Abel Hoadley was a confectioner who invented one of Australia's most iconic and delicious sweets - the Violet Crumble.
Early years
Abel Hoadley was born on the 10th September 1844 in Sussex, England and migrated to Melbourne in 1865. He and his wife had 14 children, and several went into the family business.
Career
In the beginning, Abel was an orchardist at Burwood. His wife and children made jam from fallen fruits and sold it to neighbours. The jams were popular and he later opened a small factory in South Melbourne.
Business was so good that Abel built a 5-storey factory, the Rising Sun Preserving Company. He and his 200 staff made jams, jellies, preserved fruit, sauces and confectionary.
He was well known for the excellent treatment of his workers. They worked in clean, well-ventilated rooms with an attached dining room.
Invention of the Violet Crumble
In 1910, he sold the jam business to Henry Jones Co-Operative Pty Ltd and focused on chocolates and sweets.
The Violet Crumble was one of an assortment of chocolates packed into a violet covered box. But it became so popular that he decided to make it as a separate product. Once Hoadley's discovered how to keep it crisp and extend the shelf life it went into production.
The metallic air-tight wrapper has hardly changed over time. The purple colour relates to Abel’s wife Susannah’s favourite flower, the violet.
Death
Hoadley died in 1918 at his home “Bella Vista” in Kew but his four sons remained in the business for many years.
Bibliography
Adapted from material supplied by historian Dr Jan Penney, GMCT Trust member 2010-2020.
Cozzolino M (1990) Symbols of Australia, CIS Educational
Lack J (1983) Hoadley, Abel (1844-1918), Australian Dictionary of Biography, Australian National University [website]
O’Connell J (n.d.) 1921 Violet Crumble first advertised, Australian food history timeline [website]
Santich B (2015) Enjoyed for Generations, Haigh’s Chocolates
Image source
"Hoadley" by Bycroft Boy is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
