Culinary Historians | Bacon: The History of America’s Most (Un)Desirable Food

When

Sunday September 20, 2026: 4:00pm to 5:30pm  Add to Calendar /   Add to Google Calendar

Where

Downtown Library: Lower Level Program Room

Description

How has bacon overcome centuries of religious prohibition, cultural contempt, and dietary advice to become a 21st-Century culinary and cultural powerhouse? Starting in early modern Britain and tracing the story of bacon through the colonial era, the Civil War, the Progressive Era, modern fad diets, and the emerging craft bacon industry, this talk will give a new perspective on some familiar American narratives. 

Dr. Mark A. Johnson, a historian at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, recently published the book American Bacon: The History of a Food Phenomenon. For Johnson, bacon’s transition from “most dangerous food in the supermarket” to pop culture and gastronomic phenomenon reflects the cultural values of a nation.

This event is in partnership with the Culinary Historians of Ann Arbor and includes a signing with books for sale.

The Library will be providing a live stream of this event and we intend to make it available for future viewing. A video player will appear on this page 1 hour before the start of the event.