In 1897, in LeRoy, New York, carpenter and cough syrup
manufacturer Pearle Bixby Wait trademarked a gelatin
dessert called "Jell-O". Wait and his wife, May, added
strawberry, raspberry, orange, and lemon flavoring to
granulated gelatin and sugar.
In 1899, Wait sold Jell-O to "Orator Francis Woodward",
whose Genesee Pure Food Company produced the
successful Grain-O health drink. Part of the legal
agreement between Woodward and Wait dealt with
the similar Jell-O name.
Pearle Bixby Wait (1873 – 1915)