Thomas adams jr

American scientist and inventor Thomas Adams is today remembered as the most important man in the history of the chewing gum industry.

Thomas adams chewing gum biography of martin Beeman and Jonathan Primle. Thomas Adams May 4, — February 7, was a 19th-century American scientist and inventor who is regarded as a founder of the chewing gum industry. Adams first tried to formulate the gum into a rubber which was suitable for making tires. When that didn't work, he turned the chicle into a chewing gum called New York Chewing Gum. In , Adams created the first flavored gum, black licorice, which he named Black Jack.

Before he invented modern mass-produced chewing gum, there were many other examples of chewing gum use through the millennia. The first finding of gum was found in years old human settlements in Finland. In those distant times, many old cultures (Aztecs, Ancient Greeks, and Egyptians) used several types of chewing gum as a mouth freshener and medicinal accessory.

However, none of these chewing gums come even close to Thomas Adams' success!

Modern civilization's first widespread use of chewing gum happened in the early s when English settlements picked up the chewing practice from Native Americans.

Thomas adams gum Thomas Adams first tried to change chicle into synthetic rubber products, before making a chewing gum. Thomas Adams attempted to make toys, masks, rain boots, and bicycle tires out of the chicle from Mexican sapodilla trees, but every experiment failed. One day in , he popped a piece of surplus stock into his mouth and liked the taste. Chewing away, he had the idea to add flavoring to the chicle. Thomas Adams tried numerous trades before becoming a photographer during the 's.

Several inventors started selling chewing gum between and , most notably John B. Curtis (today regarded as the beginning of commercial chewing gum use) and William Semple (who filed the first patent on chewing gum in late ).

A significant change in the chewing gum industry came with Thomas Adams (). During his lifetime, he worked as a photographer, glassmaker, and inventor, but his only great invention was made during the s.

He was a secretary to the Mexican president Antonio López de Santa Anna (). Santa Ana often chewed gum from the local tree Manilkara Chicle. Its natural gun had great potential, and with Santa Ana's help, Adams started his experiments in the hope of creating some commercially viable product. Their first goal was to develop a cheap alternative to costly rubber tires.

After a year of unsuccessful trials, he gave up on the idea of Chicle-based rubber. Then he remembered that Santa Ana and the indigenous population of Mexico had enjoyed chewing chicle gum for the past few thousand years. The first batch of chewing gums was vastly superior to the popular paraffin wax gum used in American pharmacies during that time.

Pictures of thomas adams

Thomas Adams May 4, —February 7, was an American inventor. In , he patented a machine that could mass produce chewing gum from chicle. Adams later worked with businessman William Wrigley, Jr. There is little recorded information about his early life; however, it is known that he dabbled in various trades—including glassmaking—before eventually becoming a photographer. The Mexican general was in exile, living with Adams in his Staten Island home.

With his eldest son Tom Jr., Adams made the first batch of modern chewing gums named "Adams New York No.1". He molded them into small gumballs wrapped in different colored tissue papers.

After initial success, Thomas Adams decided to expand his business. He established a small manufacturing workplace, employing 40 working girls and patented machines to manufacture gum.

His business grew, and soon he hit several prominent landmarks. In , Adams made the first flavored gum in the world called "Black Jack," which had the taste of licorice.

Thomas adams chewing gum biography American scientist and inventor Thomas Adams is today remembered as the most important man in the history of the chewing gum industry. Before he invented modern mass-produced chewing gum, there were many other examples of chewing gum use through the millennia. The first finding of gum was found in years old human settlements in Finland. In those distant times, many old cultures Aztecs, Ancient Greeks, and Egyptians used several types of chewing gum as a mouth freshener and medicinal accessory. However, none of these chewing gums come even close to Thomas Adams' success!

In , his gum company installed the first wending machine (located in a New York subway station), which sold his flavored chewing gums Black Jack and Tutti-Frutti. Next year, Thomas Adams formed a new company called "American Chicle Company," which merged the six largest American chewing gum manufacturers.

He remained a member of its board of directors until when he died.

Thomas Adams will forever be remembered as the father of the modern-day chewing gum industry.