John Stith Pemberton, the tragic life of the inventor of Coca-Cola (5 photos)

Considered one of the most popular drinks in the world, Coca-Cola has a peculiar origin: the morphine addiction of its creator, a mid-19th century American pharmacist, chemist and physician named John Stith Pemberton.





Photograph of John Stith Pemberton, taken circa 1888.

Over the generations, there have been many who have tried one of the most famous and media-rich drinks on the planet to quench their thirst. Indeed, we are talking about fizzy Coca-Cola. But probably most of those who often enjoy this refreshing drink do not know its origin. We must go back to the United States at the end of the 19th century to find out how this story began. Specifically, we travel to Georgia, home of chemist and pharmacist John Stith Pemberton, whose quest to create the perfect drink led him to invent cola, which is currently the best-selling cola in the world.

Georgia was one of the first US states to prohibit the sale and consumption of alcohol in 1886-1887. This was very difficult for many people as at that time the industrial sector was in full swing and workers whose working days were very hard and stressful required some kind of stimulant drink that would make the grueling hours of work more bearable. And Coca-Cola will be the perfect drink to achieve this goal.

It all actually began with Pemberton's intense addiction to morphine, which he consumed in large quantities to relieve the pain caused by a saber wound he received in 1865. The chemist knew that this drug would ultimately ruin his life, so he decided to find a medicinal syrup that would help him overcome his addiction.

THE DANGEROUS DEPENDENCE OF JOHN STHITH PEMBERTON

John Stith Pemberton was born July 8, 1831, in Knoxville, Georgia, where he attended school in the city of Rome. Pemberton studied medicine and graduated from the Southern Botanical Medical College in 1850. At just 19 years old, he became a doctor, combining general medicine and surgery with extensive knowledge of chemistry. He also received a degree in pharmacy from Philadelphia. At the time, Pemberton was what was known as a "steam doctor," a physician who used steam baths, herbs, and other products for healing the body and overall health, to perform his treatments. In 1853 he married Ann Eliza Clifford Lewis, and a year later their only child, Charles Ney Pemberton, was born.



Workers at the Coca-Cola bottling plant in 1900. Photo: www.cocacolaespana.es/

With the outbreak of the Civil War in 1862, Pemberton entered the Confederate Army as a lieutenant and on April 16, 1865, during the Battle of Columbus, the last of the conflict, he was severely wounded in the stomach and chest by a saber. Although Pemberton recovered from the wound, it caused him pain so severe that he could only calm it with morphine. Thus, continued consumption of this substance eventually turned him into an addict until he realized the problem and decided to fight tooth and nail to find a cure that would free him from his addiction.

PEMBERTON AND COCA WINE

Pemberton eventually invested all his savings into researching and developing a morphine substitute and began experimenting with many plants until he invented his first drink, which he called Dr. Tuggle's Compound Syrup of Globe Flower, a kind of syrup based on Cephalanthus occidentalis, is a plant with several medicinal uses (though it can also be toxic).

Seeing the success of this drink, Pemberton moved to Atlanta, where he began experimenting with coca leaves (which were chewed by the indigenous people of the highlands of Peru and Bolivia) and wine, until he finally created a recipe that contained extracts of coca and damiana (Turnera difusa), which he called Pemberton Coca French wine. “Wine” was touted as a medical miracle, capable of relieving addiction, depression, neurasthenia (especially in women) and, interestingly, alcoholism. This “wine,” however, did not help cure the addiction of its inventor, but it became extremely popular.





The Coca-Cola advertising poster appeared in 1890. Photo: PD

THE PERFECT SOFT DRINK

At that time, groups that fought against the use of alcohol, which sometimes became a real social scourge, triumphed, for example, the so-called “Temperance Movement”, which began to gain strength throughout the country. It was at this time that a series of laws passed in 1886 forced Pemberton to create a non-alcoholic version of his new and successful drink. To achieve this, he enlisted the help of his pharmacist friend Willis E. Venable, and together they refined the formula to adapt it to new legal regulations. So they left out damiana and added kola nut. They also replaced the wine with sugar syrup.

While Pemberton was preparing a glass of the new drink, he inadvertently mixed the base syrup with soda water, turning his "medicine wine" into a drink that could only be served in places where sodas, ice cream and sandwiches were consumed, commonly known as "soda fountains."

THE SUNSET OF JOHN PEMBERTON

One of Pemberton's partners, marketing expert Frank Mason Robinson, came up with the name and logo for Coca-Cola. He suggested that the name of the new drink combine the name of its two main ingredients: coca leaves and cola nuts (Coca-Cola), and for the logo he came up with two capital letters, as he was sure that they would stand out more visually. and also decided to write the title in Spencerian calligraphy, a type of writing that was very popular in the United States at the time.

The first sales of this sparkling new drink were at Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta, and it was sold in five-cent glasses. But not everything went as Pemberton expected. Financial problems related to his morphine addiction forced him to sell and even give away parts of his company to various buyers.



Various Coca-Cola bottles throughout history. Photo: iStock

Finally, in 1888, Pemberton was forced to sell his drink formula to Asa Griggs Candler, an American tycoon and politician who would eventually become the founder of The Coca-Cola Company, for $2,300. Since then, the Coca-Cola brand has spread instantly. The Biedenharn Candy Company in Vicksburg, Mississippi was one of the first establishments to sell this soft drink and it was such a success that on March 12, 1894, the owner, Joseph Biedenharn, decided to install a bottling machine so people could take it and try this drink in the comfort of your home.



Coca-Cola advertising appeared in 1940. Photo: https://www.cocacolaespana.es/

Thus, John Stith Pemberton, although the inventor of the successful formula, was unable to enjoy the glory of the soft drink brand, which is currently the best seller in the world and is present in more than two hundred countries around the world. Pemberton died of stomach cancer on August 16, 1888, at the age of 57, in absolute poverty and unable to overcome his addiction to morphine. And unaware that his drink would one day become the most famous in history.