Editing Coca-Cola (section)

===Company===
After Candler had gained a better foothold on Coca-Cola in April 1888, he nevertheless was forced to sell the beverage he produced with the recipe he had under the names "Yum Yum" and "Koke". This was while Charley Pemberton was selling the elixir, although a cruder mixture, under the name "Coca-Cola", all with his father's blessing. After both names failed to catch on for Candler, by the middle of 1888, the Atlanta pharmacist was quite anxious to establish a firmer legal claim to Coca-Cola, and hoped he could force his two competitors, Walker and Dozier, completely out of the business, as well.<ref name="ForGodCountryandCocaColapg44-45" />

John Pemberton died suddenly on August 16, 1888. Asa Candler then decided to move swiftly forward to attain full control of the entire Coca-Cola operation.

Charley Pemberton, an alcoholic and opium addict, unnerved Asa Candler more than anyone else. Candler is said to have quickly maneuvered to purchase the exclusive rights to the name "Coca-Cola" from Pemberton's son Charley immediately after he learned of Dr. Pemberton's death. One of several stories states that Candler approached Charley's mother at John Pemberton's funeral and offered her $300 in cash for the rights to the name.

In Charles Howard Candler's 1950 book about his father, he stated: "On August 30 [1888], he {{bracket|[[Asa Candler]]}} became the sole proprietor of Coca-Cola, a fact which was stated on letterheads, invoice blanks and advertising copy."<ref name=Candler1950p81/>

With this action on August 30, 1888, Candler's sole control became technically all true. Candler had negotiated with Margaret Dozier and her brother Woolfolk Walker a full payment amounting to $1,000, which all agreed Candler could pay off with a series of notes over a specified time span. By May 1, 1889, Candler was claiming full ownership of the Coca-Cola beverage, with a total investment outlay by Candler for the drink enterprise over the years amounting to $2,300.<ref>{{cite book| last = Pendergrast| first = Mark| title = For God, Country and Coca-Cola| url = https://archive.org/details/forgodcountrycoc00pend_0| url-access = limited| date = 2000| publisher = Basic Books| isbn = 978-0-465-05468-8| page = [https://archive.org/details/forgodcountrycoc00pend_0/page/46 46] }}</ref>

In 1914, Margaret Dozier, as co-owner of the original Coca-Cola Company in 1888, came forward to claim that her signature on the 1888 Coca-Cola Company bill of sale had been forged. Subsequent analysis of other similar transfer documents had also indicated John Pemberton's signature had most likely been forged as well, which some accounts claim was precipitated by his son Charley.<ref name="Pendergrast1" />

In 1892, Candler set out to incorporate a second company, the Coca-Cola Company (the modern corporation). When Candler had the earliest records of the "Coca-Cola Company" destroyed in 1910, the action was claimed to have been made during a move to new corporation offices around this time.<ref>{{cite book| last = Pendergrast| first = Mark| title = For God, Country and Coca-Cola| url = https://archive.org/details/forgodcountrycoc00pend_0| url-access = limited| date =2000| publisher = Basic Books| isbn = 978-0-465-05468-8| page = [https://archive.org/details/forgodcountrycoc00pend_0/page/49 49] }}</ref>

On June 23, 1894, Charley Pemberton was found unconscious with a stick of opium by his side. Ten days later, Charley died at Atlanta's Grady Hospital at the age of 40.<ref>{{cite book| last = Pendergrast| first = Mark| title = For God, Country and Coca-Cola| url = https://archive.org/details/forgodcountrycoc00pend_0| url-access = limited| date = 2000| publisher = Basic Books| isbn = 978-0-465-05468-8| pages = [https://archive.org/details/forgodcountrycoc00pend_0/page/48 48]–49}}</ref>

On September 12, 1919, Coca-Cola Co. was purchased by a group of investors led by [[Ernest Woodruff]]'s [[Trust Company of Georgia|Trust Company]] for $25&nbsp;million and reincorporated under the [[Delaware General Corporation Law]]. The company publicly offered 500,000 shares of the company for $40 a share.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://georgiainfo.galileo.usg.edu/thisday/gahistory/09/12/coca-cola-sale-completed|title=This Day in Georgia History – Coca-Cola Sale Completed – GeorgiaInfo|work=usg.edu|access-date=June 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161115081202/http://georgiainfo.galileo.usg.edu/thisday/gahistory/09/12/coca-cola-sale-completed|archive-date=November 15, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/business-economy/robert-w-woodruff-1889-1985|title=Robert W. Woodruff (1889–1985)|encyclopedia=New Georgia Encyclopedia|access-date=June 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330195106/https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/business-economy/robert-w-woodruff-1889-1985|archive-date=March 30, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1923, his son [[Robert W. Woodruff]] was elected President of the company. Woodruff expanded the company and brought Coca-Cola to the rest of the world. Coca-Cola began distributing bottles as "Six-packs", encouraging customers to purchase the beverage for their home.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Wood |first1=Benjamin |last2=Ruskin |first2=Gary |last3=Sacks |first3=Gary |date=January 2020 |title=How Coca-Cola Shaped the International Congress on Physical Activity and Public Health: An Analysis of Email Exchanges between 2012 and 2014 |journal=International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health |language=en |volume=17 |issue=23 |pages=8996 |doi=10.3390/ijerph17238996 |issn=1660-4601 |pmc=7730322 |pmid=33287097 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

During its first several decades, Coca-Cola officially wanted to be known by its full-name despite being commonly known as "Coke". This was due to company fears that the term "coke" would eventually become a [[generic trademark]], which to an extent became true in the [[Southern United States]] where [[Names for soft drinks in the United States|"coke" is used even for non Coca-Cola products]]. The company also didn't want to confuse its drink with the [[Coke (fuel)|similarly named coal byproduct]] that clearly wasn't safe to consume. Eventually, out for fears that another company may claim the trademark for "Coke", Coca-Cola finally embraced it and officially endorsed the name "Coke" in 1941. "Coke" eventually became a registered trademark of the Coca-Cola Company in 1945.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ajc.com/blog/talk-town/world-coke-exhibit-shares-story-forgotten-sprite-boy/soMnt1rHQd9j5JxpyZeuML/ | title=World of Coke exhibit shares story of forgotten 'Sprite Boy' | access-date=April 2, 2023 | archive-date=April 2, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230402005821/https://www.ajc.com/blog/talk-town/world-coke-exhibit-shares-story-forgotten-sprite-boy/soMnt1rHQd9j5JxpyZeuML/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1986, the Coca-Cola Company merged with two of their bottling operators (owned by JTL Corporation and BCI Holding Corporation) to form Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. (CCE).<ref name="cokecce.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.cokecce.com/about-cce/our-story|title=Coca-Cola Enterprises : Our Story|publisher=Coca-Cola Enterprises|archive-url=https://archive.today/20150417095329/http://www.cokecce.com/about-cce/our-story|archive-date=April 17, 2015}}</ref>

In December 1991, Coca-Cola Enterprises merged with the Johnston Coca-Cola Bottling Group, Inc.<ref name="cokecce.com" />