In the early 1900s, Pharmacist Claude A. Hatcher, son of a Columbus, Georgia wholesale grocer, decided to manufacture his own line of soft drinks following what he considered unfair selling practices of a local bottler. Hatcher’s first soda was called “Royal Crown Ginger Ale” and was sold exclusively in his grocery store. In 1907, the company moved to the coroner of Tenth Street and ninth Avenue and began bottling soft drinks under the name of Union Bottling Works. By 1912, the grocery portion of the business was discontinued and the company was reorganized under the name Chero-Cola Company with Claude Hatcher as president. In 1914 the company sought to trademark their name but was faced with lawsuits from Coca-Cola which lasted for nearly ten years.

The company began to produce a new product, called “Nehi”, around 1924 which was so successful that the company changed its name once again, this time to Nehi Corporation. In 1933, founder Claude A. Hatcher died and Hilary R. Mott took the helm. Under his leadership, the company survived the Great Depression and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1940. From 1940 to 1950, the company experienced growth and success with their “Best By Taste Test” advertising and their celebrity endorsements from Bing Crosby and Joan Crawford to Hedy Lamar and Shirley Temple. The company changed its name again in 1959 to the Royal Crown Cola Company and by 1970 had solidified its position as the third largest soft drink company in America.

Though the company has made dramatic changes over the years, the Royal Crown Cola Company has included many of the industries “firsts”. The company was first in using aluminum cans in 1954, introduced the 16-oz bottle in 1958, and created the first diet/low-calorie soda (Diet Rite) in 1962.