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The idea of an edible candy on a stick is very simple, and it is probable that the lollipop has been invented and reinvented numerous times. [4] The history of the first lollipops in America appears to have been distorted over time. There is some speculation that lollipops were invented during the American Civil War (1861???1865). Others believe some version of the lollipop has been around since the early 1800’s. George Smith claimed to be the first to invent the modern style lollipop in 1908 and trademarked the lollipop name in 1931. 5] He used the idea of putting candy on a stick to make it easier to eat and reportedly named the treats after a popular racing horse, Lolly Pop. The word “lolly pop” dates to 1784, but initially referred to soft, rather than hard candy. The term may have derived from the term “lolly” (tongue) and “pop” (slap). The first references to the lollipop in its modern context date to the 1920s. [6] Alternatively, it may be a word of Romany origin being related to the Roma tradition of selling toffee apples sold on a stick. Red apple in the Romany language is loli phaba. 7] The first confectioneries that closely resemble what we call lollipops date to the Middle Ages, when the nobility would often eat boiled sugar with the aid of sticks or handles. [4] The invention of the modern lollipop is still something of a mystery but a number of American companies in the early 20th century have laid claim to it. According to the book Food For Thought: Extraordinary Little Chronicles of the World, they were invented by George Smith of New Haven, Connecticut, who started making large boiled sweets mounted on sticks in 1908.
He named them after a racehorse of the time, Lolly Pop. [8] In 1905, the Popsicle was invented by an eleven-year-old Frank Epperson. Frank Epperson was only 11 years old when he invented the originally named Epsicle. He had left his fruit flavored soda outside on the porch with a stir stick in it. The drink froze to the stick and tasted good. It took 18 more years in 1923 for Epperson to apply for a patent for a “frozen ice on a stick” called the Epsicle ice pop, which his children re-named the Popsicle.