A fat free snack from America's pretzel bakery. Description 1909 Our parent company, Hanover Canning Company, was founded and first began producing Olde Tyme Pretzels in 1909. 1920s In the early 1920s, Grandma Eda and Edward Snyder II began frying potato chips in a kettle at their summer home, and they sold the snacks door-to-door, at fairs and farmer's markets. Meanwhile, their son William V. and his wife Helen were making angel food cakes for local stores. 1940 Modernization was underway in the 1940s with a new plant built on Lafayette and Granger Streets including an automated direct fire ferry fryer. William Snyder, E. Wise and H. Ness joined together to create the Potato Chip Institute to improve communication among competing "chippers". Snyder's grew distribution south to Norfolk, VA, west to Pittsburgh, PA and north to New York as the company began using aluminum foil bags to extend the shelf life of products in these distant markets – it was a first for the industry, and a very practical innovation. A new plant in Berlin, PA was built to handle growing demand. 1963 The Bechtel Pretzel Company, founded in 1947 by Bill and Helen Bechtel, was purchased and incorporated into Snyder's Bakery. Bill developed the original recipe for the Sourdough Hard Pretzel that is still enjoyed by consumers today.