Claim: Eliza Smith was the first cookbook author published in colonial America , one of the most popular cookbook writers in the 18th century who wrote The Compleat Housewife.
Evidence: Her one book, The Compleat Housewife, or, Accomplished Gentlewoman's Companion (London: J. Pemberton, 1727), went through 18 editions in Britain and in 1742 Smith became the first cookbook author published in colonial America. was one of the most popular female 18th-century cookery book writers.