Monday, October 6, 2008
Tim Miller hopes to explore how American suburbs developed by looking at some of America’s favorite foods — barbecue, TV dinners and frozen foods.
“I wanted to do something that was interesting,” Miller said. “Something people could relate to.”
After researching the history of American food, which looks at the kinds of foods people ate and how they reflected the cultural shifts during 1950s, Tim Miller, KU history lecturer, is ready to take on his next topic. Miller's next research idea is tracking down the history of chocolate chip cookies.
Miller, lecturer of history and recent KU graduate, researched modern food history for his dissertation and is rewriting his research to get it published. He is currently searching for a publishing company.
He said his research tied food to larger cultural and social issues between 1946 to 1963, such as suburban sprawl, the civil rights movement and women’s employment. It covers the rises of barbecues, cocktail parties, ethnic food and convenience foods, including TV dinners and frozen foods. One of his main sources of information was food reviews published in New York during the time period he studied.
Miller said a new lifestyle and culture formed in suburbs, which influenced the way Americans cooked and ate.
James Mayo, chair and professor of urban planning, said the number of homeowners increased after World War II because of the economic boom, the extended period of mortgage payments and a GI bill which allowed veterans to get home loans. This, he said, along with the increasing number of car owners, helped shift large numbers of people to suburbs across the country.
Miller said barbecues became popular because houses were smaller and did not have enough space for guests indoors.
“Barbecues were a very big deal during the time period with men getting into cooking,” Miller said.
His research also showed that Italian food became popular among suburbanites as increasing numbers of Italian people moved to suburbs.
Miller also said convenience foods became popular among middle classes when more women started working. Frozen foods, canned foods and TV dinners were introduced after World War II. He said a variety of cake mixes were also popular.
Miller said that those foods were always popular among Americans, but that until the 1960s, people didn’t know that many of them were unhealthy. He said the Food and Drug Administration did not investigate foods as much as they do today, and food companies had more power over consumers. The foods often contained high amounts of fat, artificial flavors and colors, and many people were not aware of the health problems related to those ingredients.
“There was no conception that this stuff is bad for you,” Miller said. “At least with our society today, there are different voices out there.”
Karl Brooks, associate professor of history and environmental studies who was also an adviser for Miller, said that many Americans still live in suburbs and that Miller’s research helped people understand more about American culture.
“He believes food tells a story,” Brooks said. “How it was changed from the past to the present helps us to understand the suburbs and important change after World War II.”
Miller said his next project was about the history of chocolate chip cookies. He said his research would focus on the ingredients of chocolate chip cookies and stories about the cookies and ingredients, some of which were spread around the world after the European exploration of the Americas in the late 15th century.
“If you look at chocolate, you can talk about what is called the Columbian Exchange,” Miller said. “So you can talk about how foods go around the world.”
Miller said he wanted to write books about food history as he became a history professor.
— — Edited by Rachel Burchfield
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