Rabelais Books and Bowdoin College announced today the acquisition by the college of The Esta Kramer Collection of American Cookery—more than 700 titles spanning from the Colonial Era to the 1960s.
Rabelais is very pleased to have placed the cookbook collection of Clifford Apgar with the Bowdoin College Library. The placement was made possible through a donation to the College by Esta Kramer, and to honor that generosity the college has named it The Esta Kramer Collection of American Cookery. For the first time, there is an important resource for the history of American cookery in the State of Maine. It’s only fitting that a state with such a long history of food production, and with an exciting current dining scene, should also have the materials for students and scholars.
According to the release from Rabelais, the collection,
…contains more than seven hundred culinary titles, from the Colonial Era through 1900, but a selection of important works from 1900 until 1960 – the year of the publication of Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking – is also integrated. Beyond cooking, the collection illuminates the development of American culture, encompassing American social movements and historical events.
Update: The Press Herald has published a front-page article on the Kramer Collection.