--- description: The history of tubular meat goes way back. title: The History of the Hot Dog from Ancient Greece to Ballparks image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb1ff89dd25288a3d/69869a6ad0b6f204e030523c/hot_dogs.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Culture](/tag/culture/) ## Culture Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # WATCH: The Delicious History of the Hot Dog by [Harry Swartout](/author/harry-swartout/) ## Harry Swartout Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 4, 2014 1:00 PM CUT  Hot dogs in buns at the official weigh-in ceremony for the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 3, 2012 at City Hall in New York City. Hot dogs in buns at the official weigh-in ceremony for the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 3, 2012 at City Hall in New York City.Stan Honda—AFP/Getty Images by [Harry Swartout](/author/harry-swartout/) ## Harry Swartout Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 4, 2014 1:00 PM CUT Red hots, dogs, brats, frankfurters, wieners, sausages — whatever you call them, you’re probably getting ready to scarf down some hot dogs on the Fourth of July. Before they were on your picnic table, hot dogs graced the fires of ancient Greece, the beer houses of Germany and the White City of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. Whether accompanied with sauerkraut, slathered in mustard or just nestled in a bun, no food represents America’s melting pot better than the well-traveled, immigrant hot dog. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2953554/hot-dog-july-fourth/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2953554/hot-dog-july-fourth/"},"headline":"WATCH: The Delicious History of the Hot Dog","datePublished":"2014-07-04T13:00:01.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T08:57:49.498Z","description":"The history of tubular meat goes way back.","url":"https://time.com/2953554/hot-dog-july-fourth/","keywords":["Culture","Food","hot dogs"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb1ff89dd25288a3d/69869a6ad0b6f204e030523c/hot_dogs.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Harry Swartout","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/harry-swartout/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb1ff89dd25288a3d/69869a6ad0b6f204e030523c/hot_dogs.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Hot dogs in buns at the official weigh-in ceremony for the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 3, 2012 at City Hall in New York City.","caption":"Hot dogs in buns at the official weigh-in ceremony for the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 3, 2012 at City Hall in New York City.","creditText":"Stan Honda—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/culture/","name":"Culture"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2953554/hot-dog-july-fourth/","name":"WATCH: The Delicious History of the Hot Dog"}}]}] ```