Charles Elmer Hires was born in Elsinboro Pennsylvania (some say Elsinboro New Jersey) on August 19, 1851. As a son of a farmer, Charles was quite sure he did not want to spend the rest of his life toiling the soil like his father. Instead, he began experimenting with powdered roots and extracts developing medicinal syrups and tonics when he was a young man...
You can find root beer recipes and a timeline of Mr. Hires' journey to root beer fame at a posting I did titled: Mr. Hires and the Black Cow.
