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Enjoy a refreshing sip of Texas’ favorite soft drink in the town of its inception by visiting the Dr Pepper Museum in Waco.
Though many may not know, the world’s first soft drink, Dr Pepper, was created in Texas in 1885. After moving from building to building, the soft drink company looked to have a home of its own to use for a bottling facility. Once retired in the 1960s, when an increase in can production presented the need for another facility, the building sat vacant until the late 1980s when the nonprofit museum was founded by a group of Wacoans, who wanted to share more about the history of the Waco native drink, Director of Visitor's Experience Mary Beth Farrell says. (The museum open to the public in May of 1991.)
“The main museum building is the Artesian Manufacturing and Bottling Company building. It was built in 1906, specifically to bottle Dr Pepper and house all of their operations and the company headquarters,” Mary Beth says. “In 2016, the museum expanded to include the Kellum-Rotan building next door, which was once a wholesale grocery company.”
The museum houses a variety of Dr Pepper and soft drink exhibits including the discovery of carbonated water, important figures who have helped to propel Dr Pepper to the next level and a look at a bottling room. As an added excitement for visitors, the building also still includes an original well, which has recently been covered with clear paneling so guests can peer down to take a peek.
The museum also has three temporary exhibit galleries which cycle throughout the year to different projects, including a partnership with the Baylor Museum Studies program.
“We currently have an exhibit about how superheroes have been incorporated into soft drink advertising and also the postcards,” Mary Beth says. “Other examples of exhibits include research and development topics for advertising.”
Beyond Dr Pepper and the soft drink industry, the museum also provides historical accounts of Waco and features exhibits surrounding the area where the soda was founded.
“We also have a great exhibit about the Waco tornado, so we're kind of infusing some local history along the way,” Mary Beth says. “From the tornado, we have a big scar, or what we call the smile, that took a big chunk out of the side of our building where the weight of the tornado hit the museum.”
The museum offers a variety of additional activities to enhance a visitor’s experience including the Taste-A-Soda experience for those brave enough to venture through an array of flavors including some rather odd flavors like grass. On the flip side, guests who wish to test their creativity can create their own unique flavor at the Make-A-Soda experience.
“The Make-A-Soda activity is about a 30 minute experience, where guests will be guided by one of our presenters about the context of product development,” Mary Beth says.”We walk you through how a company would put a new soda on the market from deciding on your flavors, measuring things out and taste testing to creating a logo, label and slogan.”
In addition to these activities, the museum also offers live demonstrations at the Liquid Lab, which teaches guests about carbonated beverages and the science behind creating a soda, Mary Beth says.
Another unique experience offered by the museum is its paranormal experience, allowing guests, who are 18 and older, an inside look at suspected ghostly friends. During this experience, guests will enjoy a tour through both buildings and the otherwise off-limits basement with paranormal investigation tools and flashlights.
“Over the years, it started with paranormal groups wanting to come do investigations at the museum, which we did and we became certified as a haunted location by the McLennan County Paranormal Society,” Mary Beth says. “We now offer it every single Saturday night, and they're pretty much booked every single weekend. Our staff has different stories about things they've experienced, so they get a chance to share that with our visitors.”
Dr Pepper fans can expect to see a wide array of merchandise in the museum’s gift shop, some products only available for purchase through the museum or on its website, Mary Beth says.
“We have a great selection of Waco and Dr. Pepper Museum souvenirs,” Mary Beth says. “We have a great selection of museum specific stuff from Dr Pepper pens and magnets to great books from local authors.
Whether you’re from Texas or just visiting, Mary Beth says the museum should definitely be on your list of places to visit in the Lone Star State.
“If you're a true Texan, you've been to the Dr. Pepper Museum,” Mary Beth says. “And if you're coming to Texas from out of state, it should be on your Texas bucket list."
The Dr Pepper Museum is located at 300 S. 5th Street in Waco and is open Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 5:30 p.m. For more information or to plan your visit to the museum, visit drpeppermuseum.com or call (254) 757-1024.
