dont really know but as a child the class was taken to the quaker oats factory on the dockside at whitehaven in cumberland and all given a large box of oats ,my mother was highly delighted
If you want the history of quaker oats as a company, go to their official website. As for the mascot: Quakers are like the amish. They were seen as hard working ad wholesome. The image of a Quaker was used to convey the idea that the product was healthy and that its was for the hard working farmer class.