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Sweetest Day: How a Cleveland candy maker created the holiday

Posted at 11:51 AM, Oct 21, 2017
and last updated 2017-10-22 16:56:04-04

Some may consider Sweetest Day another Hallmark holiday but for many, it's a time to celebrate that special someone.

Established in 1922, Sweetest Day traces its roots to candy makers in Cleveland, Ohio.

Legend has it that Herbert Birch Kingston, a candy company employee at the time, wanted to bring happiness and the feeling of inclusion to the lives of those who were often forgotten by family and friends.

Kingston would frequent nearby orphanages and elderly homes to distribute candy and small gifts.

In the early 1930s, movie stars and other celebrities jumped on the idea and began doing their own form of candy distribution. Ann Pennington is said to have distributed candy to around 2,200 Cleveland-area newspaper boys.

Throughout the years, Sweetest Day started to become a way of showing love to family and friends.

Sweetest Day is still most prevalent in the Great Lakes region where it originated but has since expanded to the rest of the country.