We all love chocolate chip cookies, but did you know that they were invented by accident? In fact, many of the items you use every day were created by mistake! All of these awesome accidents had amazing outcomes like Play-Doh, Slinkys, and more!
Play-Doh
Play-Doh, everyone’s favorite childhood toy, was originally a cleaning product! Play-Doh was invented by Noah McVincer. Noah worked for his family’s soap business. During his time working there, he created a product that would be known as Play-Doh. Back then, though, it was a wallpaper cleaner. His invention was very popular because it didn’t contain any chemicals and it didn’t stain the walls. Teachers began using it in classrooms, not as wall cleaner, but as clay. Years later, Play-Dohwas born not by Noah McVincer, but by his son Joseph McVincer. Joseph decided on a new name for the cleaning product, Play-Doh. He then rebranded the product as a toy for schools. Playdough then became a huge success and racked up almost $3 million! Today Play-Doh is owned by Hasbros and has even made it onto the “Century of Toys List,” which displays the 100 most memorable toys from the last 100 years.
Popsicles
Around 2 billion popsicles are sold each year, but did you know that this well-loved summertime treat was actually made by mistake? It all started with 11-year-old Frank Epperson. One winter night in 1905, Epperson had mistakenly left soda-flavored powder that was mixed with water in a cup outside with the stirring stick still in the cup. The weather that day was very cold so when Epperson came to check on the mixture the next day, it had frozen! He tasted the frozen soda and found it to be delicious. Epperson did nothing with his invention for a long time, until 1922 when his frozen confection was first served to the public when he brought them to the local Fireman’s ball. Unsurprisingly, the treat was a huge success, and in 1923, he applied for a patent on his frozen desert under the name, “Epsicle Ice Pop”, where he combined his name with icicle, but later changed it when his children started calling it “Popsicle®”. Unfortunately, Epperson had to sell his patent to the Popsicle Corporation in 1925 after running into financial trouble. Today, Popsicle is owned by the Unilever Group of Companies.
Slinky
Slinkys are super fun, but do you ever think about how they came to be? Well they were actually an accident! In 1943, mechanics engineer Richard James needed to make a spring that would keep equipment secure when at sea. James was working one day when he accidentally knocked the tester springs off the table and realized that the spring moved instead of stopping. Annoyed, he ran after it. Later, he realized that this spring could make a great toy! Richard James and his wife, Betty, decided on the name “Slinky”. They designed a toy that would coil 80 feet of wire into a 2 inch spiral. The couple used $500 to make the first Slinkys. At first, the sales were slow, but a turn of events occurred after the Gimbels Department Store in Philadelphia demonstrated the toy for Christmas in 1945. The first 400 Slinkys sold rapidly. Slinky then got its own jingle which got customers excited. “What walks down stairs alone or in pairs and makes a slinky sound? A spring, a spring, a marvelous thing. Everyone knows it’s Slinky!” Who knew that one accident would lead to a well-beloved children’s toy?
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chocolate chip cookies are one of the most delicious accidents out there, so what made them an accident in the first place? The yummy food came to be in the 1930s by Ruth Graves Wakefeild. Ruth and her husband Kenneth were working as chefs at the Toll House Inn. The Inn had much popularity due to the desserts sold there. One night Wakefeild decided to make a batch of cookies, but realized that she was all out of baker’s chocolate so she decided to chop up some Nestle semi sweet chocolate expecting the chocolate to expand and turn the cookie fully chocolatey like the baker’s chocolate did. But when she pulled her fresh baked cookies out of the oven she found a surprise waiting for her. The chocolate did not expand and stayed in the form of a chocolate chip. These cookies became such a big success that she had to remake them repeatedly, and the chocolate chip cookie was born. Now, it is estimated that 7 billion cookies are sold a year on average.
Mrs. Wakefield’s Original Cookie Recipe:
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 2/3 cups (11-oz. pkg.) semi-sweet chocolate morsels
- 1 cup chopped nuts
Directions
Set oven to 375° F. In a small bowl, mix flour, salt and baking soda and set aside. In a larger bowl, cream butter and sugar and add vanilla extract. Blend until smooth and creamy. Add one egg and beat well. Add the second egg and beat well. Gradually fold in flour mixture and stir in chocolate pieces. Drop a tablespoon size dollop onto baking sheets and bake cookies until golden brown or for around 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on trays for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Even though most people think that accidents are bad, these happy accidents have led to amazing inventions. So the next time you’re eating a popsicle, maybe you’ll be inspired to make your own invention yourself!
Works Cited
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Despres, Rachel. “15 Of The Coolest Accidental Inventions | HowStuffWorks.” Science | HowStuffWorks, 12 February 2024, https://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/inventions/15-of-the-coolest-accidental-inventions.htm#pt11. Accessed 7 May 2024.
Dickerson, Brad. “It’s National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day! Here’s a few things you may not know about the cookie.” QC Life, 4 August 2022, https://qclife.wbtv.com/2022/08/04/its-national-chocolate-chip-cookie-day-heres-few-things-you-may-not-know-about-cookie/. Accessed 7 May 2024.
“Frank Epperson and the Popsicle® Story.” Popsicle, https://www.popsicle.com/us/en/our-story.html. Accessed 7 May 2024.
“Frank Epperson and the Popsicle® Story.” Popsicle, https://www.popsicle.com/us/en/our-story.html. Accessed 7 May 2024.
“Frank Epperson | Lemelson.” Lemelson-MIT, https://lemelson.mit.edu/resources/frank-epperson. Accessed 7 May 2024.
Goel, Muskan. “5 Accidental Inventions that have become essential in our lives.” Tfipost.com, 26 May 2023, https://tfipost.com/2023/05/5-accidental-inventions-that-have-become-essential-in-our-lives/. Accessed 7 May 2024.
“Slinky – The Strong National Museum of Play.” Strong Museum of Play, https://www.museumofplay.org/toys/slinky/. Accessed 7 May 2024.
Weisman, Carrie. “35 Accidental Inventions That Dramatically Changed the World.” Best Life, 14 November 2023, https://bestlifeonline.com/accidental-inventions/. Accessed 7 May 2024.
Wells, Madeline. “The Popsicle was supposedly invented by an SF 11-year-old. But the legend doesn’t add up.” SFGATE, 19 August 2021, https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/Popsicle-invented-San-Francisco-legend-origin-SF-16398124.php. Accessed 7 May 2024.
“Who Invented Playdough?” Wonderopolis, https://www.wonderopolis.org/wonder/Who-Invented-Playdough. Accessed 7 May 2024.
