I decided to look into the history of hot dogs and ketchup, to try to determine the origins of the antipathy towards ketchup. In the end, it seems to me that such ketchup hatred is of more recent origins, and that initially, ketchup was a very common condiment for hot-dogs, its validity never questioned.
The origins of hot dogs are murky, with multiple claimants alleging they were the first to offer hot dogs on rolls. They obviously were derived from German sausages brought to the U.S. during the 19th century. In the second half of the 19th century, these were known by a variety of names, including wienerwurst (or wienerworst), frankfurter sausages, dachshund sausages, wieners, red hots, and more. Differentiating the differences between these terms isn’t always easy.
Even the origin of the term “hot dog” is in dispute. Some claim it wasn’t invented until 1901 by a sports cartoonist. However, that cannot be true as the term existed for nearly 20 years before that. The earliest reference I found was in The Evansville Daily Courier (IL), September 14, 1884. In an article about Minneapolis and its new Mayor, it was noted he was cracking down on saloons and more. “Even the innocent ‘wienerworst’ man will be barred from dispensing hot dog on the street corner.” So, wienerworst was apparently a synonym for “hot dog” at this point.
Prior to this time, and throughout the rest of the late 19th century, hot dogs were commonly sold from wagons and stands, on streets and at fairs, at resorts and baseball games. Hot dogs seemed to become popular fairly quickly.
Lunch wagons, offering hot dogs, especially at night, were a major component in the popularity of the hot dog. These lunch wagons may have had their origins in 1840, when Charles C. Dearbault, in Colorado, used a prairie schooner to sell eatables. Then, during the 1880s, these wagons apparently arose in Massachusetts, and quickly spread to other regions.
The origins of hot dogs are murky, with multiple claimants alleging they were the first to offer hot dogs on rolls. They obviously were derived from German sausages brought to the U.S. during the 19th century. In the second half of the 19th century, these were known by a variety of names, including wienerwurst (or wienerworst), frankfurter sausages, dachshund sausages, wieners, red hots, and more. Differentiating the differences between these terms isn’t always easy.
Even the origin of the term “hot dog” is in dispute. Some claim it wasn’t invented until 1901 by a sports cartoonist. However, that cannot be true as the term existed for nearly 20 years before that. The earliest reference I found was in The Evansville Daily Courier (IL), September 14, 1884. In an article about Minneapolis and its new Mayor, it was noted he was cracking down on saloons and more. “Even the innocent ‘wienerworst’ man will be barred from dispensing hot dog on the street corner.” So, wienerworst was apparently a synonym for “hot dog” at this point.
Prior to this time, and throughout the rest of the late 19th century, hot dogs were commonly sold from wagons and stands, on streets and at fairs, at resorts and baseball games. Hot dogs seemed to become popular fairly quickly.
Lunch wagons, offering hot dogs, especially at night, were a major component in the popularity of the hot dog. These lunch wagons may have had their origins in 1840, when Charles C. Dearbault, in Colorado, used a prairie schooner to sell eatables. Then, during the 1880s, these wagons apparently arose in Massachusetts, and quickly spread to other regions.
The Worcester Daily Spy (MA), October 22, 1884, noted, “A new novelty upon the streets of the city is a lunch wagon, which goes about the streets until midnight with hot coffee and sandwiches.” Generally, these wagons operated at night, sometimes until the early morning hours, and they sold various sandwiches and coffee. According to a history in The Sunday Herald (MA), October 21, 1894, a 20 year-old former assistant janitor opened his own lunch wagon on January 7, 1890. The article noted, “It also introduced the juicy Frankfurter and the long roll that went with it.” It was also said that his customers would commonly say, “Give us a dog!”
The Sunday Herald (MA), October 21, 1894, published the above picture of a lunch wagon, noting “..the remarkable work of art which illumines the streets of our cities, the night lunch wagon.” Such wagons generally cost about $600-$1000. The article continued, noted how the lunch wagons had since spread to nearly every New England city, made inroads into the Central and Southern states, and had spread west as far as Minneapolis.
Most of their sandwiches, including the frankfurter, were only 5 cents each, except for chicken and sardine sandwiches which were 10 cents. “The Frankfurter is cooked in a neat little broiler in the wagon, and placed smoking hot in a roll freshly cut. The combination does not differ from that of Coney Island fame, except that it provides more than two good mouthfuls. Every lunch cart has a big call for this eatable.” So, we see that hot dogs were very popular, and that the ones available in Massachusetts were probably larger than those found on Coney Island.
Some of these lunch wagons also served Boston Baked beans, pies (commonly apple, squash and mince—and usually served with cheese), and Cheese sandwiches (for 10 cents). In addition, “Every lunch wagon man prides himself on the coffee he serves, sweetened and milked.” It was said that 9 out of 10 customers ordered a cup of coffee, with the tenth person ordering milk.
What condiments were served with these hot dogs? Unfortunately, most of the newspaper mentions of these lunch wagons and hot dog vendors didn’t mention anything about the condiments, simply mentioning the hot dog and its roll.
As an aside, ketchup has a lengthy history, but until the 19th century, it wasn't a tomato-based sauce. Then, in 1876, Heinz produced its own version of ketchup, initially called "Catsup," a blend of tomatoes, distilled vinegar, brown sugar, salt and spices. It was sold in glass bottles and started to get popular at the same time as hot dogs started making their mark.
One of the earliest mentions in a newspaper of a condiment with a hot dog was in The News (NJ), February 15, 1894, which mentioned a “hot-dog” peddler who served a “succulent frankfurter” with horseradish. That is more of a German culinary tradition. In a similar vein, and also following in a German culinary tradition, the Fall River Daily Herald, September 7, 1895, noted, “Peddlers of hot frankfurter sausages in Newark are not compelled by competition to give sauerkraut with their meat, but they are worried for fear the custom will be introduced from New York.”
Some of these lunch wagons also served Boston Baked beans, pies (commonly apple, squash and mince—and usually served with cheese), and Cheese sandwiches (for 10 cents). In addition, “Every lunch wagon man prides himself on the coffee he serves, sweetened and milked.” It was said that 9 out of 10 customers ordered a cup of coffee, with the tenth person ordering milk.
What condiments were served with these hot dogs? Unfortunately, most of the newspaper mentions of these lunch wagons and hot dog vendors didn’t mention anything about the condiments, simply mentioning the hot dog and its roll.
As an aside, ketchup has a lengthy history, but until the 19th century, it wasn't a tomato-based sauce. Then, in 1876, Heinz produced its own version of ketchup, initially called "Catsup," a blend of tomatoes, distilled vinegar, brown sugar, salt and spices. It was sold in glass bottles and started to get popular at the same time as hot dogs started making their mark.
One of the earliest mentions in a newspaper of a condiment with a hot dog was in The News (NJ), February 15, 1894, which mentioned a “hot-dog” peddler who served a “succulent frankfurter” with horseradish. That is more of a German culinary tradition. In a similar vein, and also following in a German culinary tradition, the Fall River Daily Herald, September 7, 1895, noted, “Peddlers of hot frankfurter sausages in Newark are not compelled by competition to give sauerkraut with their meat, but they are worried for fear the custom will be introduced from New York.”
So, we can see that some of the initial hot dogs might have been served with horseradish or sauerkraut, a hold-over from their German heritage.
Different condiments! The Buffalo Courier (NY), September 24, 1895, mentioned, “A dog is a long, narrow roll cut through the center and filled with a hot wiener and a dab of mustard.” No mention of horseradish or sauerkraut, although the use of mustard also owes much to its German heritage.
However, ketchup was a common condiment at a Massachusetts hot dog spot. The Boston Globe (MA), October 9, 1895, referenced “The Bowery” in Salem, Massachusetts, which was at a “famous rendezvous for ‘hot dogs’ and coffee.” The restaurant was said to have plenty of ketchup bottles, which were most likely used for their hot dogs. There was no other known reason for why they had all that ketchup.
The Milton Rays (VT), October 6, 1898, also mentioned, “A man will guzzle 10 quarts of beer, a score of drinks of whiskey, eat cheese, onions and hot-dogs, putting ketchup on his mustard,..” So, we see one place where both mustard and ketchup were put on hot-dogs.
The Boston Globe, April 30, 1899, printed that, “The ‘frankfurters,’ sometimes known as the ‘wiener-wurst,” is a domestic product and comes in winding links, like a strong of elongated beads. It is not a pork sausage, but is supposed to be—well, no one really knows just what enters into the wiener-wurst—but it is very highly seasoned,…” There was then a mention of a combination of frankfurters, rye bread and horseradish.
Ketchup on hot dogs became hugely popular! The Press of Atlantic City (NJ), February 13, 1923, noted, “Every hot dog has its day, but the red sauce that so many favor to further flavor the said hot dog demands a whole week to retain its place in the public mind. This is Ketchup Week.” It's now clear that many people added ketchup to their hot dogs, and there's no mention that anyone objected to the use of this condiment on hot dogs.
The Miami Herald (FL), January 27, 1924, in discussing a hot dog stand, mentioned, “Ask him for mustard and ketchup and onions and pickles.”
Glorifying the hot dog! The Greensboro Record (NC), November 9, 1927, mentioned that, “Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, Jr., has made known her latest fad—a small thing which provides for some $40,000 to be used exclusively for sponsoring a movement to “glorify the American hot-dog.” Most folks don’t eat hot-dogs, sometimes known by the nickname of “weiner,” but some do. So eating emporiums wherein the culinary delicacies are to be dispensed, amid mustard, ketchup and other acrid and appetizing condiments,…” This seems to indicate that hot dogs weren't that popular at this point, but ketchup was clearly a common condiment.
Although many know of the hate of Chicago for ketchup on hot dogs, it actually seems more of a modern creation than something that extends back many years. For example, other areas in Illinois had no issues with ketchup on hot dogs. The Pantagraph (IL), July 10, 1938, stated, “Garnished with mustard or ketchup and placed in a bun, the ‘hot-dog’ is the great American sandwich!” There was a large Heinz ad in the Rock Island Argus (IL), September 15, 1938, which noted it went well on hot dogs. The Daily Chronicle (IL), January 6, 1939, mentioned that hot dogs, “By adding relish, mustard, or ketchup they make a fine lunch item.”
The Daily Calumet (IL), August 7, 1948, noted,“But our great love for summer is hot dogs. Some folks like them with ‘the works’…ketchup, pickles, mustard, and just about everything they can think of.” And the Cardunal Free Press (IL), July 22, 1975, stated, “Yes, Virginia, beneath the onions, pickles, relish, peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, mustard and ketchup there is a hot dog on the bun.”
Even the Chicago Tribune (IL), May 15, 1980, in discussing the Chicago-style hot dog, didn’t deny ketchup a place on the hot dog. “No one agrees on what constitutes a classic Chicago hot dog, but Chicagoans, whose habit supports more than 3,000 stands throughout the city, contribute unselfishlessly to the 19 billion franks consumed annually by Americans.” The article continued, “Ask for a dog ‘with everything’ and one can expect condiments like mustard, chopped onions, sweet relish, a dill pickle spear, sport peppers (those bulbous green cousins to the jalapeno variety), and sliced tomatoes. Celery salt, sauerkraut, and catsup are optional.” No hate for ketchup here, even by a major Chicago newspaper!
The history of ketchup atop hot dogs extends back at least 125 years, but the hate for that combination is far more recent. If you don't want ketchup on your hot dog, there's nothing wrong with that. However, don't tell anyone else that they are wrong for wanting ketchup on their hot dog. They have the weight of history on their side.
