By: Janell Bradley, Editor
January 09, 2008
©Newspapers of Fayette County 2008
As Iowans, perhaps most of us can't imagine planning a vacation to Hastings, Nebr. But after watching a recent news segment on a museum there, I've added it to my own personal "100 Places to See Before I Die" list.
Why? I'm not sure if they have anything else in Hastings, Nebr., but the Hastings Museum of Natural and Cultural History seems to be a worthwhile venture. If you're over 40 years of age, you might have collected Kool-Aid package "points" to purchase Kool-Aid premiums like the smiling Kool-Aid face mugs, pitcher, canteen - and I think there was even a Kool-Aid tent!
As a kid, I mailed away for a purple Kool-Aid mug after downing numerous quarts of sugary Kool-Aid. Many of those items are now on display in the Hastings Museum. Everyone's favorite childhood drink, Kool-Aid® got its start in Hastings. The soft-drink mix, now owned by Kraft Foods, actually started out as a liquid concentrate called Fruit Smack.
A young Edwin Perkins experimented with homemade concoctions in his mother's kitchen. Edwin's father opened up a General Store in Hendley, Nebraska. It was in the store that Edwin became entranced with a new dessert mix introduced by a childhood friend (and future wife) Kitty Shoemaker. The powdered dessert came in six delicious flavors and was called Jell-O®. Edwin convinced his father to carry the dessert line in his store. It was at this same time Edwin sent away for a kit called "How to Become a Manufacturer."
During the following years, Perkins graduated from high school, published a weekly newspaper, did job printing, served as postmaster and set up a mail order business called "Perkins Products Co." to market the numerous products he had invented.
In 1918, Perkins married his childhood sweetheart, Kitty, and developed a remedy to kick the tobacco habit called "Nix-O-Tine." By 1920, the demand for this and other products was so great, Perkins and his wife moved to Hastings, which had better rail service for shipping purposes. Another product that was proving to be popular was a concentrated drink mix called Fruit Smack. Fruit Smack, like Jell-O®, came in six flavors. But shipping the bottles proved to be costly and breakage was becoming a problem.
In 1927, Perkins developed a method of removing the liquid from Fruit Smack so the remaining powder could be re-packaged in envelopes called Kool-Aid. The product, which sold for 10¢ a packet, was first sold to wholesale grocery, candy and other suitable markets by mail order in six flavors; strawberry, cherry, lemon-lime, grape, orange and raspberry.
By 1931, the demand for Kool-Aid® was so strong, other items were dropped so Perkins could concentrate solely on Kool-Aid®. During the Great Depression, Perkins cut the price in half to just 5¢ a packet, a "luxury" most families could afford. Young entrepreneurs sprung up across the country setting up Kool-Aid® stands. While most of the profits were consumed by the youngsters, it was something most children enjoyed.
The Hastings Museum houses an impressive Kool-Aid® collection as part of the Kool-Aid: Discover the Dream exhibit, including the original Kool-Aid® Man costume worn in the television commercials. Hastings College has another collection on display in the Perkins Library on campus.
