Frieda Clarkson was born in the summer of 1863, exactly six and a half minutes after her twin brother, Gregory. She was three pounds lighter and had a full head of hair. He was pudgy but had the shiniest most hairless head the doctor had ever seen. This was still the same way at thirteen. Frieda, gangly with hair that she could sit on, dwarfed by Fat Greg bald as the day he was born. And not only in physicality either - Greg was quite the talker! His voice could always be heard booming out over the fields. Any time Frieda would try talking, up popped Greg with something far more important to say (or so HE thought...)

As the years passed, Greg grew plumper and Frieda spent more time by herself, reading books and passing the time writing scientific essays in her room. One year, she had received a chemistry set and discovered that she was quite adept at mixing formulas. She began experimenting. Once she had used up all the parts of her kit, she set about finding new things to mix up above the Bunsen burner. So she raided her mother's kitchen. She had heard great things about the tops of creme brulee, so she was inspired to grab the big bag of sugar first. She poured a small quantity of sugar onto a spatula and held it over the flame. Then she began melting more and more sugar together until it formed a large solid ball. Here was the first ever gobstopper.

She looked at it for a moment and was about to toss it into the bin, when her brother barged in and began shouting at her about something she was supposed to have done for him (some records suggest she was supposed to be writing his school essays, other records say he was reminding her to return his library books.) She was so exasperated with him that she jumped up and popped the ball of sugar into his mouth - and BOY did that shut him up. She quickly began to make more, worried that soon her brother would begin his tirade again, but THREE weeks later he was still working his way through the first! Frieda had never had such peace and quiet in all her life. She also had a large supply of surplus gobstoppers and began to sell them to local children. Soon, she had enough money together to open up the first sweet shop in the centre of town. And she never looked back.

Gregory, on the other hand, toothless by his twenty fifth birthday, passed away before he made it to his thirties. An autopsy report from the time states cause of death as "asphyxiation by gobstopper lodged in throat". Although his death is recorded as accidental, one can't help but wonder...