Peter Paul Halajian (1864 in

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

– 1927 in Naugatuck, Connecticut)The Ethnic Almanac - Page 293 by Stephanie Bernardo Johns was a

candy Candy, also called sweets (British English) or lollies (Australian English Australian English (AusE, AusEng, AuE, AuEng, en-AU) is the set of varieties of the English language native to Australia. It is the country's common language an ...

manufacturer in the

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

, area in the early 20th century. Born Peter Halajian in Armenia, he immigrated to the U.S. in 1890 and worked in a rubber factory, opening a candy shop on February 1, 1895, in Naugatuck, Connecticut, and changing his surname to the English equivalent Paul. After selling chocolate bars to the U.S. Army for use by soldiers in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, who demanded them when they came home, he teamed with five other

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

investors (including his brother-in-law Cal Kazanjian, Cal's cousin Artin Kazanjian, chemist George Shamlian, Jacob Chouljian and his cousin Jacob Hagopian) to form the Peter Paul Candy Manufacturing Company on Webster Street in New Haven in 1919 with $6,000. The company at first sold various brands of candies, including the

Mounds bar Mounds is a candy bar made by The Hershey Company, consisting of shredded, sweetened coconut coated in dark chocolate. The company also produces the Almond Joy, a similar bar topped by whole almonds and covered in milk chocolate. The two pro ...

, but following sugar and

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...

shortages in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, they dropped most brands and concentrated on the Mounds bar, with the U.S. military purchasing as much as 80% of their output by 1944, packing 5 million candy bars monthly into combat rations. The Almond Joy bar was introduced in 1946. In 1978 Peter Paul merged with Cadbury-Schweppes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Halajian, Peter Paul American people of Armenian descent 1864 births 1927 deaths Businesspeople in confectionery Emigrants from the Ottoman Empire to the United States