The First Fried Clam | New England’s Food Gifts

The origin stories of many popular foods are up for debate, if not downright apocryphal. So when we told the story of the the first fried clam in 1979, we expected our readers to weigh in. And weigh in they did. While we furthered Lawrence “Chubby” Woodman’s claim that he invented fried clams in 1916, readers shared stories of fried clams eaten in 1910. An 1865 menu from Boston’s Parker House lists fried clams, though it’s not clear whether they were breaded in Woodman’s style. In short, the first fried clam’s exact origins are shrouded in the mists of time. But you can still eat delicious ones at Woodman’s, now run by the third and fourth generations of the family. Following are excerpts from our 1979 controversy.—Amy Traverso

On the reverse side of their wedding certificate, Lawrence and Bessie Woodman of Essex, Massachusetts, wrote down important family events. The first two lines listed the birthdates of their two oldest sons, Wilbur and Henry. The third notation was about another key date: “We fried the first fried clam—in the town of Essex, July 3, 1916.”

The Woodmans had opened a small stand in an old wooden building on Main Street in Essex, where on weekends they sold fruit, chewing gum, homemade potato chips, and fresh clams. A fisherman named Tarr—his first name is long forgotten—happened to be at the stand while Woodman was complaining to a couple of other customers that “business was slower than a couple of snails uphill.” Customer Tarr happened to notice a bucket of clams nearby. “Why don’t you fry your clams?” he said. “If your fried clams are as tasty as these fried potato chips of yours, you’ll never have to worry about having customers.”

Woodman began to think about Tarr’s suggestion. Supposing the clam was shucked and dipped in batter! “Let’s see what happens,” said Bessie, tossing a slab of lard into the fryer. A short time later, the first fried clam rolled off the assembly line. Woodman spotted Tarr across the street. “Come over,” he called. “I’ve got something I want you to try.”

People have been eating fried clams ever since. A year after Woodman invented them, a Boston fish market advertised that it was “now equipped to serve the new taste treat—fried clams.”

—“The Man Who Invented the Fried Clam,” by Frederick John, June 1979

Responses From Readers

I don’t doubt that Mr. Woodman fried up a few clams in 1916, but my uncle, Hosea B. Quint, who had a fish market near the corner of Boston and Myrtle streets in West Lynn, fried clams every Friday in his shop as early as 1910. —Gertrude Lawrence, West Lynn, Mass., August 1979

When she was a young woman, my now-87-year-old mother worked as a waitress in 1912 at the Chase House, Salem Willows, Massachusetts. The “Shore Dinner” consisted of fish or clam chowder, fried lobster, fried clams, fried perch, and French-fried potatoes (75¢).—Florence L. Campbell, Arlington, Virginia, August 1979