“Any Molasses Cornballs Today?”
Since candy was not widely made and sold in America until after the middle
of the nineteenth century, molasses cornballs were very popular with
families of moderate means.
The corn was often grown on their own land. In the evenings the family would
gather around the hearth and pop the corn. When popped, the corn was stirred
into molasses syrup and shaped into balls. These molasses cornballs were not
only a favorite with the children but with the grown-ups as well.
Cornballs were peddled in the streets wherever there were crowds. A circus,
a fair or a political rally always offered a good field. At affairs of this
nature there was a ready market for the cornballs and sales were always
brisk.
Candy was expensive and not too common, since the bulk of it was imported
chiefly from France. After the Civil War, the candy business in the United
States increased sharply. Stick candy, rock candy, gumdrops and marshmallows
and even bonbons and chocolate drops were being manufactured and sold in
this country. This candy was sold in bulk. Twenty, thirty and forty pound
boxes were sold to the grocer. He would box them or sell them in bags in any
quantity desired. It wasn’t until the late nineteenth century that candy
could be bought in most stores. By that time penny candy, and the more
sophisticated chocolate creams and bonbons were easily obtainable, even in
the country stores as well as in the stores in the city.
Item ADT145 Price $ 225.00 |
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