What is The Cook’s Oracle?
It is a database designed to help people doing research in pre-twentieth-century cookbooks, and some other sources. Whether one is looking for a particular recipe, change in books that are published in multiple editions, or trying to establish relationships among cookbooks of different periods, the Cook's Oracle can help.

The database is a work in progress, and we welcome your comments and suggestions. Contact us at info@cooksoracle.com. The earliest entries date from the fourteeth century; the latest from the mid-twentieth century. At present it contains information for locating material in approximately 100 texts. Many of them are based on reprints that are widely available. Many important works have yet to be entered. Some originals are in the collection of the Schlesinger Library, but not all of them are. For up-to-date information about the Schlesinger Library's holdings, please visit Hollis, the Harvard University online catalog. The Schlesinger is taking part in the Google books project, so more sources will become available in the future.

How is The Cook’s Oracle different from other databases?
As Culinary History has become a recognized field of study, and the Internet has matured, many research tools have become available online. Most notable are the Feeding America: The Historic American Cookbook Project, and the Online Culinary History Project. These projects have a different focus and are well-used in conjunction with the information presented here. The Cook’s Oracle is meant to be used as a guidepost, pointing out directions to a possible path, journeys for you to follow. Searching for specific comments, terms or ingredients will open up even more questions before you get to an answer, but that’s all part of the fun of the hunt.

Who are we?
Barbara Ketcham Wheaton is a culinary historian (food historian, if you prefer), the author of Savoring the Past: the French Kitchen and Table from 1300 to 1789 (University of Pennsylvania Press), and since 1992, the Honorary Curator of the Culinary Collection at the Schlesinger Library at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University.

Lezlie Lee-French, a food historian (or culinary historian, if you prefer), and programmer, and Jennifer French, another programmer and Lezlie's partner have been the patient and resourceful people who have brought one woman's baling wire and string database into a form that can be used by normal humans.

When can you start using the database?
We are gearing up for a Spring 2007 opening. If you would like to be notified when the database is available for viewing, please contact us or bookmark this site and check back later.