In 1810, the first U.S. patent was issued for the "means of mass manufacture of imitation mineral waters" to Simons and Rundell, of Charleston, South Carolina. Carbonated beverages did not achieve great popularity in America until 1832, when John Mathews invented his apparatus for the making carbonated water. Mathews mass manufactured his apparatus for sale to others.

The drinking of either natural or artificial mineral water was considered a healthy practice. American pharmacists, who were selling most of the mineral waters, started to add medicinal and other flavorful herbs to the unflavored beverage, i.e. birch bark, dandelion, sarsaparilla and fruit extracts. The early drug stores with their soda fountains became a popular part of American culture. Customers wanted to take the drinks home with them and the soft drink bottling industry grew from the consumer demand.

Over 1,500 U.S. patents were filed for either a cork, cap or lid for the carbonated drink bottle tops. The bottles were under a lot of pressure from the gas. Inventors were trying to find the best way to prevent the carbon dioxide (bubbles) from escaping. In 1892, the "Crown Cork Bottle Seal" was patented by William Painter, a Baltimore machine shop operator. It was the first very successful method of keeping the bubbles in the bottle.

In 1899, the first patent was issued for a glass blowing machine for the automatic production of glass bottles. Earlier glass bottles had all been hand blown. Four years later, the new bottle blowing machine was in operation. It was first operated by the inventor, Michael J. Owens, an employee of Libby Glass Company. Within a few years, glass bottle production increased from 1,500 bottles a day to 57,000 bottles a day.

Sometime in the 1920's, the first "Hom-Paks" were invented. "Hom-Paks" are the familiar six-pack carrying cartons. Automatic vending machines also began to appear in the 1920's. The soft drink had become an American mainstay.

Soft Drinks TimeLine

1. 1798 The term "soda water" is first coined.
2. 1810 First U.S. patent is issued for the manufacture of imitation mineral waters.
3. 1819 The "soda fountain" is patented by Samuel Fahnestock.
4. 1835 The first bottled soda water is available in the U.S.
5. 1850 A manual, hand & foot operated, filling & corking device, is first used for bottling soda water.
6. 1851 Ginger ale is created in Ireland
7. 1861 The term "pop" is first coined.
8. 1874 The first ice-cream soda is sold.
9. 1876 Root beer is mass produced for public sale.
10. 1881 The first cola-flavored beverage is introduced.
11. 1885 Charles Aderton invented "Dr Pepper" in Waco, Texas.
12. 1886 "Coca-Cola" is invented in Atlanta, Georgia by Dr. John S. Pemberton.
13. 1892 The crown bottle cap is invented by William Painter.
14. 1898 "Pepsi-Cola" is invented by Caleb Bradham.
15. 1899 The first patent is issued for a glass blowing machine, used to produce glass bottle.
16. 1913 Gas motored trucks replace horse drawn carriages as delivery vehicles.
17. 1919 The American Bottlers of Carbonated Beverages is formed.
18. 1920 The U.S. Census reports that more than 5,000 bottlers now exist.
19. Early 1920's The first automatic vending machines dispense sodas into cups.
20. 1923 Six-pack soft drink cartons called "Hom-Paks" are created.
21. 1929 The Howdy Company debuted it's new drink "Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Sodas" later called "7 Up". Invented by Charles Leiper Grigg.
22. 1934 Applied color labels are first used on soft drink bottles. The coloring was baked on the face of the bottle.
23. 1952 The first diet soft drink is sold called the "No-Cal Beverage".
24. 1957 The first aluminum cans are used.
25. 1959 The first diet cola is sold.
26. 1962 The pull-ring tab is invented.
27. 1965 Is the first time soft drinks in cans are dispensed from vending machines.
28. 1965 The resealable top is invented.
29. 1966 The American Bottlers of Carbonated Beverages is renamed The National Soft Drink Association.
30. 1970 Is first time plastic bottles are used for soft drinks.
31. 1973 The PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) bottle is created.
32. 1974 The stay-on tab is invented.
33. 1981 The "talking" vending machine is invented.

Today, products of the Coca-Cola Company are consumed at the rate of more than one billion drinks per day.

The History of 7 Up

Coca-Cola

The product that has given the world its best-known taste was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 8, 1886. Dr. John Stith Pemberton, a local pharmacist, produced the syrup for Coca-Cola®, and carried a jug of the new product down the street to Jacobs' Pharmacy, where it was sampled, pronounced "excellent" and placed on sale for five cents a glass as a soda fountain drink. Carbonated water was teamed with the new syrup to produce a drink that was at once "Delicious and Refreshing," a theme that continues to echo today wherever Coca-Cola is enjoyed.

Thinking that "the two Cs would look well in advertising," Dr. Pemberton's partner and bookkeeper, Frank M. Robinson, suggested the name and penned the now famous trademark "Coca-Cola" in his unique script. The first newspaper ad for Coca-Cola soon appeared in The Atlanta Journal, inviting thirsty citizens to try "the new and popular soda fountain drink." Hand-painted oilcloth signs reading "Coca-Cola" appeared on store awnings, with the suggestion "Drink" added to inform passersby that the new beverage was for soda fountain refreshment. During the first year, sales averaged a modest nine drinks per day.

Dr. Pemberton never realized the potential of the beverage he created. He gradually sold portions of his business to various partners and, just prior to his death in 1888, sold his remaining interest in Coca-Cola to Asa G. Candler. An Atlantan with great business acumen, Mr. Candler proceeded to buy additional rights and acquire complete control.

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Pepsi-Cola

Born in the Carolinas in 1898, Pepsi-Cola has a long and rich history. The drink is the invention of Caleb Bradham, a pharmacist and drugstore owner in New Bern, North Carolina.

The summer of 1898, as usual, was hot and humid in New Bern, North Carolina. So a young pharmacist named Caleb Bradham began experimenting with combinations of spices, juices, and syrups trying to create a refreshing new drink to serve his customers. He succeeded beyond all expectations because he invented the beverage known around the world as Pepsi-Cola.

Caleb Bradham knew that to keep people returning to his pharmacy, he would have to turn it into a gathering place. He did so by concocting his own special beverage, a soft drink. His creation, a unique mixture of kola nut extract, vanilla and rareoils, became so popular his customers named it "Brad's Drink." Caleb decided to rename it "Pepsi-Cola," and advertised his new soft drink. People responded, and sales of Pepsi-Cola started to grow, convincing him that he should form a company to market the new beverage.

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Seven Up

7 Up was created by Charles Leiper Grigg who launched his St. Louis-based company The Howdy Corporation in 1920. Grigg came up with the formula for a lemon-lime soft drink in 1929. The product, originally named "Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda", was launched two weeks before the Wall Street Crash of 1929. It contained lithium citrate, a mood-stabilizing drug. It was one of a number of patent medicine products popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries; they made claims similar to today's health foods. Specifically it was marketed as a hangover cure. The product's name was soon changed to 7 Up.

The Great Depression was just the beginning of the business challenges the product would face. In its early years, there were around 600 lemon-lime beverage brands being sold in the US. 7 Up was able to survive and become the market leader in the category by being one of the first to be nationally distributed as well as being marketed as more healthy than other soft drinks.

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