Edwin Perkins (inventor)

Edwin Elijah Perkins (January 8, 1889 – July 3, 1961), born in Lewis, Iowa, United States, invented the powdered drink mix Kool-Aid in 1927 in Hastings, Nebraska, after his family had moved to Hendley, Nebraska from Iowa in 1893.As a young man he worked with products like Jell-O, which was sold in his father's general store in Hendley.When Perkins came to Hastings at age 31 in 1920, his principal interests were patent medicines and household products.By 1927 he had developed a powdered soft drink mix called Kool-Ade, which he packaged in envelopes and sold in grocery stores, promising 10 glasses of beverage for 10 cents.The Perkins family remembered its Nebraska roots, donating generously to philanthropies in Adams County and elsewhere in the state.
Ed PerkinsLewis, IowaOlmsted County, MinnesotaKool-AidHastings, NebraskaJell-Ogeneral storeHendleyHastingspatent medicinesenvelopesgrocery storesChicagoGeneral FoodsNebraskaAdams CountyHastings CollegeHastings MuseumWayback MachineFind a Grave