Dr. Pepper's origins?

[NW Mailing List]

That was the legend around Rural Retreat, however, according to the  
Dr Pepper Museum website

" There are several stories surrounding the naming of Dr Pepper. The  
most popular is that Wade Morrison worked for a man name Dr. Charles  
Pepper in Rural Retreat, VA before he moved to Waco and became the  
owner of The Old Corner Drug store where Dr Pepper was invented. The  
story is that Morrison fell in love with Dr. Pepper's daughter, but  
Dr. Pepper would not let them get married. To make his fortune he  
moved west to Waco and named the new exciting drink after Dr. Pepper  
to win the hand of his daughter. We do have census records that  
indicate that this legend is probably not true. Dr. Pepper in Rural  
Retreat, Virginia had a daughter who was eleven at the time of Wade  
Morrison's employment. Mr. Morrison is not the person who invented Dr  
Pepper but Dr. Charles Alderton, a pharmacist who worked for Mr.  
Morrison at his Old Corner Drug Store. This is also documented and in  
our archives. I hope this clarifies any confusion. "

I don't know that it ever generated business for the N&W, Rural  
Retreat is not exactly a huge tourist draw.

The Roanoke Valley was, at least in the 1950s sold more Dr Pepper per  
capita than any other metro area east of the Mississippi.

The only way to connect this back to the N&W would be supplies and  
materials to manufacture the drink were probably brought in via rail  
in those days. However, to my recollection, the bottling plant did  
not have a rail siding, so it would have been trucked to the plant  
itself.

Ken Miller

On May 5, 2009, at 8:00 AM, NW Mailing List wrote:


>

> I don't mean to be slightly off-topic here but I thought the common  

> myth was that Dr. Pepper was "invented" along the N&W at, in, or  

> near Rural Retreat, VA. I know this was at least an early formula  

> but if anyone can fill in the missing parts of this tale and how it  

> made business for the N&W, I think it would be interesting.

>

> Thanks.

>

> Bob Cohen

>