National Donut Day is the first Friday in June, 6/2. While fried dough confections have existed in most cultures, the U.S. roots go back to the fried dough scraps, oilykoeks (oil cakes), of 1700s Dutch settlers. The fried dough often remained uncooked in the center, prompting some to fill the center with nuts to help complete cooking, thus the doughnut moniker. In 1847, sixteen-year-old schooner crew member Hanson Crockett Gregory punched a hole in the center of the dough with a pepper container. He liked the result so much that he commissioned a donut cutter from a tinsmith, and Captain Gregory joined the ranks of donut history. You can visit a monument to this inventor of the donut hole in Rockport, Maine.
Donuts have been a popular treat for soldiers. They were a comfort food that was easy to make, store and carry. In 1861, the Third Volunteer regiment of Maine was sent off to war with over fifty bushels of doughnuts made by the ladies of Augusta, Me.
The first Salvation Army Donut Lassies scrounged ingredients and used ammunition shells as rolling pins, and tin cans as cutters to distribute the confections during World War I. Known as Donut Dollies in World War II, female Red Cross Volunteers drove specially outfitted busses, complete with donut making machines, right to the troops. The Donut Dollies were in the Korean War and Vietnam War but had started to transition to providing donuts to providing activities.
In 1938, National Donut Day was established to honor the members of the Salvation Army that came to the aid of soldiers during World War I. Nowadays, National Donut Day is widely celebrated on the first Friday of June. Many donut shops are known to give them out for free, giving a good reason to take some time out of the day to enjoy this most cherished treat.
Be sure to check out your local donut shop for Donut Day Specials!