Marcellus Gilmore Edson

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Marcellus Gilmore Edson
Patent for peanut butter
Born(1849-02-07)February 7, 1849
Bedford, Quebec, Canada
Died(1940-03-06)March 6, 1940 (Aged 91)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Known forDevelopment of peanut butter

Marcellus Gilmore Edson (February 7, 1849 – March 6, 1940) was a Canadian chemist and pharmacist. In 1884, he patented a way to make peanut paste, an early version of peanut butter.[1][2]

Biography[edit]

Marcellus Gilmore Edson was born at Bedford in Quebec. In 1884 Edson invented a process to make "peanut paste" for the production of candy, and was awarded United States Patent No. 306727 for that invention. When cooled, his product had "a consistency like that of butter, lard, or ointment". The patent describes a process of using heated equipment to mill roasted peanuts until the peanuts reached "a fluid or semi-fluid state", and then optionally mixing the resulting paste with sugar for use in confectionaries.[3][4][5]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "A Canadian history of peanut butter". Archived from the original on June 18, 2014. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  2. ^ "The History of Peanut Butter". Kitchen Daily. August 9, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  3. ^ "All About PB" Southern Peanut Growers
  4. ^ Kristin Holt (January 24, 2019). "Peanut Butter in Victorian America". kristinholt.com. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  5. ^ "US Patent #306727". patents.google.com.