From Mrs. Lincoln's Boston Cook Book by Mary Johnson Bailey Lincoln (1884): This is an assortment of different types of Mason jars with different means of sealing. The green tint in the glass is due to the iron that is present in the sand used to create it. From right to left: 2 different kinds of jars with lid clamping mechanisms that were used with the rubber rings (this second from the left is still seen in today's homes); a jar with a zinc screw top with glass lid; a jar sealed with glass top screwed down with zinc grooved ring; and a jar with a zinc screw top, the underside has a porcelain lining. Just as in today's homes, these jars would have been used for the storage and preservation of foods such as vegetables and fruits. However, canning technology like this was not always available. Before the introduction of air-tight canning, foods were preserved by the use of salts, vinegars, or sugars if they could be afforded, as well as many other methods. The enjoyment of fruit year-around was a luxury reserved mostly to those who were very wealthy as the price of sugar was high and the process through which fruits were preserved less reliable and more difficult. According to Alice Ross, in her article "Home Canning in the Summertime" that all began to change because of Napoleon who, in the early 19th century had a very large army to feed and therefore challenged society to come up with improved methods for preserving foods. Ross goes on to explain that in an effort to meet this challenge, a man name Nicolas Appert came up with the idea of using a glass container. Appert fashioned wide mouth pin bottles with stoppers made from hand-cut corks that were fitted to the shape of the irregular hand blown glass. The bottles were then sealed with a compound made of lime and skim milk and finished by boiling in a water bath. Appert claimed that foods preserved in these bottles would last for at least a year in the same state at which they were first put into the bottles. For several decades following this innovation other inventive minds experimented: Many different types of containers and various lid clamping mechanisms were tested. The focus of many became tin lids sealed with wax or other materials and later mold-blown glass jars threaded to accept a zinc screw top lid. John Mason, by whose name canning jars are still known, patented the screw neck bottle or the "Mason Jar" on November 30, 1858. By the time of the American Civil War (1861-1865) air tight lids had been made possible with the use of disposable rubber rings, or gaskets, that were set between the glass lid and jar. By the 1880s, the wood stove was in common use, glass canning jars had become widely available and the cost of sugar had began falling. American woman began taking advantage of these changes by canning and preserving fruits and vegetables as well as meats which meant nearly everyone could enjoy the bounty of the growing season all year around.
