The Storage Inn investigates the history of the American Hot Dog!

Hot Diggity Dog!

It’s Mid-July here at The Storage Inn self storage in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, and It’s been very busy with customers running to and from their storage spaces. Most are retrieving summer items such as barbecue grills, lawn chairs, bicycles and even surfboards.

Just today, one of our storage customers, Carl, stopped in the office for a complimentary bottle of cold spring water, and was proud to announce to us that he had just purchased 200 hot dogs for his annual Hot Dog and Beer Barbecue party!

“Wow – a hot dog and beer party – sounds like fun! “ I said. “Yeah, we do it every year. We supply the hot dogs and beer, and all of our friends bring a side dish or anything else they wanna eat or drink. Always a great time!” Carl replied.

As Carl strode out of the eht storage rental office, I began to think…

“Wow, that’s a lot of hot dogs! – I wonder how many hot dogs Americans actually eat?” And what about that old saying folks like to use… “American as hot dogs and apple pie?”

“Did we invent hot dogs? “ I pondered. I decided to do some digging, and here’s what I found.

• Between Memorial Day and Labor Day, Americans consume seven billion hot dogs!
• The most popular condiment is mustard. Then come onions, chili, ketchup, relish, and sauerkraut.
• Nathan Handwerker opened Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs (which remains a Coney Island institution) in 1916.
• To counteract the stories of unhealthy ingredients in hot dogs, Handwerker hired men to wear surgeon’s smocks and eat lunch in his restaurants.
• The largest seller of hot dogs is 7-Eleven, with 100 million served annually.
• If you ask for a “hot dog” in New Zealand, you’ll get it battered on a stick like a corn dog. To get one on a bun, you have to ask for an “American hot dog.”
• A “Chicago-style” hot dog never includes ketchup.
• According to Guinness, the most expensive hot dogs ever were 3/4-pound, 18-inch dogs sold for charity in 2012 at a Sacramento, California, restaurant. Topped with an impressive array of fancy condiments—moose milk cheese, maple-syrup bacon, organic baby greens, whole-grain mustard, and cranberries—the dogs cost $145.49 each, with proceeds donated to a children’s hospital.

• The most hot dogs (with buns) consumed by one person in 10 minutes: 72 – Joey Chestnut holds the record set July 4th, 2017.
• The world’s longest hot dog stretched 196.85 feet and was prepared by Japan’s Shizuoka Meat Producers in 2006.
• In the 1880s or ’90s, frankfurters (from Germany) and wieners (from Austria) became known as “hot dogs”—possibly because of the sausages’ similarities to dachshunds .

So, there you have it – a little hot dog history! I never know what I’m going to learn talking to our customers here at The Storage Inn. Well, I’ve got to go – I have a sudden craving for a chili cheese dog and an ice cold beer!

July 4th – Independence Day – Fun Facts

Summer is here at The Storage Inn in Egg Harbor Township New Jersey, and our storage space customers are preparing for the Independence Day Holiday, shuttling in and out past the rental office, retrieving barbecue grills, lawn furniture, and even the occasional kayak. I’m certain our staff, and storage space tenants could tell you that July 4th commemorates our nation’s freedom and the signing of the Declaration of Independence, but they may not know these facts about the 4th of July.

Here are a few July 4th fun facts for you courtesy of The Storage Inn…

Only John Hancock actually signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. All the others signed sometime in August..

The average age of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence was 45. The youngest was Thomas Lynch, Jr (27) of South Carolina.  The oldest delegate was Benjamin Franklin (70) of Pennsylvania. The lead author of The Declaration, Thomas Jefferson, was 33.

The Declaration of Independence was signed by 56 men from 13 colonies.One out of every eight signers of the Declaration of Independence were educated at Harvard (7 total).

The only two signers of the Declaration of Independence who later served as President of the United States were John Adams and Thomas Jefferson.

The stars on the original American flag were in a circle so all the Colonies would appear equal.

The first Independence Day celebration took place in Philadelphia on July 8, 1776. This was also the day that the Declaration of Independence was first read in public after people were summoned by the ringing of the Liberty Bell.

The White House held its first 4th July party in 1801.

President John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe all died on the Fourth. Adams and Jefferson (both signed the Declaration) died on the same day within hours of each other in 1826.

Benjamin Franklin proposed the turkey as the national bird but was overruled by John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, who recommended the bald eagle.

In 1776, there were 2.5 million people living in the new nation. Today the population of the U.S.A. is over 300 million.

Congress made Independence Day an official unpaid holiday for federal employees in 1870. In 1938, Congress changed Independence Day to a paid federal holiday.

Over 200 million dollars are spent on fireworks annually in the United States with most being imported from China.

Approximately 150 million hot dogs and 700 million pounds of chicken are consumed  on the fourth of July

Every 4th of July the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia is tapped (not actually rung) thirteen times in honor of the original thirteen colonies.

The song “Yankee Doodle” was originally sung by British military officers to mock the disheveled, disorganized colonial “Yankees” with whom they served in the French and Indian War.

The tune of The Star Spangled Banner was originally that of an English drinking song called “To Anacreon in Heaven.”

So there you have it – some fun facts to entertain friends and family as you hang out at the beach or barbecue. Have a great 4th and remember to toast the Chinese for inventing fireworks!