Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

SPUDNUTS

Date Range From

1965

Date Range To

2000

Materials

WAX PAPER, INK

No. Pieces

1

Length

25.2

Width

12.5

Description

RECTANGULAR WAX PAPER BAG WITH AN OPENING ON TOP. THE FRONT HAS AN ORANGE VERTICAL LINE DESIGN FROM TOP TO BOTTOM. THERE IS A BROWN BLOCK LETTERED “SPUDNUTS” AT THE MID-PART OF THE BAG ON ORANGE BACKGROUND. THE BAG HAS A SERRATED TOP EDGE, AND A BACK FLAP SLIGHTLY LONGER THAN FRONT. ON THE BOTTOM IT SAYS “SPUDNUT OF CANADA LTD.” AND “VANCOUVER, B.C.” UNDERNEATH. BOTTOM HAS “INGREDIENTS: WHEAT FLOUR…(CAROTENE A).” THE BACK HAS A SERRATED TOP AND A SQUARE BOTTOM FOLDED. THE BASE SAYS “REED 4” AND HAS ORANGE STRIPE DESIGN.

Subjects

FOOD SERVICE T&E

Historical Association

BUSINESS

History

ON MARCH 12, 2020, GALT MUSEUM CURATOR, AIMEE BENOIT, MET AND INTERVIEWED FORMER LOCAL SPUDNUT SHOP OWNER WOLFGANG OTTO, AS WELL AS DENISE HAMMON— FORMER OWNER OF CRAZY CAKES. WOLFGANG STARTED MAKING SPUDNUTS IN 1965. HE PURCHASED THE BUSINESS IN 1966 AND RAN IT UNTIL 2000, AND LATER CONTINUED TO MAKE SPUDNUTS AT CRAZY CAKES FROM 2007 UNTIL ITS CLOSING IN OCTOBER 2019. HE DESCRIBED THE SWEET SECRET BEHIND SPUDNUTS AS “THE INGREDIENTS [HAVE] TO BE [THE] SAME ALL THE TIME. THE TRICK IS THE POTATO FLOUR. THAT’S THE TRICK... IT’S ALL ABOUT POTATO.” WOLFGANG DONATED THE BAGS THE SPUDNUTS WERE SERVED IN TO THE MUSEUM, AND THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION DERIVED FROM THE INTERVIEW. ACCORDING TO A MAY 8TH, 2009 LETHBRIDGE HERALD SEGMENT, THE SPUDNUT SHOP BUILDING LOCATED AT 1102 5TH AVENUE SOUTH WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT AS A MUSIC CONSERVATORY IN 1909. FROM 1950 UNTIL 1956, THE SPUDNUT BUILDING WAS CALLED BABE’S SPUDNUT & ICE CREAM BAR. IT WAS TAKEN OVER BRIEFLY BY BYRON SCHURTZ, WHO THEN SOLD IT TO GUNTHER LEBRO IN 1958. THEN, THE LEGACY WAS TAKEN UP BY WOLFGANG OTTO AND HIS WIFE ANGIE, ALSO KNOWN AS MR. AND MRS. SPUDNUT, IN 1966. WOLFGANG DESCRIBED HOW HE CAME TO LIVE AND WORK IN LETHBRIDGE AFTER GROWING UP IN GERMANY: “...I WAS BORN IN GERMANY…AT A TOWN THAT’S [CALLED] HUSUM...RIGHT ON THE NORTH SEA COAST… IN 1956, I MADE UP MY MIND TO COME TO CANADA…I ARRIVE[D] HERE...IN WINNIPEG AND THREE DAYS LATER, WAS A TRAINED DAIRY BUTTER MAKER WHICH I DID IN KENORA AND [THE OWNERS] WERE….DUTCH PEOPLE BUT BORN IN CANADA… [THEY] WERE VERY NICE TO ME… [I DID NOT KNOW ENGLISH]...THAT ARRIVED AFTER 1945. [KNOWING] THE DUTCH [PEOPLE]...HELPED ME A LOT BECAUSE I SPEAK HIGH AND LOW GERMAN… I CAME IN [1961]...TO LETHBRIDGE… I NEEDED A PLACE AND I FOUND AN APARTMENT UPSTAIRS AT THE SPUDNUT SHOP...AND THAT’S WHEN EVERYTHING STARTED… GUNTHER LEBRO…HAD THE SPUDNUTS SHOP [AND] WANTED TO GO BACK TO GERMANY... HE SAID, ‘ARE YOU INTERESTED?’ I SAID, ‘WELL LET ME SEE’... SO, ONE DAY I START ROLLING HIS DOUGH AND HE SAID, ‘YOU MUST HAVE DONE IT BEFORE!’ THE WAY I WAS WORKING AT IT. I SAID ‘NO, MAYBE BECAUSE I PLAY ACCORDION.’… THAT’S THE WAY IT STARTED. THEN, WITHIN...SIX MONTH[S]...I TOOK OVER HIS SPUDNUTS SHOP.” WOLFGANG OUTLINED HIS INTERACTIONS WITH GUNTHER LEBRO AND HIS FAMILY. HE AT FIRST WORKED FOR LEBRO FOR: “SIX MONTHS…AND THEN HE WORKED FOR ME…AND THEN HE OPENED A SPUDNUTS SHOP IN CALGARY… AT THAT TIME HE HAD ONLY ONE [CHILD] AND THEN THEY HAD TWO MORE KIDS…I MET THE TWO…THEY WANTED TO SEE THEIR [PARENTS] BACKGROUND…WHERE THEY LIVED…WHICH I DID [SHARE WITH THEM]… BUT MRS. AND MR. LEBRO DIED...BUT THE KIDS [HAVE] BEEN OVER HERE, TWICE... NOT THE [OLDER CHILD] THAT WAS BORN HERE…THE OTHER [TWO]…KIDS [WERE] VERY HAPPY TO SEE THE BACKGROUND [AND] WHAT THEIR PARENTS DID HERE...[AND] WHERE THEY LIVED…” WHEN ASKED WHAT MADE WOLFGANG DECIDE TO TAKE OVER THE BUSINESS, HE RESPONDED: “TO BE ON MY OWN BECAUSE I HAD A BAD EXPERIENCE WITH THE DAIRY…THAT’S WHEN I TOOK UP GARBUTT BUSINESS COLLEGE. THEN I WORKED FIRST FOR THE…BUILDING SUPPLIES; CONSTRUCTION. I WORKED THERE TWO YEARS. [I] DID THE BOOKS…” WOLFGANG DESCRIBED THE DAY-TO-DAY AND YEARLY ROUTINE AT THE SHOP: “...I CAME IN [AT]…TWO [OR] THREE O’CLOCK IN THE MORNING… [I ALSO WORKED FOR] MCGAVINS... I REALLY SAT DOWN AND FIGURED IT OUT THAT WAS JUST PENNIES WHAT I MADE THERE... I EVEN BAKED FOR THEM ON SUNDAY. THERE WAS NOTHING IN IT... THEN, WHEN I HAD MY FIRST CHILD...WE STARTED HAVING SUNDAY OFF...OTHERWISE IT WAS SUNDAY ‘TIL SUNDAY...FOR TEN YEARS. THEN, AFTER THAT...[WE] EVEN CLOSED FOR TWO WEEKS [AND] FLEW TO GERMANY…WE WENT IN THE SUMMER-TIME; [WE] USED [TO GO] ALWAYS AROUND CHRISTMAS, JUST SHUT DOWN [THE SHOP]. BUT THEN, I WAS BE ABLE TO DO THAT IN THE SUMMER-TIME, TOO, SO THAT’S WHEN WE DID CHANGE IT FROM THE WINTER TO THE SUMMER, WHICH IS FAR NICER..." WOLFGANG TALKED ABOUT THE SPUDNUT FRANCHISE AND DONATED BAGS, “THAT’S THE CONTROL OF THE NAME OF THE INGREDIENTS…AND THAT [RECIPE] STARTED IN SALT LAKE CITY... [IT WAS MADE WITH] POTATOES, WHICH I BOUGHT HERE. I DON’T HAVE ANYMORE...AND THEY MADE A MISTAKE…[WHEN THEY INITIALLY] PRINTED THAT [BAG] IN WINNIPEG. I HAD ONE MILLION BAGS ORDERED IN THE 60’S, AND THEN I SEE THAT…ONE MISTAKE…POTATO FLOUR…I HAD TO SHIP THEM THERE...UNBELIEVABLE HOW MANY. BUT THEN I GOT ANOTHER DISCOUNT BECAUSE THEY MADE A MISTAKE… I’VE SENT TWICE TEN DOZEN BY AIRPORT TO OTTAWA... THERE [WAS] ONE [SPUDNUTS BAKERY] IN MEDICINE HAT, ONE IN REGINA, THEN LATER, IN CALGARY. BUT [IT] WAS NOT THE SAME. THEY DIDN’T GET…THE SAME FLOUR… I HAD THE FLOUR COMING IN FROM SALT LAKE CITY IN THOSE DAYS. THEN THEY FINALLY GAVE UP, BUT I HAD THE RECIPE SO I...[GOT THE INGREDIENTS ELSEWHERE]. THEN THEY GAVE UP. THEN I HAD [SUPPLIERS] IN CALGARY AND REGINA. HALF THERE, HALF IN CALGARY...” WOLFGANG TALKED ABOUT HOW HE ENJOYED RUNNING THE BUSINESS, “...[I NEVER KNEW] THAT I WOULD BE A BAKER... IT IS DIFFERENT WHEN YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN... I WOULD ONCE A WEEK DRIVE OUT TO COALDALE. FROM TEN ‘TIL ELEVEN-THIRTY, THERE WERE ABOUT 10-12 GERMANS, ALWAYS AT THE SAME TABLE... AND THEY [SAW] ME ON TV... WHEN I TOOK OVER IN [1966]...COALDALE GAVE ME ONLY SIX MONTHS… I EVEN HAD A GUY FROM THE GOVERNMENT CHECK MY BOOKS AND HE SAID, ‘CAN I ASK YOU?’ AND I SAID, ‘WELL SURE, GO AHEAD.’ [AND THEN HE ASKED] ‘HOW CAN YOU MAKE A LIVING ON WAGES…?’ I SAID, ‘LISTEN, I’M NOT [GOING] IN A RESTAURANT [TO] EAT.’ I SAID, ‘[MY WIFE COOKS FOR ME] SECONDLY, I DON’T HAVE A STEAK EVERY DAY. I HAVE A SPUDNUT.’ GUESS WHAT? NEXT DAY HE CAME BACK AND SAID, ‘...I UNDERSTAND YOU’… I SAID ‘BEFORE I PAY MYSELF, I PAY [FOR MY SUPPLIES].’” WOLFGANG ELABORATED ON THE TASTY OFFERINGS AT THE SHOP: “[SPUDNUTS WERE] THE MAIN [PRODUCT]...AND [I] MADE MY OWN ICE CREAM...” WOLFGANG DESCRIBED HOW CUSTOMERS WOULD COME FROM SWIMMING AT THE FRITZ SICK POOL TO THE SPUDNUTS SHOP: “...THEY CAME IN FOR THE OLD SPUDNUT, [THAT WAS] TWO FOR FIVE CENTS...AND THE FAMOUS DRINK...[CALLED] …GRAVEYARD…[WHICH HAD] SIX-SEVEN DIFFERENT SHOTS...[OF] STRAWBERRIES OR RASPBERRY...FROM THE GARDEN..." WOLFGANG SPOKE ABOUT SELLING HIS BUSINESS: "...I SHUT DOWN IN THE YEAR 2000, IN JUNE…I NEVER HAD A SALE SIGN ON THE WINDOW THAT I WILL SELL THE BUSINESS, BUT IT WAS FOR SALE– THE BUILDING…THEN I SAW...BILL [AND] DENISE… I SHOWED BILL ALL THE UPSTAIRS... THE [CONNECTION] WITH BILL AND DENISE, IT WAS AS IF I HAD SEEN THEM BEFORE...” “...WITHIN A WEEK [BILL AND DENISE INQUIRED] ‘HOW MUCH?’ I SAID [A PRICE]. [IT WAS ONLY] TWO [OR] THREE DAYS [BEFORE] I HAD MY CHEQUE IN MY HAND... I STARTED CRYING...BECAUSE I [HAD] BEEN IN THERE FOR SO LONG; NOW IT’S GONNA BE OVER... [THE PEOPLE WHO BOUGHT THE BUILDING] SAID TO ME, ‘YOU WANT TO HAVE IT ALL OR HALF?’ I SAID NO ‘…HALF NOW AND HALF LATER.’ THEN WITHIN TWO DAYS I HAVE THE CHEQUE, [I] CRADLED [AND] CARRIED [THE CHEQUE] LIKE A LITTLE BABY… THAT’S WHY WE ARE FRIENDS STILL TODAY... I SAID TO DENISE, ‘IF YOU GO BACK INTO THE SPUDNUT BUSINESS AND ICE CREAM, I [WILL] SHOW YOU,’ WHICH I DID [AND I STAYED ON]… I SEE BILL EVERY MORNING FOR MY COFFEE…” WOLFGANG RECALLED HOW HE FELT COMING BACK TO MAKE SPUDNUTS AT CRAZY CAKES: “OH! IN MY GLORY!... BILL KNEW MY TRICKS, TOO… HE PUT OPEN THE CURTAINS...BECAUSE...I GOTTA SEE THE AIR... IF THAT’S CLOSED, I COULDN’T WORK FOR YOU. GOT TO...CONNECT ME WITH NATURE..." DENISE HAMMON ADDED ON HER EXPERIENCE WORKING WITH WOLFGANG: “...WE’D ALL MEET THERE AT ABOUT TWO O’CLOCK OR TWO-THIRTY IN THE MORNING AND WE’D HAVE COFFEE, PUT THE DOUGH ON… IF THERE WAS SNACKS LEFT OVER FROM THE NIGHT BEFORE, FROM CRAZY CAKES, THEN WE’D HAVE A LITTLE TREAT OR SOMETIMES THE GIRLS WOULD LEAVE TREATS FOR US TO TRY... SO WE’D DO THAT IN THE MORNING, THEN WE’D GET TO WORK… WE WOULD DANCE IN THE MORNINGS. WOLFGANG WOULD BE ROLLING THE SPUDNUTS AND I’D GO AND PUT ON THE...MUSIC... A SONG WOULD COME ON AND I’D BE FRYING SO I’D PUT MY SPUDS IN THE FRYER AND RUN OUT AND WE’D HAVE A QUICK TWIRL AROUND IN THE FRONT OF THE SHOP... THEN I’D GO, ‘OKAY I HAVE TO RUN BACK.’ HE’D GO BACK TO ROLL AND I’D GO BACK TO SPUDS…” DENISE SPOKE ON CHANGES TO THE SPUDNUT BUILDING: “...WHEN WOLFGANG WAS THERE, EVERYTHING WAS GRANDFATHERED IN. HE WAS ABLE TO KEEP THE FRYER THE WAY IT WAS...EVERYTHING WAS OKAY... BUT, BECAUSE HE WAS CLOSED FOR SO LONG, AND WE BOUGHT IT, WE DIDN’T HAVE THE GRANDFATHER CLAUSE SO WE HAD TO RENOVATE; BECAUSE THE BATHROOM WAS IN THE KITCHEN WHEN WOLFGANG HAD IT AND THAT’S A NO-NO... WE GOT NEW EQUIPMENT, TOO… [THE MIXER] JUST DIED…NOT LONG BEFORE WE CLOSED… HER NAME WAS BETSY… [THE MIXER] USED TO BE GUNMETAL GREY AND MY DAUGHTER SPRAY-PAINTED HER PINK.” WOLFGANG SHARED WHAT HE THOUGHT SPUDNUTS WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR: “...WE TREATED CUSTOMERS LIKE FAMILY... I HAD ONE CUSTOMER, FROM CALGARY…BUT YOU COULD TELL HE WAS SHY... HE ASKED FOR A DOZEN DOUGHNUTS… I SAID, ‘YOU’RE IN THE WRONG PLACE.’ BUT HE WAS SHOCKED THE WAY I SAID IT… I SAID, ‘IF YOU SAY ‘SPUDNUTS’ YOU’RE IN THE RIGHT PLACE'... BUT YOU COULD TELL I NEVER SHOULD HAVE MENTIONED IT... I WOULD ALWAYS GO UP TO THE FRONT WHEN THE CHILDREN [CAME TO THE SHOP]... I [WOULD] GIVE THE SPUDNUT OUTSIDE, THE SPUDNUT HOLES... YOU GOTTA TREAT THEM RIGHT, THE LITTLE KIDS... LATER, THEY COME BACK AND TELL YOU THAT…YOU DID THAT... THE CONNECTION, ESPECIALLY WITH CHILDREN…I STILL MISS IT. BUT, I HAVE TO GIVE UP.” WOLFGANG CLOSED DOWN THE SHOP IN 2000: “WELL, MY WIFE, SHE SAID ‘WOLFGANG YOU HAVE TO QUIT’ I SAID ‘NO [I'LL] KEEP ON GOING,’ AND THEN...[THE] KIDS [WERE] GETTING OLDER TOO...AND I WAS 68.” WOLFGANG COMMENTED ON THE INFLUENCE OF SPUDNUTS, “I HAVE A LOT OF DREAMS THAT I’M STILL MAKING THE SPUDNUTS... I DID IT FOR TOO MANY YEARS... WHEN I WOULD MAKE ICE CREAM...[IF A MOTHER AND A CHILD CAME INTO THE SHOP I WOULD GIVE THEM]...ICE CREAM...IN A CONE, THEN PUT…SPRINKLES ON IT...JUST TO MAKE [THEM] HAPPY… I WAS KNOWN FOR THAT. TOWARDS THE END...WHEN THEY WOULD GO TO THE YMCA, AND THE KIDS TO KINDERGARTEN, I WOULD RUN OUT [AND] GIVE EACH ONE A SPUDNUT HOLE. KIDS...WOULD LOOK IN [THE SHOP FROM OUTSIDE]...[TO SEE IF] IF I WOULD COME OUT BECAUSE KIDS, THEY USE THEIR BRAINS; YOU GET SOMETHING FOR FREE... I WAS VERY WELL KNOWN FOR THAT AND I GAVE FAR MORE THEN I SHOULD BUT...I DID IT.” FOR MORE INFORMATION, INCLUDING THE FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTION, PLEASE SEE THE DONATIONS PERMANENT FILE.

Catalogue Number

P20200012001

Acquisition Date

2020-04

Collection

Museum

Less detail