Women's Auxiliary of Olivet Episcopal Church
Virginia Cookery: Past and Present – Women’s Auxiliary of Olivet Episcopal Church (1957, 11th Edition)
Virginia Cookery: Past and Present – Women’s Auxiliary of Olivet Episcopal Church (1957, 11th Edition)
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AT A GLANCE
- Title:
- Virginia Cookery: Past and Present
- Artist:
- Marguerite Burgess, Cover Artist
- Author:
- Women's Auxiliary of Olivet Episcopal Church
- Date:
- 1993 (1957 11th edition)
- Origin:
- Franconia, Virginia
- Condition:
- Very good-excellent (VG-EX)
- Cover:
- Softcover comb-bound
- Pages:
- 449
- ISBN:
- 9781103635450
- Book genre:
- Community Cookbook
- Notes:
- Southern Living Hall of Fame Award Winner
Low stock: 1 left
A historic Virginia community cookbook spanning 300+ years of culinary tradition.
Virginia Cookery: Past and Present, compiled by the Women’s Auxiliary of Olivet Episcopal Church in Franconia, Virginia, is one of the most historically significant community cookbooks ever produced. First published in 1957, this 11th edition (1993) continues the book’s legacy as both a culinary collection and a cultural document, tracing Virginia’s foodways back to the earliest English settlers in 1619.
This title was honored with the Southern Living Hall of Fame Award, a distinction reserved for community cookbooks of exceptional popularity, longevity, and cultural impact. A gold Southern Living Hall of Fame seal is on the cover, underscoring the book’s enduring reputation.
The Southern Living Hall of Fame recognizes cookbooks that reflect the richness of Southern culinary tradition and culture. Selected by Southern booksellers and industry experts, these titles stand out for their quality, regional character, and lasting appeal.
For collectors, this designation signals a cookbook of distinction—especially when examples retain their original award sticker, preserving how the book was first presented and marketed.
The mid‑century cover, illustrated by Marguerite Burgess, is a charming collage of stylized kitchen motifs rendered in green linework against a warm yellow background. Corn, a chicken, a rolling pin, a potted herb, a cooking pot, and a cooking bottle appear in playful, modernist forms.
Inside, the cookbook reads like a culinary time capsule. Recipes from some of America’s earliest families — including the Lees and Washingtons — appear throughout. Many were transcribed directly from Mrs. Richard Bland Lee’s handwritten manuscript, passed down through five generations and published here for the first time. These early recipes sit alongside contributions from women across Virginia’s auxiliaries, churches, and clubs, each credited with name, location, and organization.
The collection includes both everyday dishes and historically rooted specialties such as Deviled Crab, Westmoreland Club Mint Julep, Beene Cookies, Fried Chicken, Queen Elizabeth Cake, Penn‑Daw Cornsticks, Eastern Shore Clam Fritters, Martha Washington Cake, and Sally Lunn Bread. Many entries include brief historical notes or cooking commentary, adding depth and context to the recipes.
This copy is in very good to excellent condition. A beautifully preserved example of a beloved Virginia classic.
Collectors prize community cookbooks as both practical kitchen companions and historical artifacts. Often tied to a church, women’s club, or local organization, they preserve recipes, traditions, and personal connections to the past. Their vintage design and illustrations also make them appealing to display as well as use.
Historians value these books for the intimate insight they offer into American life—particularly women’s roles, as well as the social and cultural effects of immigration, expansion, urbanization, and industrialization.
Browse our complete Community & Junior League Cookbooks collection for more fundraising cookbooks and recipes.
Community cookbooks are locally compiled recipe collections—most often as fundraisers organized by women. The tradition dates to the Civil War era, beginning with Maria J. Moss’s 1864 A Poetical Cookbook.
Reading community cookbooks across time offers unexpected insight into American culture and history—especially changing social norms and the limited ways women’s voices appeared in print. Contributor naming conventions, such as “Mrs. John A. Smith,” reflected hierarchy, marital status, and identity while participation in clubs and organizations provided purpose and influence within their communities.
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We ask that when making your purchasing decision that you consider the photos as part of the item's description.
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