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the soda pop pioneer

There were all sorts of pioneers in America.

Some made it into the history books and others didn’t, even though their work impacted the day-to-day lives of millions.

Claud Hatcher (1876-1933).

So it goes with Claud Hatcher, the soda pop pioneer who gave America Royal Crown Cola.

In 1905, Hatcher was running a family grocery wholesale business out of a store in Columbus, Georgia.

He was buying large quantities of Coca-Cola syrup from the local Coca-Cola distributor for resale to his customers, and Hatcher thought he was entitled to a volume discount.

Coca Cola bottling plant, Salem, NH, 1921.

But the Coca-Cola distributor didn’t see it that way and refused to lower his price.

And Hatcher got mad.

So, he cut ties with the Coca-Cola people and began experimenting with sugars and flavorings in his store’s basement.

And, after some tinkering, Hatcher figured out a generic cola recipe that was really good.

And it sold well.

Hatcher’s drink was initially called “Chero-Cola.”

Hatcher kept tinkering and eventually developed his own recipes for ginger ale, root beer and several fruit-flavored soft drinks, too; and his wholesale grocery business became a thriving soft drink company.

[Great things are sometimes born out of anger.]

August 21, 1913.

While Hatcher’s RC Cola never overtook Coca-Cola in national sales, Hatcher and his family prospered; and the business has managed to survive all these years [though it’s been bought, sold and merged with other beverage companies several times as the food industry has consolidated].

Jerry Lewis, 1963.

Sadly, RC Cola only accounts for about eighteen percent of recent US cola sales, behind Coke and Pepsi.

Some people still think that Coke ‘is the real thing’ [1970s tagline] and others claim that ‘Pepsi’s got a lot to give’ [1969 tagline].

Nevertheless, RC Cola boasts certain claims to soda pop fame:

….. It was the first to sell soft drinks in cans.

1969.

….. It was the first to sell diet cola [Diet Rite].

….. It was the first to sell caffeine-free cola.

….. It was the first to conduct blind taste tests, which RC Cola always won.

Bing Crosby, 1946.

Now, when you buy a six-pack of RC Cola, your money goes to the Keurig Dr. Pepper food conglomerate and not to Claud Hatcher’s great-grandchildren.

But take heart.

Lucille Ball, 1946.

You’ll be buying a soda that has been the “Best by Taste Test” since the 1940s.

And that’s not nothing.

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I’ll see you on Monday.

— Brenda

Banner image: Quarterback Johnny Unitas, 1962.