In 1873 a ten-year-old Dutch immigrant sold iced water for a penny on a Brooklyn street. His name was Edward Bok. Soon he sold lemonade for three cents.
Bok became a famous magazine editor. His memoir, The Americanization of Edward Bok, told the story of the stand. Parents read it as a model of what a child could do. Norman Rockwell drew the scene.
The stand became an American childhood ritual. Some states now pass laws so that children’s stands need no permit.