The White House Cook Book: A Comprehensive Cyclopedia of Information for the Home, 1913

Cook Book, The White House

About this Item

[Presidential] [Cook Book] Ziemann, Hugo and Gillette, Mrs. F.L. The White House Cook Book: A Comprehensive Cyclopedia of Information for the Home. Akron, Ohio: The Saalfield Publishing Company. New and Enlarged Edition, 1913. 8vo. 589 pages. Illustrated with engraved portraits of First Ladies including Helen Axson Wilson and Helen Herron Taft. Illustrated cream cloth boards. No dust jacket, as issued. An iconic domestic manual of the Progressive Era, The White House Cook Book is among the most widely circulated culinary books of the early 20th century, offering a window into the intersection of gender, national identity, and domestic labor. Compiled by White House steward Hugo Ziemann and Mrs. F.L. Gillette, the book combines practical recipes with social instruction in the areas of etiquette, home health care, table setting, and household management. Originally commissioned with the support of First Lady Caroline Scott Harrison, the cookbook captures the culinary culture of upper-class American households and the symbolic domesticity of the Executive Mansion. Its content reflects the aspirational and moralizing nature of middle-class domestic life, offering European-influenced dishes alongside distinctly American fare such as "Corn Oysters," "Preserved Quinces," and "Mutton à la Mode." This book also includes menus from official state dinners and information on the preferred diets of U.S. Presidents. The preface emphasizes its utility for women managing homes "of every class," signaling its educational role in the performance of womanhood and citizenship. Binding has light staining, with some rubbing to corners and minor fraying at spine ends. Pages toned with scattered foxing, particularly around illustrations. Interior remains legible and firmly bound. Overall good condition. A landmark in the domestic literary canon, this volume remains a key artifact in the study of American culinary and social history.

Seller Inventory # 21972

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The White House Cook Book: A Comprehensive Cyclopedia of Information for the Home, 1913
• Binding: Hardcover
• Seller catalogs:
  • Sports and Hobbies
  • Americana