The History of the Potato Chip

As I wrote in last week's blog post, the area where I live is rich in history.  Did you know the potato chip was invented in Saratoga Springs, NY, on August 24, 1853?  George Crum was a chef at the Moon's Lake Lodge in Saratoga Springs.  French fries were popular at the restaurant and one day a diner complained that the fries were too thick. Although Mr. Crum made a thinner batch, the customer was still dissatisfied. Mr. Crum finally made fries that were too thin to eat with a fork, hoping to annoy the extremely fussy customer. The customer, surprisingly enough, was happy - and potato chips were invented! 

Mr.Crum's chips were originally called Saratoga Chips and potato crunches. They were soon packaged and sold in New England.  Mr. Crum later opened his own restaurant.

William Tappendon manufactured and marketed the chips in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1895. In the 1920s, the salesman Herman Lay sold potato chips to the southern USA (selling the chips from the trunk of his car). In 1926, Laura Scudder (who owned a potato chip factory in Monterey Park, California) invented a wax paper potato chip bag to keep the chips fresh and crunchy - this made potato chips even more popular. 
 
 Be sure to scroll down to see today's card.  I accidently posted the potato chip story for today instead of scheduling it for tomorrow :)