While today’s kitchens can be sleek and shiny with their stainless steel appliances and granite countertops, it is delightful to come across an integrated breadbox that is still used after many years of its installation. It’s a small but meaningful gesture to the time when kitchen was not just a place to cook but a place that was more intimate and practical with an emphasis on cooking at home.

Those who are fortunate enough to own one know that a built-in breadbox is a charming element of homes of the past when people’s lives were centered on the home and its simple practices. Still, even though we may not employ them in the same manner, they somehow remind us of the kitchens of our childhood, where the bread was made, stories were told, and people shared a meal.

Next time you are in an old house, or rummaging through a thrift store, and come across one of these breadboxes, you might recall its function in past kitchens. It’s a small thing, in fact, but often it’s the small things that remind of the most pleasant moments. Whether it is to store bread, kitchen paraphernalia or simply to make the kitchen look more inviting, the built-in bread box will continue to be an essential part of American kitchens’ narrative.