NATIONAL TAFFY DAY | MAY 23
May 23rd celebrates a mouth-watering confection on National Taffy Day. Taffy candy has been made and sold for many years and has become a favorite souvenir of many vacationers.
#NationalTaffyDay
Salt water taffy in was invented 1883 in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Confectioners make this sweet treat using boiled sugar and butter. They stretch and pull the concoction until it is a chewy consistency that can be rolled and cut. The flavors range from buttery to tart to sweet. There is a flavor for everyone, and it seems like they introduce a new one each year, too. Taffy’s colorful displays entice children and adults alike. And they have been doing so for generations. At one time, candy shops and pharmacies sold penny candy, and taffy was one of the many tempting options we could choose from. However, those days are now long gone.
With summer just around the corner, seasonal candy shops are stocking up their latest selections. With so many flavors to choose from, it’s often hard to decide which ones to pick. That’s why they often offer flavors swirled together to help us narrow it down. But we’re still enticed by the variety and the colors.
HOW TO OBSERVE NATIONAL TAFFY DAY
National Taffy Day offers the perfect excuse to indulge in so sweet or tangy taffy! What is your favorite flavor of taffy? Be sure to enjoy a piece or two. While you’re at it, share a favorite memory or send a box to someone you know will enjoy some taffy. Give a shout-out to your favorite candy shop, too! Use #NationalTaffyDay to post on social media.
NATIONAL TAFFY DAY HISTORY
National Day Calendar continues researching the origins of this sweet and chewy holiday.
May 23rd Celebrated History
1895
Three new balls were insufficient to complete a game between the Louisville Colonels and the Brooklyn Bridegrooms. After three innings, no balls remained and after an 8-minute delay of the game, umpire William Betts called the game giving Brooklyn a 9-0 championship win.
1911
After 17 years of construction, President William Taft presided over the New York Public Library dedication.
1934
The notorious bank-robbing duo known as Bonnie and Clyde died in a shootout with police in Bienville Parish, Louisiana.
1962
Drs. Ronald A. Malt and J. McKhann led a team of surgeons at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston in the first successful reattachment of a human limb. They performed the surgery on a 12-year-old boy whose arm was severed by a train.
May 23rd Celebrated Birthdays
Margaret Fuller – 1810
Humanity is divided between men, women, and Margaret Fuller. ~ Edgar Allan Poe
A woman of many firsts, one of her most noted and last achievements was becoming the first American female war correspondent to write under combat conditions. She worked for the New York Herald Tribune assigned to Italy to report on the revolutions. However, when Fuller returned in 1850, she died tragically in a shipwreck.
James Buchanan Eads – 1820
The American civil engineer designed the first bridge (Eads Bridge) to cross the Mississippi River south of the Missouri River. He also designed a jetty system that caused the river to cut a deeper channel which in turn allowed a better flow of traffic up and down the Mississippi River.
Jeralean Talley – 1899
Born in Montrose, Georgia, Jeralean Talley lived to 116 years, 25 days. At the time she was the oldest living person in the world. When she was born William McKinley was president. At her death in 2015, Barack Obama was in second term as president.
S. Donald Stookey – 1915
The American chemist and inventor developed many types of glass while working at Corning. During his career, Stookey claimed more than 60 patents.