence known throughout Europe, it still remained trapped in this exclusive section of society well into the 19th century.
The chocolate trade to North America began more than 300 years ago, primarily centered in or near major port cities of the time, such as New York City, Boston, Philadelphia and Newport, RI. Due to lower transportation costs, chocolate was often less expensive in the Americas than in Europe and therefore had a broader consumer base. The Industrial Revolution radically changed chocolate production and helped propel it into the hearts and stomachs of the working class. Instead of being a labor intensive product, it became entirely machine made reducing costs even further in the late 19th and early 20th century. During this time, chocolate went from being something a person drank to being something to eat, finally becoming a treat for the masses.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Walter Baker & Co. Ltd.
ID Number
ZZ.RSN80525Y21

Taster Porringer

Diminutive basin-bowl porringer with square rim and shallow bossed bottom; cast, modified crown-type handle with tongued or linguiform bracket is pierced with 3 voids and struck once on top with partial oval touchmark of a fleur-de-lis between the raised serif letters "RL" for Ri
Description
Diminutive basin-bowl porringer with square rim and shallow bossed bottom; cast, modified crown-type handle with tongued or linguiform bracket is pierced with 3 voids and struck once on top with partial oval touchmark of a fleur-de-lis between the raised serif letters "RL" for Richard Lee Sr. or Jr. Oval linen mark. Turning marks on underside of boss.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1788 - 1830
ID Number
1986.0027.48
accession number
1986.0027
catalog number
1986.0027.48

Porringer

Bellied-bowl porringer with angled rim and bossed bottom; cast crown handle with triangular bracket is pierced with 11 voids and struck on top with the incuse serif letters "LB" at center of a circular shield on indistinct support flanked by bossed foliate volutes below a five-pe
Description
Bellied-bowl porringer with angled rim and bossed bottom; cast crown handle with triangular bracket is pierced with 11 voids and struck on top with the incuse serif letters "LB" at center of a circular shield on indistinct support flanked by bossed foliate volutes below a five-pearl (ducal) coronet with textured ground. "Mason" and "10" scratched on underside of boss. No touchmarks. Diamond or lozenge linen mark with sink hole from tinker's dam used to burn handle on to bowl. Turning marks across entire bottom underside.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 18th or early 19th century
1770 - 1780
ID Number
DL.388320
catalog number
388320
accession number
182022

Whitman Emulsion of Cod Liver Oil with Hypophosphites

Cod liver oil was used in northern European fishing communities for centuries as a remedy for ill health, before it became recognized by the medical establishment.
Description
Cod liver oil was used in northern European fishing communities for centuries as a remedy for ill health, before it became recognized by the medical establishment. Its popularity spread quickly in the United States after Edinburgh physician John Hughes Bennett published the first English-language treatise on cod liver oil in 1841. The oil was used to treat “wasting diseases” such as consumption (tuberculosis), and as a remedy for rickets. By the mid-19th century, the New England coast was producing 24, 000 gallons of the oil annually.
Yet despite its acknowledged medicinal value, the problem with cod liver oil remained its vile, nauseating, oily taste. To mask the taste, the oil was given in coffee, milk, or brandy, or taken with a pinch of salt, smoked herring, or tomato catsup. Pharmaceutical manufacturers created emulsions, made by mixing the oil with an emulsifying agent such as powdered acacia, water, sugar, and flavoring.
This bottle of cod liver oil emulsion was made around 1910 by the Whitman Chemical Company of Boston. The label states that it is one-third cod liver oil and 7% alcohol. It also contains hypophosphites, compounds of phosphorous, which were also thought to be effective in treating tuberculosis. At the time this bottle was manufactured, the value of cod liver oil as a medicine was questioned by many doctors. However, it remained popular as a general tonic and nutritive supplement, especially for children.
The use of cod liver oil would change dramatically after the discovery of vitamins and the role they play in promoting healthy growth and preventing diseases such as rickets (caused by a deficiency of Vitamin D). Cod liver oil is one of the best natural sources of vitamins A and D.
Date made
ca 1910
maker
Whitman Chemical Company
ID Number
1984.0782.045
accession number
1984.0782
catalog number
1984.0782.045

Porringer

Basin-bowl porringer with single-reeded or incised rim and flat bottom; cast flowered-type handle with ballpoint tip and rounded triangular bracket is pierced with 13 voids and struck once on top with oval touchmark of a fleur-de-lis between the raised serif letters "RL" for Rich
Description
Basin-bowl porringer with single-reeded or incised rim and flat bottom; cast flowered-type handle with ballpoint tip and rounded triangular bracket is pierced with 13 voids and struck once on top with oval touchmark of a fleur-de-lis between the raised serif letters "RL" for Richard Lee Sr. or Jr. Diamond or lozenge linen mark.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1788 - 1830
ID Number
1986.0027.29
catalog number
1986.0027.29
accession number
1986.0027

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.