Gotta Have My Pepsi

Caleb Bradham wanted to be a pharmacist. Somethings just never work out. Caleb had to drop out of school and return home when his father's business failed. He opened a drug store on Broad Street in New Bern, North Carolina. In the summer of 1890, to keep inviting customers into his drug store he invented new flavors of soda fountain drinks. He eventally came up with a distinctive mixture of kola nut extract, vanilla and various tasty oils. Well, his customers liked this soda fountain drink so much they called it Brads Drink". And they kept coming back for more (no doubt the caffeine in the kola extract). Caleb realized he had a winner and began to advertise his new soft drink. By 1898 he decided to name it "Pepsi-Cola" and said his new drink was "exhilarating, invigorating and aids digestion." In 1902, he began to package his syrup in his drugstores back room and sold the syrup to other soda fountains. At this time the concept of bottled drinks to drink at home was just coming into its own and most of soft drinks were still drank at ones favorite soda fountain. But Caleb realized that it was time to bottle his product so people could enjoy it anywhere. In 1903, Caleb applied to the U.S. Patent Office for his drink and received a trademark and patent for his Pepsi-Cola and the Pepsi Cola Company was born. And by the end of 1910 there were Pepsi-Cola franchises in 24 states.