- 1
1767 – 1830s
Bubbles Before Soda Shops
Joseph Priestley works out how to infuse water with carbon dioxide in 1767, and by the 1810s American pharmacists are selling that fizzy water as medicine. The first U.S. soda water patent lands in 1810; marble-topped 'fountains' start appearing in city apothecaries soon after.
- 2
1840s – 1880s
The Pharmacy Counter
Druggists begin adding flavored syrups — sarsaparilla, birch beer, phosphates, cherry — to make their tonics palatable. Ice cream joins the glass and the ice cream soda is born (Philadelphia, 1874). Fountains become the social heart of the drugstore, and small-town pharmacies across Georgia install them.
- 3
1886 – 1919
Soda Jerks & Southern Syrups
Atlanta pharmacist John Pemberton mixes his caramel-colored syrup in 1886 and sells it at Jacobs' Pharmacy — Coca-Cola starts as a fountain drink. The soda jerk becomes a genuine American character: showmanship, slang, and a two-handed pull on the spigot.
- 4
1920 – 1933
Prohibition's Golden Age
With saloons shuttered, the fountain inherits the bar stool. Chrome, mirrors, tile floors and swivel seats spread nationwide; malts, floats, banana splits and phosphates hit their peak. Many of the counters still standing today were built in these years.
- 5
1940s – 1950s
The Parlor Era
Post-war main streets keep the fountain as the town's teen hangout — jukeboxes, cherry Cokes, and after-school stools. It's the look everyone still pictures: red vinyl, checkerboard tile, and a chrome mixer spinning behind the counter.
- 6
1960s – 1990s
The Long Fizzle
Bottled and canned soda, suburban malls, fast food and chain drugstores gut the economics of a hand-mixed drink. Thousands of fountains are ripped out. The survivors are usually family-run pharmacies that simply refused to remodel.
- 7
2000s – Today
The Revival
Craft soda, house-made syrups, Utah-style 'dirty sodas' and nostalgia bottle shops bring the fountain back — alongside the century-old originals that never closed. That mix of survivors and newcomers is exactly what The Fizzy Trail maps.
Counter Talk
- Soda jerk
- The counter operator — named for the jerk of the spigot handle.
- Phosphate
- Soda water, flavored syrup and a few drops of acid phosphate. Tart, not sweet.
- Egg cream
- No egg, no cream: milk, seltzer and chocolate syrup, whipped to a foamy head.
- Float / Black cow
- A scoop of ice cream dropped into soda; root beer is the classic.
- Malted
- A milkshake with malted barley powder for that toasty, nutty finish.
- Dirty soda
- Modern fountain drink: soda plus cream, syrup and fruit purée over pellet ice.