‘USE IN THE COLLEGE’

The title page is the first page of the cookbook, preceded and followed by various local advertisements. The title page makes clear the association between this cookbook and the College of Domestic Science, with ‘USE IN THE COLLEGE’ printed underneath the neat calligraphic title.

However, over time the book gained recognition outside of the College and became a go-to reference for many across the country. This particular copy, for instance, was given as a gift to a grammar school pupil in Dunoon as a subject prize in domestic science. The cookbook hence had achieved some level of recognition as a valuable source of recipes and methods.

The Glasgow and West of Scotland College of Domestic Science was established in 1908 and continued to expand until its eventual merger in the 1980s into what is now known as the Glasgow Caledonian University. Originally, the Domestic College provided comprehensive education in nutrition, hygiene, and traditional ‘housewifery’ tasks to masses of working class women residing in the city at the time, at the peak of industrialization. However, as the College expanded, it also began offering courses to train domestic science teachers.

When I brought up the cookbook with my Grandmother (1943), inquiring if she knew anything about it or the College, she mentioned that her own mother -- my Great Grandmother -- had intended to enroll in the “Dough” for the training to become a domestic science teacher. However, her goals were quelled when her parents became ill; as the eldest daughter in the family she was obliged to dedicate her time to care for them. The aspirations she had to attend the College to train as a teacher of Domestic Sciences would have been an indispensable opportunity to forge a career and life path for a young woman like her at the time.