Some inventors work their entire lives to develop a radical solution to the

world's problems. Other stumble upon a brilliant innovation purely by luck. We

should all be grateful that the universe gifted us with these world-changing,
accidental inventions.

Most people do not know this but potato chips are yet another accidental
invention.

One version of events is that George Crum, a Native-American/African-

American chef at Moon’s Lake House Lodge, an upmarket resort hotel in Saratoga
Springs, New York, faced an awkward customer one day in 1853. One source
names this customer as railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt.

Whoever it was complained that Crum’s Moon’s fried potatoes, the house
specialty, were too thick, too soggy, and too bland, and insisted they be replaced.
Although Crum did his best to make a thinner batch, the customer complained
they were still not to his liking.

Not taking these criticisms too well, Crum decided to teach him a jolly good
lesson: he sliced a potato wafer-thin, fried it until it was so brittle that a fork
would shatter it, and loaded it with salt. But far from hating the fries, the
customer took one bite after another, saying they were absolutely delicious, and
ordered more. Word spread quickly, and Crum went on to market his ‘Saratoga
Chips’ and set up his own restaurant.