The Most Popular Breakfast Cereal Through the Decades

Originally created by two brothers, Dr. John Harvey Kellogg and Will Keith Kellogg (sound familiar?), Corn Flakes was known as Sanitas Toasted Corn Flakes when it hit the market in 1898. Though once Will bought his brother out and changed the company’s name to The Kellogg Company, this cereal became known as “Corn Flakes” and really made a splash around 1906.

Quaker’s Puffed Rice cereal came in with a bold move—exploding over the heads of fans at the St. Louis World's Fair of 1904. By 1909 everyone was eating it, instead of wearing it.

Shredded Wheat, those little pillows of good-for-you grains, was seen as a nutritious, convenient breakfast. Now there are more sugary options, like frosted, but back then it was all about keeping it wholesome and hearty.

Kellogg’s Bran Flakes, which was released in 1916, had some killer slogans to get people to buy into its magic, like "for that bran new feeling" and "the delicious way to gentle regularity." The last one sounds really enticing.

Made of wheat and barley (that’s right—no grapes or nuts, here), Grape-Nuts cereal was super healthy *and* a major competitor for the Kellogg Company.

Get some pep in your step bright and early with a bowl of Kellogg’s Pep cereal for breakfast. Its slogan was “Pep preserves the family pep,” so it was a staple in everyone’s home for kids and adults, alike.

Known as the “Breakfast of Champions,” with faces of all-star athletes on the box front and center, Wheaties had everyone waking up ready to tackle the day with vigor and stamina by around 1924.

All the kids were chanting “Snap! Crackle! Pop!” as Rice Krispies hit the milk in the bowl. By 1928, it became a classic cereal that would never get old.

Manufactured by U.S. Mills, Raisin Bran hit the market around 1926 as mom’s favorite new cereal to give to her little ones. Packed with heart-healthy bran, it was seen as a nutritious morning option with some added sweetness from the raisins.

The mom-approved, kid-friendly Kix hit the shelves in 1937 and it’s still going strong today.

General Mills’ Chex cereal was the right combination of crunch and nutrition. It was so popular that now kids and adults munch on a whole family of Chex snack products—Chex Mix, anyone?

First known as “Cheerioats,” Kellogg’s cereal that you now know as Cheerios hit the market in 1941. This cereal has become one of the most successful cereals for the past few decades, and it’s probably going to remain that way.

Released in 1948 by Post, this cereal was renamed Gold Crisp, and it was first in a looong line of sugar-laden cereals that would soon become the norm.

With the start of the Golden Age of Cereal of the 1950s, everyone wanted to eat a sugary, crunchy cereal with Tony the Tiger on the box. While it was first named Sugar Frosted Flakes in 1952, the “Sugar” was dropped a year later.

Lots of name changes here—first there was Sugar Pops in 1951, then Sugar Corn Pops in 1978, and lastly Corn Pops in 1984. Still, Sugar Pops held its own as a popular choice in the '50s.

Sugar Smacks (with a box featuring the slightly scary Cliffy the Clown) hit shelves in 1953. You may know this cereal better as Honey Smacks—it was rebranded in the 1980s.

Trix were for kids—and maybe some parents, too. This fun and colorful cereal made a splash in the '50s. Before becoming a cereal star, the Trix Rabbit was a hand puppet for shows like Rocky & Bullwinkle and Captain Kangaroo.

Now in so many flavors, original Special K became one of the more popular cereals of the '50s. The healthier option counter-balanced all the sugary cereals making a splash at the time.

For any kid who was craving a chocolate bar for breakfast, but Mom wouldn’t allow it, Cocoa Puffs were the next best thing.