Use Restrictions

The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)

Access Restrictions

There are no access restrictions.

Preferred Citation

"The Westinghouse Refrigerator Book: Hints, Helps and Recipes" booklet, C0343, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Purchased by Special Collections Research Center in April 2019.

Processing Information

Processing completed by Meghan Glasbrenner in August 2023. Finding aid completed by Meghan Glasbrenner in August 2023.

Historical Information

The Westinghouse Electric Company was founded by George Westinghouse in 1886, beginning with a small plant in Garrison Alley, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company would change its name to Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company in 1889 and later to Westinghouse Electric Corporation in 1946. In its early years the company produced many new types of commercial and industrial equipment for the generation, transmission, and application of electricity. Throughout the first half of the 20th century, Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company diversified its product line to include defense contracts, nuclear power, and household appliances. They produced the first electric range in 1917, followed soon by other household electronics including the clothes iron, coffee percolator, and refrigerator. Westinghouse would continue to produce household appliances until 1972 when their Major Appliances division was sold.

Like many other food and household appliance companies in the later 19th through mid-20th century Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company created and distributed recipe and tip booklets to advertise and assist consumers in using their products. Early versions of these publications were typically simple in design and focused primarily on desserts, but by the 1920s they became colorful, heavily illustrated, and began including more tips on making food preparation faster and easier.

Scope and Content

Recipe booklet with full color images published by Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company containing recipes that can be stored in a Westinghouse refrigerator, along with helpful tips to assist consumers in using the appliance.

Arrangement

This is a single item collection.

Related Material

The Special Collections Research Center also holds other rare books and manuscripts pertaining to cooking, such as the Cookbooks and cooking pamphlets collection , the Elizabeth Fairfax cookbook , and "Fleischmann's Recipes: Excellent Recipes for Baking Raised Breads" booklet .

The Henry Ford Archive of Amereican Innovation , the Archives Center of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History hold collections of cookbooks and promotional recipe booklets, and the Heinz History Center's Detre Library & Archives holds collections on the Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Advertising
• Cookbooks
• Cooking
• Refrigerators