Spudnut information from the internet
Updated 7/30/2010
Information about Spudnuts, the legendary franchised potato-based doughnut from another lifetime, and the current Spudnut shops.
"SPUDNUT DONUTS ARE THE BEST I OWN A SPUDNUT SHOP IN BEREA, OHIO AND WE STILL MAKE THEM THE ORIGINAL WAY. I HAVE INFO ON THE SPUDNUT MUSEUM. IT IS IN LAFFEYTE,IND.,IF YOU WANT EMAIL ME AND I CAN GIVE YOU MORE INFO. WE SUPPLIED 10 DOZEN OF OUR SPUDNUT DONUTS FOR THE MUSEUM GRAND OPENING 2 YEARS AGO,EVERYBODY REALLY LOVED THEM. WELL GOT TO GO MAKE THE DOUGHNUTS."
(See the Spudnut Shop in Berea, Ohio, in the list below.)
"This message is coming to you from the Spudnuts Museum - America's Finest Food Confection Collection! Part of the mission of the Museum is to provide educational programs regarding this historically significant and delectable confection - an American original, loved by many but understood by few!

In that regard, the Spudnuts chain was started by Al and Bob Pelton of Salt Lake City, Utah. In 1940, they began experimenting to find a recipe for a doughnut that was not heavy or greasy and was easy to digest. After throwing away many batches of less-than-thrilling products, they struck on winning formula that used mashed potatoes. When they later invented a dry Spudnut mix, the sky was the limit! By mid-1948, there were more than 200 stores in more than 30 states. A franchise, which included equipment and floor plans, cost $1,750 (in cities with a population under 10,000, a bit more for those in larger cities).

While (to the best of our knowledge) the Pelton Spudnut Corporation no longer exists, 37 Spudnut stores continue to operate across the U.S. These operations have had to tweak the original recipe a bit because the Pelton's dry Spudnut mix is no longer available. And, many of the remaining, dedicated Spudnut gastronomes have done a fine job! So, include a Spudnut shop stop in your vacation travel plans."
SpudnutsMuseum@aol.com
From the Spudnuts Museum:

"Recently, someone wrote to ask whether writer and chemist Edward Elmer Smith (1890-1965), aka Doc Smith, had developed the potato-based recipe used in making Spudnuts. No way! That history-altering invention was the brainchild of the Pelton brothers, founders of the Spudnuts chain.

The Pelton boys were working in San Francisco; Bob for a drugstore, Al selling electrical appliances. They wanted to open their own business and thought there was a market opportunity in doughnut making, if they could come up with a good recipe. Potato flour was newly invented and it became the centerpiece of the Peltons' quest to develop the perfect doughnut.

The brothers moved to Salt Lake City, opened a little shop and struck out repeatedly with potato flour based doughnut recipes. Then, Al came up with the crazy, (but clearly inspired), notion to use a mashed potato mix and...waalah!....the result: a large, fluffy, tasty, golden brown delicacy.

As was true of Doc Smith, Bob went into the Navy to assist in the war effort. Al kept the Spudnut flame alive. And, when Bob returned from the war, the brothers developed a dry Spudnut mix that allowed them to ship the product without spoilage and the franchise was born.

So, while Doc Smith may have developed a potato-based doughnut batter, it was not the one that propelled the Pelton brothers into Spudnuts fame!"
"Except for physical appearance, Spudnuts have no relation whatever to other similar shaped products. Spudnuts are large, fluffy, and airy, and are never soggy or greasy. They are made of a special blend of finest wheat flour, dehydrated potatoes ... milk solids, powdered whole eggs, and other vital ingredients -- all mixed and blended perfectly to the secret Pelton formula." Click here to read the rest of this very good article from the Bastrop Daily Enterprise in Bastop, La.
"I have the original mix sold to the franchises. I bought the whole recipe book from Will Bellar who was the Executive V.P. and General Manager of Spudnut International in Salt Lake City from 1971 to 1974. There were 6 Spudnut recipes in the book. Only 1 was used with the retail stores. I have got that recipe now, and it tastes exactly the same. There are no trans fats in our version, and if you fry the product in vegetable oil, there are no transfats anywhere. We are selling the mix in 6 lb. bags if you want to taste the product, or 50 lb. bags if you want to sell them in a store. We ship out of St. Louis, MO and Salt Lake City. Hey, someone had to bring the product back, and I did. We currently have the name Spudnut under a trademark. We’ll let you use the name if you buy the product. I’d rather not have franchise fees, as this donut belongs to America. Pretty soon you can find us on Spudnutdonut.com. Our website will be fully operational by the end of March, 2009. email me at douglas_bagley@yahoo.com (801-328-4796). We have a trainer, can sell you equipment for any size operation, and the original mix with all the great flavor that people will come back for. Thanks for reading this."
A long forum thread about Spudnuts on RoadFood.com.
http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/Spudnut-Shop-m25437.aspx
Current Spudnut Shops
Please send updates via the contact link at the top this page.
Please read notes 1 and 2 at the bottom of this page.

 
Alert!
 8/26/2010: Brookshire Food Stores says they have Spunduts in all their stores (in states AR, LA, MS, TX) in dozen-count boxes from "one of their suppliers". Please try them and report back here (Contact SpudnutInfo).

Spudnut Shoppe, 810 West Faulkner Street, El Dorado, AR 71730 870-863-9914 (facebook) (blog post)
    (Great article! Click here then FIND on - For more than half a century )
Spudnut Shop, 612 East Main Street, Magnolia, AR 71753 870-234-2005 (facebook)

Spudnuts, 2445 Arden Way, Sacramento, CA 95825 916-927-8088 (photos)
Spudnut Donuts, 1495 East Street, Woodland, CA 95776 530-661-9514
Spudnut & Deli, 500 Tres Pinos Road, Hollister, CA 95023 831-637-0555 (these may not be Spudnuts - click here)

Spudnuts, 1884 East Avenue J, Lancaster, CA 93535 661-942-3367
Spudnuts Donuts, 2038 West Avenue K, Lancaster, CA 93536 661-723-9299 (website)
Spudnut Donuts, 1977 West Avenue L, Lancaster, CA 93534 661-723-9432
Spudnuts Donuts, 2311 East Avenue South, Palmdale, CA 93550 661-274-0013
Spudnuts & Bagels, 3629 State Street, Santa Barbara, CA 805-569-3719
Spudnuts & Donuts, 220 West Carrillo Street, Santa Barbara, CA 805-899-2779 (photo)
Spudnuts Donuts, 5752 Telephone Road, Ventura, CA 93003 805-650-3777 (blog post, photos) (REPORTED CLOSED)
Spudnut Doughnuts, 600 South Victoria Avenue, Oxnard, CA 93035 805-382-2979 (yelp reviews)
Spudnuts Donuts, 3810 West Channel Island Blvd, Oxnard, CA 93035 805-984-7664 (photo) (review)
Spud Nuts Donuts, 3303 Kimber Drive #G, Newbury Park, CA 91320 805-498-4318
Spudnut, 4317 Glencoe Avenue, Marina Del Rey, CA 310-821-6755
Spudnuts Donuts, 26859 Bouquet Canyon Road, Santa Clarita, CA 661-296-4014 (reviews)
Spudnuts Donuts, 2490 Sycamore Drive, Simi Valley, CA 93065 805-526-6715
Spudnuts Donuts, 10244 Reseda Boulevard, Northridge, CA 818-832-1176
Spudnuts Donuts, 8225 Topanga Canyon Blvd, Canoga Park, CA 818-348-5054 (yelp reviews)
Spudnuts Warehouse, 8533 Canoga Avenue, Canoga Park, CA 91304 818-998-5678
Spudnuts Donuts, 16500 Sherman Way, Van Nuys, CA 818-988-5115
Spudnut Donuts, 11285 Venice Boulevard #4, Los Angeles, CA 310-397-1218 (website) (blog post, photos) (blog post, photos) (comment & pics)
Spudnuts Donuts, 3027 South Hoover Street, Los Angeles, CA 213-748-6865
Spudnuts Donuts, 3001 South Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 213-749-0678 (comment & pics)
Spudnuts Donuts, 4949 West Slauson Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 323-292-8770
Spudnuts Donuts, 50 East Orangethorpe Avenue, Anaheim, CA 92801 714-992-4555

Spudnutz, 12365 West 58th Avenue, Arvada, CO 720-898-5243 (new 2006)
Red's Dogs and Donuts, 2608 11th Ave., Greeley, CO 80631 970-353-2400 new listing (website) (article)

Spudnuts Donuts, 21301 Panama City Beach Pky, Panama City, FL 32413 850-258-8210
Spudnuts Donuts, 2808 West 23rd Street, Panama City, FL 32405 850-784-0278 (reported open 11/08) (photo)
Spudnuts Donuts, 7510 Thomas Drive, Panama City, FL 32408 850-233-0877 (reported closed 11/08)
Spudnuts Donuts, 428 Thomas Drive, Panama City, FL 32408 850-233-0282 (reported closed 11/08)
Spudnuts Donuts, 328 South Tyndall Parkway, Panama City, FL 32404 850-913-0031 (reported closed 11/08)

Spudo's Donuts and More, 1922 N Henderson St., Galesburg, IL 61401 309-341-0077 (new 2009) (website) (facebook)
    ("derived from the old spudnut recipe ... although it is not the same recipe" - article)
Pekin Spudnut Shop, 1308 Derby Street, Pekin, IL 61554 309-346-5381 (reviews)

Spudnut Shop, 650 Prospect Street, Berea, OH 44017 440-234-4249 (blog photos, comments) (blog post) (blog post)
Spudnut Shop, 21800 Center Ridge Road, Cleveland, OH 440-333-1167 (reported closed)
Spudnut Shop, 6930 Center Street, Mentor, OH 44060 440-255-7257 (website)

Spudnut Bake Shop, 525 South Main, Jay, OK 918-253-2220 (website)

Spudnut Shop, 312 South McMasters Street, Amarillo, TX 79106 806-376-9201 (photo) (FOR SALE!)
Kountry Donuts, 217 N Dumas Ave., Dumas, TX 79029
Sisters Spudnut, 800 West Foster Avenue, Pampa, TX 806-665-2209
Spudnut Shop, 1806 West 5th Street, Plainview, TX 79072 806-296-9198 (closed July 2009; photos, comments)

These four locations in Utah have not been verified to have Spudnuts. If you visit them, please inquire about Spudnuts and contact us (contact link is at the top of this page):
   Tasty's, 612 N Main St, Kaysville, UT 84037 801-544-2342
   Tasty's, 4250 Harrison Blvd, Ogden, UT 84403 801-621-3167
   Tommies Donuts, 382 N Frontage Rd, Centerville, UT 84014 801-294-2589
   Tommies Donuts, 3731 Jordan Landing Blvd, West Jordan, UT 84084 801-280-3330

Spudnut Shop, 309 Avon Street, Charlottesville, VA 434-296-0590 (blog post, photos) (blog post, photos) (article) (photos) (reviews)
Trailside Coffee, 100 Old Trail Drive, Crozet, VA 434-205-4253 (Spudnuts by 8:00am every Monday) (blog post)

Spudnut Shop, 228 Williams Boulevard, Richland, WA 99352 509-943-3000 (video) (website) (website) (1950 photo) (facebook) (blog post, photos)

Crazy Cakes, 1102 5th Avenue South, Lethbridge, AB, Canada 403-327-4990 (Spudnuts on Thursdays) (website) (blog post) (photo)

Another list of Spudnut shops. It also has a link to photos of a Spudnut shop in Golden, Colorado, in 1953.
http://spudnutshop.com
Blog article with photos, about a Spudnut shop in Ft. Collins, Colorado, from the early 1950's to the 1970's. Click here.
Google Maps shows more listings for Spudnut or Spudnuts than are contained in the lists above. I have no idea how valid they are, but give them a try in your area.
http://maps.google.com   Enter - spudnuts - into the "find businesses..." window at the top, either alone or with a place name (example: spudnuts, sacramento, ca), and see what you get.
Notes:

1. The quality of Spudnuts in current shops is reported to vary a lot. The original franchise ended a long time ago. How close the "mix", or recipe, and process of a particular current Spudnut shop is to the original is pretty much an unknown.

2. Ask the person in charge how Spudnuts differ from regular donuts. The purpose of this is to see if they actually do make Spudnuts or similar, or are just using the Spudnut name without actually making Spudnuts. Also, some places make regular donuts for some types and Spudnuts for others, and there may be no way to know which is which without asking.

Spudnut ad
Life Magazine
October 24,1949

1952 Modern Mechanix article with many comments

"Spudnuts are hilarious until you eat one, and it shuts you up real quick."

"I'll have to say that the first time I heard of Spudnuts, I thought they were some sort of potato baseball. I had no idea what kind of confectionery treat they were until someone brought them into the office one day."