John Stith Pemberton (1831 – 1888)
On March 12, 1894, Coca-Cola was first sold in bottles.
Though today there is almost nothing as ubiquitous as
a bottle of Coca-Cola, this was not always the case.
For the first several years of its existence, Coke was only
available as a fountain drink, and its producer saw no
reason for that to change.
Originally developed as a non-addictive substitute for
morphine, then marketed as a non-alcoholic "temperance
drink,"
Coca-Cola was invented by John Pemberton, a druggist
in Columbus, Georgia, in 1886. It was soon popular
throughout the region, and the rights to the brand passed
to Asa Griggs Candler.
Candler’s nephew had advised him that selling the drink
in bottles could greatly increase sales, but Griggs wasn’t
interested.
The first person to bottle Coke was Joseph A. Biedenharn,
owner of a candy store in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Correctly
determining that bottles could boost sales,
Biedenharn put the drink into Hutchinson bottles, a
common and reusable glass bottle that bore no
resemblance to the modern Coke bottle. He sent
Candler a case, but Candler continued to stick with
fountain sales.
Asa Griggs Candler Sr.
(December 30, 1851 – March 12, 1929)
Joseph Augustus Biedenharn (1866 – 1952)
