1924. What a year.
Ford Motor Company stock value reached $1 billion.
Knute Rockne and the Four Horsemen led Notre Dame to football fame. Aviators circumnavigated the globe. In Texas, they elected “Ma” Ferguson,
the country’s first female governor. In the east, Watson launched IBM.
In the West, Hollywood moguls launched MGM.

While big names were in the news across the country, a young man named
J.W. Butterfield was hard at work outside the spotlight in North Carolina.

He was out to make his mark in hard candy.

In the earthquake of 1937,
the records of the Butterfield Candy Company were destroyed.
Hence, there is little to be sure of about Mr. B.

Some say he was a druggist with a sweet tooth.
Some say, a chemist who hit upon a formula.
Some say, an entrepreneur who saw an opportunity.
What is known is that, whatever he was, the man
began the company in 1924.

Mr. B. loved natural flavors: Peaches from the orchard, Aunt Tillie’s Key Lime Pie, a nice, tart lemon, and mint.
"Why have they never been put in a hard candy?," he asked himself.

At the time, there were candy bars and candy mints.
There were chocolate covered cherries, gum drops and
all manner of hard candies.

But Mr. B. thought he could make a different tasting hard candy.
Not a candy cane, not a fancy curl—just a different taste.

Still, this was 1924, and people feared new ideas.
“Never work,” his friends said. “Just you watch,” said Mr. B.

He bought copper kettles to mix the concoction.
“Why copper?” his father demanded.
“Because it works best,” JW replied.

The copper kettles and the sprinkling of the sugar are pretty much the same as 1924.

He found people with good strong hands to mould
the mix. (“Machines would be cheaper,” his bankers moaned.
“But people can do a better job,” Mr. B retorted.)

The candy tasted good, but JW found something
missing. He munched and he thought, he thought and
he munched, he—well, you get the idea.

Then, one night, he sprang from his sleep.

“Coconut!,” he cried. So they added a slither of
coconut to the mix. Then, a light sprinkling of pure cane sugar, and voila!

JW Butterfield discovers coconut.

Butterfield Buds were born.
People tried it. They liked it. They wanted more.
J. W. Butterfield was on his way.

At least, that’s the way we think it happened.

Peach Buds, the original. 100% made in the USA, Only Pure Cane Sugar.

One thing we know for sure: in all the years since,
while there have been new products, new flavors, new kinds
of packaging, the way we make Butterfields is pretty much
the same way Butterfield made Butterfields.

Neither he—nor we—would have it any other way.

Thank you for your visit. Thank you for your thoughts and ideas on hard candy. Mr. B. is a man who’s set in his ways, but he’s always open to suggestion.
Especially if it’s a good one.

The people of Butterfields today. The spirit lives on.