How do I become a food historian?

Here's my answer (plus a roadmap to help you on your journey)

The question I get asked more than just about any other, when I say I am a food historian, is "how do I become a food historian?!"

So, I wrote a little non-exhaustive guide that might be useful.

First things first: As with any term, labeling myself as a food historian is an imperfect science because (as fellow historian-but-technically-not-a-historian KC Hysmith notes here) my PhD isn't in the field of History.
My PhD is in Library & Information Science, and while I used historical research methodologies and studied historical topics for both my Master's thesis and my dissertation, not everyone would label me as a historian because my PhD isn't in that field. But, many people would: And I refer to my work as food history when I'm studying, well, the history of food.

I've talked a lot about my work, and my path to this work before, so I'm focusing this particular guide outward on discussing food history work in more general terms: But I'm happy to answer your specific questions about my work, too!

You can also read this really wonderful interview on my historical research practice with Contingent Magazine from earlier this year.

So, whatever you label me, keep reading to see a bit more about my historical work: And how working with food history might look for folks like me who are not specifically studying food-focused topics at a History department at a university.
If that's you, you probably have a handle on your research area and the kind of work you want to do after graduating: But maybe this guide will give you a bit of inspiration, too!

First of all, what is food history?

Food history is the study of, well, the history of food (I know, surprise): But I use the term broadly to define not only culinary history (the history of foodstuffs, and of cooking and eating), but also the many histories that connect with food. From this perspective, there is a food story within whatever historical work you're doing (labor history, women's history, history of a given geographic area, etc). As KC Hysmith says, every story is a food story.

If you want a good lay of the land of what food history is, how this area of inquiry developed, and what food history looks like today, I LOVE this overview from Sarah Wassberg Johnson.

Food Studies, as a discipline, is more broad: Associate Professor Emily Contois says Food Studies "examines the relationship between food and all aspects of the human experience, including culture and biology, individuals and society, global pathways and local contexts."

This means people working within this area can be approaching the topic of food from many different angles: and be studying many different subjects. But what I love about our work is, even if we're studying very different things, we are still able to share ideas and learn from each other's approaches. It's (in my experience) a very generative, dynamic field.

There is so much more I could say about Food Studies and studying the history of food, but a couple key takeaways are that it's work that's often interdisciplinary, and researchers who study food (whether at a university or in other capacities) often come to the work from outside the field of history. They might, for example, be in Media Studies, Anthropology, Sociology, Medicine, Art History, Museum Studies, or Library Science (among many other things).

Here are a few resources to dive in a bit further (and please share your favorites in the comments, if you have them!):

• The Association for the Study of Food and Society is a great resource for learning about the interdisciplinary study of food and society and find resources (like graduate programs).

• The Food Timeline's food history research tips.

• The Oxford Symposium includes an in-person symposium plus virtual programming throughout the year, focused on food research.

• There are various regional and local culinary history groups, though some also offer virtual programming. See for example the Culinary Historians of New York.

• Johnson's article (above) includes some good resources, too.

• Check out food-related organizations connected to your interest areas or geographic focus, which might have educational resources plus events like conferences you can attend: The Southern Foodways Alliance is a good example.

Whatever you do, find trustworthy resources that share good research but also research that really excites you: Read their work, learn from them, and follow your excitement and interest to see where it leads.

What can you do as a food historian?

For researchers who are university trained, there's academic research and teaching, of course, but also depending on your interests and your training you could also work in any number of areas (and not all of them need a PhD, though some, like librarian jobs, may require a Master's degree). Here is a non-exhaustive list:

• Historic interpreting (like at a living history museum) and cultural heritage work generally (which can include the next two bullet points to varying degrees: Many cultural heritage-related positions involve wearing a lot of hats).

• Caring for food-related collections in libraries and archives, or with collections at another institution (like an art museum or house museum).

• Outreach, programming, and exhibition design: This could be with, say, a library or museum, but could also happen through other community and cultural organizations. You might do community programs (talks, events, etc.) as well as exhibits.
  Food programming at museums can go so many amazing directions: A longtime favorite of mine is the Tenement Museum in New York City (here's an interviewbetween Sarah Lohman and Anya von Bremzen, who have both done fantastic programming at the museum). You might also work at a food-focused museum in some capacity (one of my favorites is the Butter Museum).
  I offer some more ideas about programming below, and I'll be sharing more information about food-related exhibits with paid subscribers in early 2025.

• Writing: Writing makes up a lot of my current work, and is a good choice once you have an established niche (like mine in fermentation and food preserving: My other niche was English food history but I've not stayed quite as engaged with it in recent years). You might stick just to your niche or, if you're like me, you might write about related topics too (see for example: this newsletter!)
  I talk a lot more about this in my class Finding your Food Story (which starts next year, it's still wild to me it's almost 2025), and there are other resources out there too (like Alicia Kennedy's newsletter workshop).

• Consulting: While consulting comprises a pretty small chunk on the pie chart of my work, I do still do some consulting (for example, when a filmmaker needs input on set design or a script, or when a private client needs research services for whatever reason). This work is primarily referred to me by word of mouth, though I also list my services (but not my prices, which vary by project) on Root's website.

• Education: Teaching is a big part of my work, too, and I usually designing virtual courses and teaching online, which helps me serve more students (who come to me from around the world). In-person programming is lots of fun too: And is a chance to combine hands-on activities (like sauerkraut making or drawing) with historical instruction.

• Other interdisciplinary work: The study of food intersects with A LOT of other fields, so you might be interested in food history and also work in (for example) archaeology, anthropology, government policy, or nutrition.

This is just the tip of the iceberg, though: Food history can connect with so many other career paths! If you have woven food history into a type of work not listed here, I'd love to hear about it!

Whatever you do, start by identifying not only what you want to focus on, whether that's a time period, or topic, or region, but then really get clear about why it matters to you.

That 'why' will help guide you towards the work that feels meaningful and aligned, and makes it easier to spot opportunities that align with your purpose behind your work (and pass on those that don't).

If you're in a position that involves public outreach, also think critically about who in the community is currently being served by your work, and who might be interested or find value in your work, but who you haven't yet reached out to or who otherwise might not have access to what you offer.

If you want to learn more about my approach to outreach, I wrote about it here, and here on my now-archived (but still available to read) library blog.

Here are a few outreach examples from my life in special collections (rare books and archives). Not all are food-related but they give you an idea of the breadth of possibilities:

·      teaching classes to incarcerated scholars in a local prison (I partnered with Common Good, an Atlanta-based educational organization who are amazing and do critical work). I also taught calligraphy (here, and here).

·      a rare books and beer pairing event with Homestead Atlanta.

  Bringing rare books to low income senior housing around Atlanta for residents who weren't able to leave and go engage with cultural programming.

·      Exhibitions and programs focused on interaction rather than just walls of text next to exhibit objects (think pieces of vellum folks could touch, rather than just seeing vellum behind glass: You can purchase vellum from bookbinding supply companies).
If you want to learn more about how I design exhibits, I'll be sharing my process, specifically for culinary exhibits, with paid subscribers early next year.

There are tons of other examples and ideas out there in the world, too, depending on your interests and who you're trying to reach!

Networking with folks in emerging museum professionals groups, in library and archive professional organizations, or state, local, and regional organizations is a great way to make connections for collaborative programming and get feedback on ideas.

A few favorite food history folks

There are way more people than I could ever fit on a single list, but here are a few examples of people out in the world working with and talking about the stories behind our food in interesting ways:

Michael Twitty has, for the decade or so I've known him (and before) been a tireless advocate for preserving and sharing African American food stories and establishing the link between Southern food and African food. He writes books, does media appearances and educational work, and does historic interpretation to help people understand the lives of enslaved cooks. His interpretive work, and his writing, are incredibly powerful: And if you're looking to do work that centers the history of an oppressed and marginalized group, his work can serve as an inspiration and information.

Sally Grainger studies ancient Rome, and like most food historians, practices making the foods she studies as part of her research (which, I think, is a critical part of understanding a food). That theory-meets-practice approach applies to the work of everyone on this list, and you'll see lots of it the more you dive into food history, see for example Ken Albala's experiments: Not all strictly historical dishes, but all informed by his research and interests).

KC Hysmith is, like me, a PhD who, rather than going the academic path, has focused her work on writing about food.

A few other favorites: William Rubel, who studies bread in its many forms, Farrell Monaco, who does edible archaeology focusing on the Mediterranean, Toni Tipton-Martin, whose work highlights and honors invisible Black cooks, Casey Corn, host of Recipe Lost & Found, and Adrian Miller, the Soul Food Scholar, who writes and speaks on soul food and whose speaking page is a great example of framing the “what” and “how” of your work for people who might potentially hire you to speak for them.

Again, this is a super-not-at-all-exhaustive list: But just gives you a sense of a little bit of the work being done around food history.

If you have a favorite food historian, please share in the comments!

I hope this guide inspires you to explore the connections between history and your work: And shows you that food history can be woven into a number of career paths.

If you're already doing food history and want to share about your work in the comments, I'd love to hear it: How are you weaving history into the work you do?

If you want to dive way deeper into your own journey as a food writer and historian, Finding your Food Story is the way to do it: And it's a 2-for-1 class until December 31st.

Finding your Food Story combines how-to information on conducting research, plus lots of activities that help you identify your own niche, and, most importantly, why you care about that work and what you want other people to get out of it.

It's a multi-month, deep dive space that has lots of room for self-study with our resource library, and opportunities for community and connection through live meetings and a dedicated virtual conversation space.

I also give everyone who stays engaged through the whole workshop period free gifts: Some worth hundreds of dollars, like 1:1 consulting sessions and private readings, plus free access to other classes.

If you join before December 31st you get some really sweet extra gifts, too:

• 2-for-1 classes: Everyone who preorders Finding your Food Story in 2024 gets free access an extra class. You get your choice of Ferment and Chill,Rooted in Place, or Creative Cooking Playground. 

• You get entered into a drawing to win an extra, free spot in the class: Which means a friend can join you for free (or, if you're giving it as a gift, you can join for free).

There isn't another workshop like this anywhere out there: I specifically designed it to bring in elements of my academic teaching experience (assignments are optional though!), and my more reflective, journaling, intuitive-focused work (like I do with 1:1 clients in Roots and Branches).  

Use the code CURIOSITY for 40% off the preorder price (which is $200 off regular price).

That discount code works for every single Culinary Curiosity School class: Which are a unique, clutter-free, and fun gift for the holidays (perfect for people who want experiences, not more stuff).
Plus, you're supporting a small business (and like I said previously, I'll even make you a custom gift card to give your giftee. Details here).

And if you're a paid subscriber, keep reading past the paywall for a sweet little extra discount for you.

Thank you, thank you, for letting me be a part of your own food story!