Mabel White Holmes ( – November 1977) was the

inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea, or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...

of Jiffy baking mixes, and president of the Chelsea Milling Company.

Early life

Born December 1, 1890, in Mattoon, Illinois, to mill owner E. K. White, Holmes was involved in the mill and flour industry from a young age. She graduated Chelsea High School in 1907 and then went on to pursue higher education at

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, EMich, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern) is a public university, public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1849 as the Michigan State Normal School, it was the fourth normal ...

, then known as Ypsilanti Normal College. Prior to her marriage to Howard S. Holmes and subsequent development of Jiffy Mix, Holmes was a school teacher in Illinois. Holmes' father, E. K. White, had founded a flour mill in 1887, which was incorporated as the Chelsea Milling Company in 1901. In 1908, White sold the company to Mabel's father-in-law, Harmon Holmes. Mabel's husband, Howard Holmes, ran the company until his death in 1936, after which she became company president. Holmes was active in the business until the early 1940s.

Baking mixes

Holmes first had the idea for a prepared, all-purpose baking mix in the late 1920s when she saw the poor quality of a

biscuit A biscuit is a flour-based baked food item. Biscuits are typically hard, flat, and unleavened. They are usually sweet and may be made with sugar, chocolate, icing, jam, ginger, or cinnamon. They can also be savoury, similar to crackers. ...

made by the widowed father of her twin sons' friend. According to family legend she wanted to develop a product that would save time in the kitchen and be so easy "even a man" could make it. Jiffy Biscuit Mix was introduced in 1930 as America's first prepared, all-purpose baking mix, named "Jiffy" because it was quick prepare. Although Bisquick is widely accredited as being the first baking mix on the market due to its notoriety, Jiffy Mix was released first, thus holding the title of first all-purpose baking mix in America. In the twenty-first century Jiffy has branched out to include mixes for many baked goods, from biscuits to pizza dough, although their staple item is still the corn muffin mix. Holmes was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame in 2015. Her grandson,

Howdy Holmes Howdy Holmes (born December 14, 1947) is an American former racing driver in the Champ Car, CART Championship Car series. He began racing in the early 1970s and was based in Stockbridge, Michigan, about southeast from downtown Lansing and nort ...

, a former

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly shortened to Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indian ...

and

CART A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by draught animals such as horses, donkeys, mules and oxen, or even smaller animals such as goats or large dogs. A handcart ...

driver, became the current CEO of the Chelsea Milling Company in 1995.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holmes, Mabel 20th-century American women inventors 1890 births 1977 deaths 20th-century American inventors Eastern Michigan University alumni