n May, 1886, Coca Cola was invented by Doctor John Pemberton a pharmacist from A

tlanta, Georgia. John Pemberton concocted the Coca Cola formula in a three legge
d brass kettle in his backyard. The name was a suggestion given by John Pemberto
n's bookkeeper Frank Robinson.
Birth of Coca Cola
Being a bookkeeper, Frank Robinson also had excellent penmanship. It was he who
first scripted "Coca Cola" into the flowing letters which has become the famous
logo of today.
The soft drink was first sold to the public at the soda fountain in Jacob's Phar
macy in Atlanta on May 8, 1886.
About nine servings of the soft drink were sold each day. Sales for that first y
ear added up to a total of about $50. The funny thing was that it cost John Pemb
erton over $70 in expanses, so the first year of sales were a loss.
Until 1905, the soft drink, marketed as a tonic, contained extracts of cocaine a
s well as the caffeine-rich kola nut.
Asa Candler
In 1887, another Atlanta pharmacist and businessman, Asa Candler bought the form
ula for Coca Cola from inventor John Pemberton for $2,300. By the late 1890s, Co
ca Cola was one of America's most popular fountain drinks, largely due to Candle
r's aggressive marketing of the product. With Asa Candler, now at the helm, the
Coca Cola Company increased syrup sales by over 4000% between 1890 and 1900.
Advertising was an important factor in John Pemberton and Asa Candler's success
and by the turn of the century, the drink was sold across the United States and
Canada. Around the same time, the company began selling syrup to independent bot
tling companies licensed to sell the drink. Even today, the US soft drink indust
ry is organized on this principle.
Death of the Soda Fountain - Rise of the Bottling Industry
Until the 1960s, both small town and big city dwellers enjoyed carbonated bevera
ges at the local soda fountain or ice cream saloon. Often housed in the drug sto
re, the soda fountain counter served as a meeting place for people of all ages.
Often combined with lunch counters, the soda fountain declined in popularity as
commercial ice cream, bottled soft drinks, and fast food restaurants became popu
lar.