Cook Book, Compiled and Published by the Board of Directors of the Larkin Children's Home, Elgin, Illinois

Elgin, Ill: Willson Press, 1915. Hardcover. Good. First edition; 8 x 5; pp. [11], 8-156, [8]; light-blue oilcloth over boards, with dark-blue decorations; thin cracks to cloth along spine; hinges reinforced with thin strips of linen; scattered spots, mostly to margins of several pages; corners and tips of spine rubbed; illustrated with a photograph frontis and advertisements; several manuscript recipes to last few leaves; overall in good or better condition.The Larkin Children's Home's history can be traced back to 1892, when Ms. Mary Peabody of Elgin, Ill. was asked to care for 3-day old twins, whose mother had died of pneumonia. Hearing of her generous spirit, soon several more children were handed off to her. In 1894 and 1895, her home would be known as "The Miss Mary Peabody Home for Babies." In 1896, The Elgin Children's Home Association was formed to "...care for and to provide for the wants of destitute, abused or neglected children under 14 years old..." Soon after, as Mary Peabody's home could not hold all the children anymore, a farmer by the name of Cyrus Elgin donated, in the name of his mother, a large house to the organization. They insisted on calling themselves "a home" and not "an orphanage," since their mission was for the children to eventually be reunited with their families. Today, the organization is still active, with 7 group homes and 60 severely abused and neglected children under its protection and care.The book contains an impressive array of recipes - from confectionary to salads and from meats to soups and sauces. OCLC lists 3 copies of the first edition at institutions; none other in the trade (as of May 2021).