The women of Halton County put together this cookbook as a fundraiser in 1912. Likely, the funds raised from the sale of the cookbook went towards supporting the Halton Women's Institutes and the various types of charitable work that they did in and around Halton County.

The Women's Institutes were an important organization for rural and small-town women. They became popular in the later-19th century and were found in virtually every Ontario county or community by the early years of the 20th century. As so many families still lived in rural districts at the turn of the century, organizations that focused on rural issues and supported rural initiatives were quite popular. 

Within the cookbook, a small hand-written note from a woman in Georgetown, in Halton County, offers some insights into how the book was compiled. She writes: "This book was compiled by Halton County Women's Institute in 1912. Each member of each branch in the county contributed her best recipe for the book." In 1912, Halton County consisted of several different Women's Institute branches, all of whom collaborated to produce this wonderful piece of food history.