Have you ever heard or thought about the history of chewing gum?

Chewing gum dates back to the ancient Greeks.  The Greek women liked the taste and the gummy substance also acted as a breath freshener.  They chewed on a gummy material that came from the resin of the mastic tree. 

There were many different Indian tribes that chewed on the sap that came from spruce trees.  Later the early settlers made a chewing gum that was made from the spruce sap that was mixed with beeswax.

People have been chewing on different things for many years and while there were some commercial chewing gums in America; they were not the chewing gum that we know today. 

The first patent for chewing gum was issued in December 28, 1869.  The inventor was a man named William Finley Semple.  This was a gum that was still made from the sap of the spruce tree.  It did not hold the flavor for very long.

It was about this time that Thomas Adams met Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna.  Santa Anna was the Mexican general that led the Mexican Army to overrun the Texans at the Alamo.  He was ultimately defeated by the United states but he later became President of Mexico but was subsequently exiled. 

                                      

Thomas Adams was a photographer with an inventive mind.   During his conversations with Santa Anna.; Adams was introduced to chicle which is a gummy substance that the people of Mexico extracted from the Sopota trees.

Adams thought that there had to be some commercial uses for the chicle material and he began experimenting.  He tried making masks, toys, rain boots and buggy tires but everything he tried ultimately failed.

Demoralized and depressed Adams was ready to give up.  He had a warehouse full of the chicle material and was ready to throw it all into the river when he happened to stop at a drugstore.  While he was there, a little girl came into the store and asked for a penny’s worth of chewing gum.  It was then that Adams remembered that the natives of Mexico had used the chicle for a chewing gum for many years.

After thinking about the situation and regrouping he decided to mix the chicle, package it and try to sell it.  Since he already had a warehouse full of the material; he decided that it was worth a try so he began packaging the material.  Soon after packaging he began a sales campaign.

The venture was a success and soon after he rented a building and hired thirty five women to package the materials.  Later in 1871; Thomas Adams built and patented a machine for the manufacturing of chewing gum.  His business became very successful and he led the way for other gum manufacturers.

Adams was one of the first entrepreneurs to place a vending machine that sold his gum in train stations.

Thomas Adams lived a very successful life and passed away in 1905.  He left a great legacy and secured a definite place in American history. 

This is a perfect example of facing certain failure and turning it into a great success.