Product Origins Archives

Were graham crackers named for a man who believed unhealthy diet led to sexual excess?

A long-running claim that cocktails were an entirely American invention appears to be something of a myth.

Did the idea behind FedEx earn that company's founder a failing mark while he was a college student?

Were potato chips invented thanks to a cook's momentary fit of pique?

Was the stethoscope invented thanks to a doctor's modesty?

Was the brassiere invented by Otto Titzling?

Play Doh started out as a wallpaper cleaner?

List of technological innovations brought about by African-American inventors.

Did Monkee Mike Nesmith's mother invent Liquid Paper?

Were Cabbage Patch dolls designed to resemble what people will look like after a nuclear attack?

Were champagne glasses modeled on Marie Antoinette's breasts?

How Botts' Dots, the rounded raised markers on California roads, came to be invented.

Product Origins