A Pittsburgh Perspective on the History of Clark Bars

When you think of Pittsburgh, where our candy-filled warehouse is located, you may think of rivers, bridges, and Heinz ketchup, all great things about the city. When I think of Pittsburgh, I think of sports (hockey and football we gave up on baseball a long time ago), a lot of pride, and a city that likes to have a good time. And what is a better time than candy, specifically a chocolate bar that originated right here in Pittsburgh? 

The Clark Bar original formula was created by an Irish immigrant, David L. Clark in 1917. This was the first “combination” candy bar that really took off. The chewy caramel core was surrounded by a layer of crunchy peanuts and then covered in a thin layer of milk chocolate. It was originally created to be sent to troops during WWI and was distributed nationally when the war was over. The D. L. Clark Company was sending 1.5 million bars daily during WWII when employees decided to go on a labor strike and slowed production. But get this, the US government stepped in and decided that the production of the Clark Bar was “essential” to our war effort. Little candy bars being manufactured in smoky Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania were essential to the war as they were classified as an "energy source." 

The bar kept its original formula, until 1965 when manufacturers decided to focus more on the peanut flavor and ditch the caramel center. This gave the bar a bolder taste and a more crunchy center.

Ownership of the Clark Bar has been all over the place. Beginning in downtown Pittsburgh on the North Side (which is now home to Heinz Field where the Steelers play), where an illuminated red Clark sign would be on display for all yinzers - a colloquial term for native Pittsburghers - to see over the Clark building. But after a great run on the North Side, the D.L. Clark Co. was sold to Leaf Candy Company and moved to Chicago in the 1980s. The Clark Bar then took its talents to Massachusetts when Leaf and all of the old Clark equipment was acquired by the New England Confectionery Company, which produced Neccos. 

After a long journey all over the country, Boyer Candy Co. purchased the Clark Bar recipe and brought the candy back to Western PA in 2018. After some mishaps with the production process, Boyer eventually got their stuff together and the Clark Bar was finally available to limited Pittsburgh stores prior to being released nationwide on Valentine's Day 2019. So if you leave learning one thing from this post there are two things Pittsburghers take very seriously and that is our football and our hometown Clark Bar.