Most massive global food empires are created by teams of highly paid scientists sitting in bright white laboratories. They spend millions of dollars running focus groups just to figure out what flavor of sugar water people want to buy. But one of the most famous summer snacks on the planet was created by total accident in a freezing backyard by an eleven year old boy who simply forgot to clean up his toys.
It happened in the winter of 1905 in the San Francisco Bay Area. A young kid named Frank Epperson was playing on his back porch mixing up a popular sweet drink. He poured some sugary fruit flavored powder into a cup of water and used a small wooden stick to stir it all together.
The Mistake On The Porch
Something inside the house caught his attention and he completely abandoned his little science experiment. He left the glass sitting outside on the railing. That specific night the temperature in the area dropped unusually low. A freak freezing wave swept through his neighborhood.
When Frank woke up the next morning he walked outside and found his forgotten drink completely frozen solid. The sugary liquid had turned into a hard block of colored ice. The small wooden stirring stick was trapped perfectly right in the middle of the frozen cup.
He grabbed the stick and pulled the chunk of ice out of the glass. He gave it a quick lick and realized his freezing accident tasted absolutely incredible. It was completely refreshing and the stick made it incredibly easy to hold without freezing his own fingers.
Hiding A Delicious Secret
Instead of running to tell adults about his genius invention he kept it mostly to himself. He made the frozen treats for his friends around the neighborhood. He spent the next eighteen years keeping the recipe a quiet local secret. He grew up and got a normal job selling real estate.
But he never forgot about that freezing night on his porch. In the early 1920s he finally decided to share his childhood mistake with the public. He started selling his frozen snacks at a local amusement park. People went absolutely crazy for them. They bought thousands of them on hot summer days.
Changing The Name Forever
Frank originally called his invention the Epsicle. It was just a simple combination of his last name and the word icicle. He patented the idea and started a massive business. But his own children absolutely hated the name. They refused to call it that.
Since their dad made the treats they just called them Pop’s sicles. The catchy name stuck instantly. A massive brand was born just because a kid forgot to bring his dirty dishes inside. Today massive factories pump out billions of these colorful frozen snacks every single year using the exact same basic concept that an eleven year old accidentally discovered over a century ago.
References: You can read the full timeline of Frank Epperson and his frozen empire in this historical article by NPR.