Cincinnati Candy: A Sweet History

by Dann Woellert

For more than a century, Cincinnati's candy industry satisfied our national sweet tooth. Dive into its specialties and past. Stick and drop candies appeared here long before their Civil War popularity. Opera creams, rich fondant-filled chocolate candy brought here by Robert Hiner Putman, provided decadence. Candy corn, which the Goelitz Company introduced to the United States before World War I, remains a ubiquitous treat. Marpro Products created and popularized the marshmallow cone candy. Doscher invented the French Chew and made caramel corn a baseball concession at Redland Field decades before Cracker Jack became synonymous with our national pastime. The city's many Greek and Macedonian immigrants influenced the unique Queen City tradition of finishing a Cincinnati-style ""threeway"" of spaghetti, chili and cheddar with a chocolate mint. Local food etymologist Dann Woellert tells these stories and more in this delectably sweet history.

192 pages, Paperback

Published November 6, 2017

Reviews

[Kim Gray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very niche book. If you are from Cincinnati you will recognize many of the companies and candies. If you are not from the city you will not know much of the book. Extensively researched book with lots of pictures. Only miss was not mentioning the Uncle Al show in the section with marshmallow cones.

[Ron Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great history of candy in Greater Cincinnati, from the old-time shops of yesteryear to the modern Airheads/Mentos factory. I was especially fascinated by the role of Greek immigrants in the industry (Papas opera cream, Aglamesis Brothers ice cream, peppermints in Cincinnati chili parlors).