Ball Blue Book of Preserving (Vintage First Edition - Full Text)

The Ball Blue Book of Preserving was originally written in 1909. The first edition was called “The Correct Method for Preserving Fruits.” The title changed several times in the last century, but we now know it as The Ball Blue Book of Preserving.

Most people think of home canning as an old-time food preservation technique, but it’s really only been around for the last 100 years or so.

Arguably, a hundred years is “a long time,” but centuries of food preservation (salting, curing, potting, etc.) led up to this “new method,” which was a huge revolution for home food preservation at the time.

One of the first books written for home canners was “The Correct Method of Preserving Fruits,” written in 1909.

At that point, it was only a 30-page pamphlet, but it went on to become one of the most respected home canning books on the market today.

In 1916, the title changed to “The Ball Blue Book of Preserving,” and at that point, it contained quite a few more recipes…but it was still only around 50 pages long. Modern editions are more than 200 pages long, so they’ve come a long way in compiling canning guidance for home canners.

I have about a dozen different copies from various years in hard copy simply because I love paging through the old copies. Old versions are often available on Etsy, but copies of the first edition are almost impossible to find.

Historical Ball Blue Books

Until recently, most sources said that all versions of this original were lost…but I was able to find an original copy with the help of the reference librarians at the University of Iowa.

This is a very old vintage copy of “The Correct Method of Preserving Fruit” that is out of copyright, and I’m posting it here for historical reference.

According to Penn State University Extension, “Canning books published prior to 1994 will not have safe processing times and/or methods.” That applies to the Ball Book, given that new information about canning safety was developed at that time.

All new editions of the Ball Blue Book supersede earlier editions, and this edition is obviously not up to date for modern safety standards. The most recent edition of the Ball Blue Book of Preserving is the 38th Edition, released on February 1st, 2024. In honor of its release with updated safety standards (again updated since the 37th edition in 2020), I thought it’d be nice to see how it all started.

Ball Blue Book 38th Edition

I’m posting it here for historical reference only, and I don’t endorse or use these vintage canning methods. I do, however, love reading about canning methods, and this first edition is basically the holy grail for a canning nerd like me.

When I had it in hand, I couldn’t keep this edition to myself. I hope you enjoy this little trip back in time to peek at early canning history.

(The most up-to-date version is available wherever books are sold, and it’s only a few bucks online.)

Ball Blue Book of Preserving First Edition

Below, you’ll find all 30 pages of the first edition of the Ball Blue Book of Preserving, or The Correct Method of Preserving Fruit, as it was called when it was originally published in 1909. One of the interesting historical tidbits here is that the cover shows “Ball Brothers Glass Mfg. Co.”, which was only used prior to 1922. They were renamed the Ball Brothers Company in 1922 and then again the Ball Corporation in 1969.

That’s just one way you can help date old Ball Canning ephemera.

If you’re looking for a slightly newer version, but still obviously a vintage copy, you can view the full text of a version published between the end of WWI in 1919 and 1922, as it has references to the recent war victory and still has the pre-1922 name on the cover. It’s called “Edition M” of the Ball Blue Book, and a scanned copy of all 52 pages is available online through the University of Iowa Library Archives.

Beyond that, I have a list with links to the full text of more than 100 vintage canning books, either old enough to be out of copyright or produced as educational material by the federal government, so copyright protections do not cover them.

Here is the full 30 pages of the first edition of the Ball Blue Book of Canning: