Who knew candy was around in the 1700s? In not the candies we know today, their distinctly well-connected ancestors. Here a few surprising “Did You Knows.”

Did You Know: Sugar was used widely to treat various ailments, from Native American tribal remedies to mixtures conceived in the apothecaries. Many of today’s candy evolved from these medicines. From Native Americans’ fruits to European comfits, sweets had one thing in common: they were considered healthy and medicinal, used to cure everything from stomach distress to matters of the heart, as we often do today.

Did You Know: In the 1500s, the makings of candies abounded throughout North America. The Native American trade route brought cacao and cayenne pepper to North America, while maple and hickory syrups, fruit sugars, and resin-based chewing gums were bountiful.

Did You Know: The confectionery landscape shifted into the 1700s with the arrival of immigrants from Asia, Africa and Europe, introducing plants, animals, and above all, food customs. Enter the honeybee, licorice root, sorghum grain, cane sugar, peanuts, tropical fruits from oranges to coconuts and countless others. All finding a place today’s candy.

Did You Know: The unofficial start of today’s candy came in the late 1700s, as North America morphed into the United States, chocolate mills had opened and candies, often called “sweetmeats,” were eaten whether sugar plums, cream filberts, candied citrus peels, cinnamon covered nuts, and candied flowers. These food immigrants, as with Native American classics, forged the world of candy we so enjoy today.