Great Living Cincinnatians: Honorees

Marion Becker came to Cincinnati from her native St. Louis in 1932, one year after she and her mother, Irma Rombauer, published the first edition of Joy of Cooking. Twelve editions later, it has become the largest independently produced cookbook in the world, having sold over five million copies. Since 1952, when her mother retired from involvement with the book, Becker has carried it on, expanding it into a cooking manual of 4,500 recipes, considered by millions of housewives to be their kitchen bible.

Her botanical and environmental contributions to the Cincinnati area have largely developed through her long and active association with the Cincinnati Town and Country Garden Club, which bought the first land given to the Nature Conservancy in Ohio, and through her service as secretary of the board of the Cincinnati Nature Center from its founding in 1966. She was co-author of Wild Wealth, a book devoted to the cultivation of wild flowers and other plants in the Cincinnati area.

Becker’s significant contributions also extend into the art world. She was the first professional director of the Cincinnati Modern Art Society, and later, its secretary and program chairman.

Marion Becker was the first woman to be honored as a Great Living Cincinnatian.

Marion Becker died on December 1, 1976 at 72.