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HomeCanning Timeline Table

Canning Timeline Table

Canning, which was adopted in the United States shortly after its development, quickly became an important means of food preservation for American citizens. This timeline shows some of the major points of interest for the development of this food preservation method.

portrait of Napoleon Bonaparte

1795
Napoleon offers a reward of 12 thousand francs for the invention of a new food preservation method

portrait of Nicolas Appert

(The Book For All Households: Or, The Art of Preserving Animal and Vegetable Substances For Many Years (1920) Nicolas Appert and Katherine Golden Bitting, p. 5)

1809
Nicolas Appert wins Napoleon's reward

tin cans

(CDC/Debora Cartagena)

1810
Peter Durand creates the "tin canister"

commercial cannery, circa 1909

(The Canning of Peas: Based on Factory Inspection and Experimental Data (1909) U.S. Department of Agriculture Bureau of Chemistry Bulletin Number 125, p. 17)

1812
Robert Ayars opens the first American cannery

Illustration of Mason jar from U.S. Patent Number 22,186

"U.S. Patent Number 22,186"

1858
John L. Mason patents the Mason jar

glass jars

Successful Canning and Preserving (1918). Ola Powell, US Department of Agriculture. Assistant in Home Demonstration Work in States Relations Service"

1884
The Ball Corporation starts manufacturing glass jars for home canning

The Kerr Home Canning Book

The Kerr Home Canning Book (1945) Zella Hale Weyant and Kerr Glass Manufacturing Corporation

1903
Alexander H. Kerr and the Kerr Glass Manufacturing Corporation create a home canning supply business

World War I poster Women of America Work for Victory

"Women of America Work for Victory (1918)

1914
World War I begins

Home demonstration agent at work in the field

Boys' and Girls' 4-H Club Work Under the Smith-Lever Act, 1914-1924 (1926) U.S. Department of Agriculture Miscellaneous Circular Number 85

1914
Smith-Lever Act creates the official position of Home Demonstration Agent

glass jar, lid, and seal

"Home Canning of Meat (1946) Agricultural War Information Number 110, p. 4

1915
Alexander H. Kerr is granted patent for his two-piece disposable metal canning lid

pressure canner

Home Canning of Fruits and Vegetables (1921) Farmers' Bulletin Number 1211

1917
The U.S. Department of Agriculture determines that presure canning is the only safe way to process low-acid foods

Botulism as seen under the microscope

Clostridium botulinum. Centers for Disease Control: Public Health Image Library (PHIL) 2107

1931
Twelve people, inlcuding some children, die after consuming improperly home-canned food at a dinner party in North Dakota

War poster titled Preserve

Preserve (ca. 1917-1919) by Carter Housh

1939
World War II begins
(This poster by Carter Housh made for World War I was reused)

display of food canned in jars

Successful Canning and Preserving: Practical Hand Book for Schools, Clubs, and Home Use (1917). Ola Powell

1943
Peak in home canning in the United States, with more than four billion cans and jars processed

cover of How to Choose and Use Your Refrigerator (1946)

How to Choose and Use Your Refrigerator (1946)

1945
Decline in home canning accelerated by the increased availability of home refrigeration

pressure cooker

Community Canning Centers (1945) U.S. Department of Agriculture. Production and Marketing Administration

1970
Do-It-Yourself movement results in a resurgence of home canning and pressure canners

jars of contaminated jalapenos

Centers for Disease Control: Public Health Image Library (PHIL) 3355 . CDC/Dr. Chas Hatheway

1977
Largest recorded outbreak of Botulism resulting from home canning

Fifty-nine people became ill with Botulism after eating salsa prepared with home canned jalapenos at a Mexican restaurant in Michigan

Cover of Complete Guide to Home Canning

Complete Guide to Home Canning (1988)

1988
The U.S. Department of Agriculture first publishes its Complete Guide to Home Canning

FDA Food Code

1993
The Food and Drug Administration publishes its first comprehensive Food Code

Poster illustrating improper canning procedures

Don't (1943)

2005
USDA Standards

A national survey of home canners finds that up to 57% use methods deemed unsafe by USDA standards

Date K, Fagan R, Crossland S, Maceachern D, Pyper B, Bokanyi R, Houze Y, Andress E, and Tauxe R. (2011) 'Three Outbreaks of Foodborne Botulism Caused by Unsafe Home Canning of Vegetables--Ohio and Washington, 2008 and 2009,' Journal of Food Protection, 74(12)