There was an American Indian called George Crum, who was the chef at the Lake House Hotel, Saratoga springs, New York. In 1853 he was asked for French fries (called chips in England), but the customer wanted them to be much thinner than usual.

The result - the potato crisp, known originally as Saratoga chips. The idea immediately caught on and people cooked them in their own kitchen. They even packed and sold them from their homes.

An Englishman, Mr. Carter, first encountered them in France, and in 1913 decided to manufacture them in Britain. One member of his workforce, Frank Smith, decided to leave and set up his own business making the same product, in 1920. A few years later Smith’s Crisps bought out Carter’s business.