It is thought that the first person to aerate water with carbon
dioxide was William Brownrigg in the 1740s. Joseph Priestley
invented carbonated water, independently and by accident,
in 1767 when he discovered a method of infusing water with
carbon dioxide after having suspended a bowl of water above
a beer vat at a brewery in Leeds, Yorkshire.  He wrote of the
"peculiar satisfaction" he found in drinking it, and in 1772 he
published a paper entitled Impregnating Water with Fixed Air.

(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

William Brownrigg (1712 – 1800)

Joseph Priestley (1733 – 1804)