Crum, George (George Speck)
1824-1914 · Contribution: 1853
Chef
Long credited as the inventor of the potato chip, popularized as the 'Saratoga Chip'
Portraits are AI-generated interpretations, not photographs.
Quick facts
- Born
- 1824
- Active since
- 1853
- Category
- Agriculture & Food
- Best known for
- Saratoga ChipsPotato-chip legendMoon's Lake House
Impact on the world
Whether or not the spiteful-customer legend is literally true, Crum's name is bound to the birth of one of the world's most popular snacks. The Saratoga Chip he served helped launch an industry now worth billions.
An alternative history
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Sources
- Source lookupFind
BlackPast.org
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Related visionaries
Wicks, Catherine 'Kate' Speck
1814–1917
Separately credited by name in her own obituary as the actual originator of the potato chip, a claim distinct from her brother George Crum's more widely told version
Smith, Lucille Bishop
1892-1985
Created the first commercially sold boxed hot roll mix, a foundational product in the convenience food industry
Carver, George Washington
1864-1943
Crop rotation methods; alternative uses for peanuts, sweet potatoes, and soybeans