The Electric Blender: A Short History
The electric blender, as we know it today, was invented in 1919 by Stephen Poplawski, owner of Stevens Electric Company. By 1922, after continuing to refine his invention, Poplawski patented the blender and began selling it through his company, the Stevens Electric Company, as a "drink mixer". This device was sold primarily to drugstore soda fountains to make milkshakes and malts. The Stevens Electric Company was bought by Oster Manufacturing in 1946 and Oster was purchased by Sunbeam products in 1960. Sunbeam Products is still in existence today, so you can still buy a direct descendant of the original blender! A few years after Poplawski's blender was introduced, in 1935, Fred Osius (who was also involved in founding the Hamilton Beach Company) developed his own blender and with funding from Fred Waring. A few years later the "Miracle Mixer" was produced and sold by Waring Products for household use. This appliance was known as the Waring Blendor (not...