Hires’ Root Beer

A Philadelphia pharmacist, Charles E. Hires, was on his honeymoon in New Jersey in 1875 when he found a recipe for “herb tea” that reportedly contained at least eight different ingredients. When he returned to Philadelphia, he began to experiment with the formula and finally produced Hires’ Rootbeer Household Extract, to be used for making root beer at home. The new product was exhibited at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876.

Hires’ root beer, being nonalcoholic, was promoted as a health beverage. Advertising for the new product encouraged coal miners to switch from hard drinks to his root beer, which was advertised as “The National Temperance” drink and “The Greatest Health-Giving Beverage in the World.”