Boston Cooking School facts for kids

The Boston Cooking School was a famous school that taught people how to cook. It started in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1879. The school's main goal was to teach cooking skills to people who wanted to become professional cooks. It also helped families learn practical cooking for their homes.

The school became very well-known after 1896. This was when its principal, Fannie Merritt Farmer, published her famous book, The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book. This cookbook taught people how to measure ingredients exactly, which was a new and important idea at the time.

How the School Started

The idea for the Boston Cooking School came from a woman named Mrs. Sarah E. Hooper. She was part of the Women’s Education Association of Boston. Mrs. Hooper had visited a cooking school in London and thought Boston should have one too.

So, on March 10, 1879, the Boston Cooking School opened its doors. It was located at 158½ Tremont Street. The first teacher was Miss Joanna Sweeney, who taught basic cooking classes. The cost for six lessons was kept low, at just $1.50. This made it affordable for many people.

Later, in November 1879, Mary Johnson Bailey Lincoln joined the school. She became the school's first principal. Because the school was so successful, it officially became a corporation in 1882.

Important Years and Changes

Mrs. Lincoln's Time as Principal

In 1884, Mary Lincoln published her own cookbook called Mrs. Lincoln's Boston Cook Book. This book was created to help students at the school by giving them a textbook with recipes.

During Mrs. Lincoln's time, the school started many special programs.

• In 1880, they worked with the Industrial Aid Society. They offered free cooking classes in Boston's North End, an area where many immigrants lived.
• The school also taught special classes on healthy eating for students at Harvard Medical School.
• Nurses from different hospitals learned how to cook for sick people.

Experts also gave special talks at the school. These talks covered topics like how the body digests food and how to buy food at the market. A very important speaker was Ellen Swallow Richards. She was the first woman to get a chemistry degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Richards taught about food chemistry and later helped start the Home Economics movement in the United States.

Mrs. Lincoln left her role as principal in 1885. After her, Miss Ida Maynard and Mrs. Carrie M. Dearborn, who were both graduates of the school, became principals.

Fannie Farmer's Influence

In 1889, Fannie Merritt Farmer graduated from the school. She was then asked to stay on as assistant principal. She became the principal in 1891.

Five years later, in 1896, Fannie Farmer's famous Boston Cooking-School Cook Book was published. This book was special because it taught people to use exact measurements for ingredients. This was a new and scientific way to cook. The book quickly became a classic in America and is still printed today.

In 1902, the Boston Cooking School joined Simmons College in Boston. This meant the cooking school became part of a larger college.

What Happened Next

An advertisement for Miss Farmer's School of Cookery from 1903.

After the Boston Cooking School joined Simmons College, Fannie Farmer left. In 1902, she opened her own school called Miss Farmer's School of Cookery. It was located at 30 Huntington Avenue in Boston.

Fannie Farmer passed away in 1915 when she was 57 years old. After her death, Alice Bradley took over Miss Farmer's School of Cookery. She ran the school until 1944.