John Stith Pemberton: The pharmacist behind Coca-Cola

John Stith Pemberton, the Georgia-based pharmacist and chemist who created the precursor to Coca-Cola in 1886, lived a life marked by both scientific innovation and personal hardship. After serving as a lieutenant colonel in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, Pemberton sustained a severe chest injury during the Battle of Columbus in 1865.

To manage chronic pain from his injury, Pemberton became addicted to morphine. His attempts to find alternatives to manage this dependency led to various experiments with medicinal and tonic substances, including coca and kola. While his work eventually laid the foundation for one of the world's most recognizable brands, Pemberton died in poverty and ill health, never realizing the global scale of his creation.