Invention of soda fountain by Samuel Fahnestock

Part of the reason people began to hang out at the local soda fountain was simply because they had to wait to get their order. At that time, pharmacists would have to mix soda by hand, adding whatever flavoring the customer desired.

To meet the need for carbonated soft drinks the soda fountain was developed in USA. The first soda fountain patent was granted to Samuel Fahnestock in 1819.

Samuel Fahnestock was born in Lancaster, PA on March 16, 1764. He married Barbara Becker, and they had 6 kids. He died on December 8, 1836. He had invented a barrel-shaped with a pump and spigot to dispense carbonated water, and the device was meant to be kept under a counter or hidden.

He invented the soda machine to quench the social demand for carbonated soft drinks. Originally, they were more like a beer keg which produce flavored mineral water sodas, and people would drink them for health reasons, but now they are stocked with cans or bottles of sodas. By 1824, soda fountains were in use in some American cities.

No evidence has surfaced that soda fountain were commonly used until just before the Civil War, when Gustavus D. Dows operated a marble soda fountain. By 1908, there were an estimated 75,000 soda fountains in the United States.
Invention of soda fountain by Samuel Fahnestock