How was cotton candy invented?

The sugary treat cotton candy was invented in Nashville in 1897 by a dentist (yes, a dentist) named William J. Morrison and a confectioner named John C. Wharton. Together, they developed a machine that spun heated sugar into fine threads, creating an airy, cottony confection that became a staple at carnivals and fairs.

The two inventors’ machine was first introduced to the public in 1904 at the World’s Fair in St. Louis, Missouri, where the confection became an instant hit. The treat was originally marketed as “fairy floss” and was sold in small wooden boxes for 25 cents, half the cost of the fair’s admission ticket. Nearly 70,000 boxes of “fairy floss” were sold at the fair, and the machine won a prize for “novelty of invention.”

Morrison’s and Wharton’s machine worked much like those used for making cotton candy in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. The machine heats and spins the sugar at a high speed until it melts and then forces it through tiny holes using centrifugal force. As the sugar cools, it solidifies into thin threads that are typically collected onto a stick or a paper wand. The end result is a soft, sticky, melt-in-your-mouth sweet that resembles cotton or a cloud.

The name cotton candy is credited to Louisiana dentist (another dentist!) named Josef Lascaux in the 1920s, although in some parts of the world the confection is still referred to as “fairy floss” or “candy floss.”