Food Preparation

Food has always been an important part of life in rural America. It can bring people together as seen on the Food Culture page, and it especially brought women together in the kitchen. Preparing food was a common task for the average woman and many used cooking as a social activity. This page shows examples of home cooking, stove advertisements, and war propaganda.

Cooking Utensils

The utensils and spices seen here could be found in most kitchens at the turn of the century. They were used everyday to aid the preparation of meals.

This picture from 1910 depicts a woman in a typical kitchen of the time preparing a meal for her family.

These advertisments were for stoves that were considered state of the art at the time. The advertisment to the left is from 1869 and for a coal burning stove. The advertisment below is from the late 1800s and would most likely burn coal or wood.

Home Cooking

Stove Advertisments

War Propaganda

This propaganda poster from World War 1 depicts a woman cooking. By staying home and making food from scratch she was doing her part to help America.

Images courtesy of the Library of Congress