John Matthews (soda Water Manufacturer)
John Matthews (1808–1870) was an English-born American inventor and soda water manufacturer. He is known as "The Soda Fountain King".
Matthews manufactured carbonating machinery and distributed his product through retail stores. The equipment was a lead-lined cast-iron box where carbonic acid gas was formed by mixing sulphuric acid with marble dust. The gas was then purified by passing it through water, and then into a tank partially filled with cool water. The tank was rocked for a quarter to a half hour, until the water was impregnated and bubbly.
Matthews created a fountain apparatus that could be positioned on a pharmacist’s counter to dispense carbonated drinks, leading to its popularisation and rapid growth.
He is buried at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York. His monument was designed by Karl Muller and cost $30,000.
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Famous quotes containing the words matthews and/or water:
“I was supposed to retire when I was seventy-two years old, but I was seventy-seven when I retired. On my seventy-sixth birthday a lady had triplets. It was quite a birthday present.”
—Josephine Riley Matthews (b. 1897)
“I asked, “What happens, father, when you die?”
He told where all the running water goes,
And dressed me gently in my little clothes.”
—Robert Pack (b. 1929)