Excerpt from Doughnuts - A Dessert Tradition
Mary O'Dell
Stories vary, but most agree that the hole in the center of the doughnut is credited to a New England sailor, Hanson Gregory.
Grown by many U. S farmers, bread has been an American staple for many years. Because many people needed to save every
last piece of bread they had, people began to experiment with the bits and pieces of leftover bread. Hanson Gregory was a
sea captain from Maine who worked on a lime trading ship. He would often bake and fry cakes from remaining bread bits he
sweetened. Tasty, but soggy in the middle, the fried cakes needed some changes. Captain Gregory experimented with cutting
out the center of the cakes. This was a practical move which allowed increased surface area for more uniform frying. The
result was the elimination of the dessert's soggy center. Captain Hanson Gregory had stumbled upon a superb solution and
redefined the shape of the pastry.
To obtain information about Captain Hanson Gregory's contributi on to the doughnut, which source would be most credible when
considering accuracy?
an information website with open access information
a Gregory family webpage with direct quotes from relatives.
a published magazine article entitled "Romantic Rumors and Fanciful
Folklore Regarding Donuts."
a published book, The Little known Facts and Details