From 1913:
Remove the green outer rind of the melon, scrape away the soft inner flesh, and cut the hard white rind into strips or squares, or fancy shapes, and steam for three hours in a preserving kettle you have lined with grape leaves. Spread these over the top of the rind, and put the cover of the kettle on closely. Scatter a little powdered alum on each layer of melon, about two teaspoons for the whole amount. Enough water should be put with the rind just to cover it. After three hours’ steaming, lift out the rind, throw it at once into cold water and let it soak for four hours, changing the water every hour. While it is soaking make a sirup of two and a half pounds of sugar and a quart of water, boiling steadily and skimming it as long as the scum continues to rise, and when this point is reached, drop in the rind. Keep this at a gentle simmer until tender enough to be pierced with straw, then take out with a skimmer and spread on flat dishes. Stand in the sun for a couple of hours, add for every pound of the rind a small lemon, sliced, and a small amount of sliced ginger root to the sirup; boil these together for about ten minutes; put the rind into the jars as soon as it is cool, bring the sirup to a hard boil, pour over the rind, let stand until cool and then seal the jars.
PICKLED WATERMELON RIND
Follow the preceding recipe to the time when the rind is put into the sirup. Weigh the rind at this point, and to each pound of this allow a pound of sugar and a half cup of water, with a half ounce of sliced green ginger and a tablespoon of turmeric to every eight pounds of rind. Heat the sugar and water slowly, when hot, lay in the rinds, simmer quietly until clear and tender, skim out, spread on plates, and add to the sirup the green ginger and turmeric, with a pint of vinegar and a tablespoon each of ground cinnamon, cloves, and mace
to each pound of rind. Tie spices in cheesecloth, bring to a boil, lay in the rind, simmer fifteen minutes, and put in jars. Keep three weeks before using.