6 Things Invented in Florida

Florida is home to some really great inventions. Can you guess our top 6?

Floridians have helped contribute to our modern world in all kinds of monumental ways. Here are 6 things that were invented in Florida!

 

Gatorade

Robert Cade was a medical professor at the University of Florida. He became concerned about the Gator football players and the dehydration they were suffering out in the Florida heat. It was for them that he invented – and named – his rehydration drink: Gatorade.

 

Air conditioning/refrigeration

Is anyone surprised by the fact that John Gorrie, the man known as the father of air conditioning and refrigeration was from Florida? No? Me neither. Gorrie didn’t actually invent the air conditioner or the refrigerator as they are today, but his discoveries led to the inventions after his death. One thing’s for sure: as a lifelong resident of the sunshine state, this man is my new hero.

 

Sunscreen

This one is a little bit complicated. Benjamin Green, a resident of Miami, invented sunscreen in 1944 to protect soldiers fighting in World War II from the sun. He is given partial credit for the invention, but several international inventors had already invented it a few years prior. Green’s formula was bought by Coppertone and sold to people in the US for the first time.

 

Frozen Concentrated Orange Juice

This probably won’t come as much of surprise to anyone, but frozen concentrated orange juice was another Florida invention. It was invented jointly by C.D. Atkins, Edwin L. Moore, and L.G. MacDowell in 1946. The invention helped to propel Florida’s citrus market to its current level of success.

 

Incandescent light bulb

This one is only partially true. Thomas Edison lived New Jersey during most of the time that he was inventing the incandescent light bulb, but he spent his winters in his home in Fort Myers. He worked on his light bulb and probably many of his other 1,093 patented inventions while he was there. So Florida gets some of the credit.

 

Key Lime Pie

But you already knew that.