A Short History of the Mason Jar
The short history of the mason jar starts with Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon offered a prize of 12,000 francs to anyone who could create a vessel that would preserve and carry food for his troops. It needed to be a container that was safe and reliable. Napoleon was the one who said “an army marches on their stomach”. Enter Frenchman Nicholas Appert. In 1809 Nicholas Appert produced a recognizable version of today’s mason jar. In 1810 Appert was given the prize money which he used to support his canning factory.
In 1858 an American Tinsmith named John Landis Mason patented his own version of the jar. His was a much improved version featuring a threaded mouth, rubber seal and a reusable screw on tin lid.
The Ball Brothers of Buffalo, NY manufactured the design in 1886 and in 1915 Alexander H. Kerr improved on the design. Kerr created a two-part mason jar lid and widened the mouth. The Ball brothers adopted this improvement to much acclaim.
Not much has changed with this amazing jar since the 1850’s! It’s classic, vintage, simple, modern, recyclable, inexpensive, readily available, and truly timeless. Not to mention flowers look great in them.
When it comes to the mason jar you just can’t beat their charm, simple shape, and price. We find new ways all the time to use them in our home. Everything from canning, freezing, baking, storing, and decorating. What’s not to love!
You can read about my favorite jars here.
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Ball 32oz wide mouth here
Kerry 8oz jelly jar here
Ball 12oz wide mouth here
