First pop-up toaster invented

Now That’s What I Call a Pop-Up

For centuries, we had bread. Boring, depressing, decidedly cold bread. Sure, it was there, but who cared. Yawn. Then, some bright sparks realised that this bread could be heated so it went brown and crispy. Toast was invented. Again, for a while, the public was placated. But soon they grew tired of this heated bread novelty and demanded much more. That more happened on this day in 1919, when a genius called Charles Strife filed the patent for the first ever pop-up toaster.

Finally, not only was bread hot and toasty, but it moved! This was a massive game changer. Over the next few years, pop-up toasters went into mass circulation and started to occupy American homes. Things got even better when sliced and bagged bread was invented in 1930. That’s right - the pop-up toaster was invented BEFORE sliced bread was in circulation. Which is pretty weird when you think about it.