Food
Farm and Factory
Discover food’s journey through farms and factories across the U.S. From photographs of farmers working through the harvest to the machines that gave us sliced bread, these objects illustrate how the American pantry is shaped by taste, industry, and innovation.
Cooking at Home
Step into the kitchen and explore how home cooking has changed in America over time. These cookbooks, appliances, and photographs showcase how the people work to not only prepare and enjoy meals, but also establish relationships with food, tradition, nutrition, and technology.
Markets
Trace the development of groceries and markets in the U.S. Dry good stores of the early nineteenth century have given way to supermarkets, bodegas, convenience stories, and co-ops offering shoppers something for every meal. Shopping habits have followed customer demands for choice and convenience.
Dining out
Dig into the history of American restaurants. Browse menus, photographs, and other objects to not only understand how restaurants in the U.S. evolved from fine dining to fast food, but also meet the cooks, customers, and entrepreneurs who set the table.
Food in Wartime
Discover the impact of war on how soldiers and civilians eat. With hardtack biscuits during the Civil War, the ubiquitous ration cards of World War II, and modern relief efforts to regions around the world, follow how war and conflict have affected diets from the front lines to the homefront.
Food and Social Justice
Investigate the historic connections between the American diet and social justice movements. With picket lines, boycotts, and sit-ins, activists have used food to navigate and advocate issues related to labor, class, gentrification, civil rights, and more.
Topic curated by Andrea Ledesma, Digital Public Library of America