Visit Vernors website to learn about Michigan's sneeze-maker and other local pop products:

http://www.vernors.com/

from the vernors.com History page for Vernors pop:

Vernors History by Keith WunderlichKeith Wunderlich wrote this article on the history of Vernors. The article appeared in Soda Pop Dreams Vol. 1 Num 2. You can e-mail Soda Pop Dreams

Vernors remains ' Detroit's Drink' even with many ownership changes through the years

By Keith D. Wunderlich

Have you ever taken a drink of ginger ale and had to cough or sneeze before it ever hit your lips? That's Vernors Ginger Ale. It has that sparkling fizz, the unique taste, and a history that goes back before Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Hires or Moxie. Vernors is Detroit's Drink.

Detroiters remember the huge illuminated sign on the river, the gnome, Boston coolers, Cream-Ales, hot Vernor's, and waiting for the Bob-lo boat at the soda fountain at the foot of Woodward.

The Bob-lo boats are gone. The huge sign and the fountain at the foot of Woodward are gone. Vernors has gone through a series of owners since 1966 and is now owned by Dr. Pepper(7UP in Dallas, ~TX. Yet, Vernor's Ginger Ale is still Detroit's Drink. And when you open a Vernors, there's still that sparkling fizz and unique taste that created a sensation when it was first introduced to the public in 1866.

130 years ago, James Vernor served the first glass of Vernor's in his pharmacy at 235 Woodward Avenue. The story of James Vernor is as complex and interesting as the secret formula for the soda. James Vernor was not just a man who invented a soft drink. He was a leader and one of Detroit's most admired citizens.

Higby and Sterns' Drug Store was young James Vernor's first good job as an errand boy. He began working there in 1858 with all the spirit and enthusiasm that a 15-year-old would have. He made quite a name for himself due to his parcel wrapping and fast deliveries. He was soon promoted to the position of Junior Clerk.

Vernor stayed with Higby & Sterns until the age of 19, when he enlisted in the Fourth Michigan Cavalry. In July of 1865, he was discharged and returned home to Detroit. Almost immediately after his return home, he opened a drug store at 235 Woodward.Vernor was admired as a pharmacist.

He closely scrutinized his prescriptions for quality, accuracy, and possible drug interactions. Vernor was meticulous about his work. Everything he did needed to meet his high standards. He served on the State Board of Pharmacy for eight years and was

one of the driving forces to pass the state's first pharmacy law. He held Michigan's #1 pharmacy license all the years he practiced.

Like all good pharmacists, Vernor also had a soda fountain in his drug store.

There are conflicting stories about how the ginger ale first began. The most popular story, and one found frequently in the Vernor's Company's own literature, says that Vernor began experimenting with a formula for ginger ale prior to leaving for the Civil War.

Upon returning from the war, he opened a wooden cask of his extract and found the taste he had been hoping to discover.

The secret combination of ingredients, along with the four years of aging in wooden casks during the Civil War, perfected his ginger ale.

At the age of 84, James Vernor died. The Vernor family was once asked when the first Mr. Vernor retired from business. The answer was, "A few hours before he died ." He was a hard-working and energetic man. One that made his mark on the city of Detroit with both business and civic contributions.

The second James Vernor came into the business as early as he could, working alongside his father in the old drug store. In the beginning, the father and son team were the only employees. They often worked 16 hour days together washing bottles, making and bottling the ginger ale, delivering it to various sites in the city, and taking care of clerical duties.

He was born in Detroit on March 25, 1877. It wasn't until his father died in 1927, though, that he became President of the James Vernor Company. It was in a great way due to the second James Vernor's influence and style that the company grew into an international organization. In 1896, James Vernor II entered the business and his father decided to concentrate full time on ginger ale.

The drug store was closed and a small plant established at the foot of Woodward Avenue, close to his former dr