On March 29, 1909, the Waters-Genter Company of Minneapolis demonstrated an electric toaster design that is commonly cited as the first widely recognized electric toaster intended for household use. Prior to this period, people primarily toasted bread over open flames, on stovetop griddles, or with long-handled wire toasters held over a fire or stove. Early experimentation with electric heating elements began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as electric power became available in urban homes, making practical electric kitchen appliances possible. The Waters-Genter device used a snap-action mechanism: a spring-loaded carriage held bread near electric heating elements and then released—“snapping” the carriage back—when the toast reached a desired level of browning. This automatic release distinguished it from simpler resistive-heating experiments and represented an early step toward convenience and safety in electric cooking appliances. The snap-action idea was important because it removed the need for users to manually monitor and remove the bread at exactly the right moment. The 1909 demonstration and subsequent commercial activity around the Waters-Genter design helped drive interest in electric toasting devices, though other inventors and firms were also developing related technologies. For example, by the 1910s manufacturers in the United States and Europe were producing various forms of electric toasters and heating elements, and patents for heating and timing mechanisms proliferated. It was only over the following decade that electric toasters became more compact, reliable, and affordable for a broader range of households. Historical accounts acknowledge some ambiguity about a single “first” toaster because multiple inventors and companies contributed incremental advances—new heating elements, timing or snap mechanisms, and improved manufacturing—around the same period. Patent filings and trade publications from the era document competition and rapid development rather than a single, uncontested invention moment. Nonetheless, the March 1909 Waters-Genter demonstration is frequently referenced in histories of the appliance as an important early milestone in the transition from manual to automatic electric toasting. By the 1920s and 1930s, manufacturers such as General Electric and others introduced more refined two-sided element designs, enclosed housings, and pop-up mechanisms that built on earlier innovations. Those later consumer models ultimately established the familiar pop-up toaster form factor common in mid-20th-century kitchens. Significance: The 1909 introduction of a practical snap-action electric toaster illustrates how the spread of household electricity enabled new conveniences and reshaped daily routines, especially breakfast preparation. Rather than a single inventor’s breakthrough, the toaster’s development exemplifies incremental technological adoption—multiple inventors, manufacturers and evolving standards—leading to a commonplace appliance. Sources and verification: Contemporary trade journals, patent records from the early 1900s, and later historical surveys of household appliances discuss Waters-Genter’s snap-action design and subsequent commercial developments. Because multiple firms were active in the period, some secondary sources frame the 1909 device as an important early example rather than an uncontested sole invention.