Jennings Stockton Cox, Jr. (November 23, 1866 – August 31, 1913) was an American mining engineer who is said to have invented the drink known as the

daiquiri The daiquiri (; es, daiquirí ) is a cocktail whose main ingredients are rum, citrus juice (typically lime juice), and sugar or other sweetener. The daiquiri is one of the six basic drinks listed in David A. Embury's classic ''The Fine Art o ...

in the late nineteenth century while working as an expatriate engineer in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

Biography

Cox was born in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

on November 23, 1866. He was a descendant of James Cox, an early settler of

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

and speaker of the House of Burgess of Maryland. His grandfather was John Nelson McJilton, Baltimore's first

Superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

Baltimore City Public Schools Baltimore City Public Schools (BCPS), also referred to as Baltimore City Public School System (BCPSS) or City Schools, is a public school district in the city of Baltimore, state of Maryland, United States. It serves the youth of Baltimore Cit ...

who was ousted for opening

black school Black schools, also referred to as "colored" schools, were racially segregated schools in the United States that originated after the American Civil War and Reconstruction era. The phenomenon began in the late 1860s during Reconstruction era w ...

s. His father was a stockbroker who served as the president of

New York Athletic Club The New York Athletic Club is a private social club and athletic club in New York state. Founded in 1868, the club has approximately 8,600 members and two facilities: the City House, located at 180 Central Park South in Manhattan, and Travers ...

and was a member of the

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...

. Cox attended

San Francisco High School San Francisco High School is a high school in Lamut, Ifugao, Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * c ...

and

Columbia School of Mines The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science (popularly known as SEAS or Columbia Engineering; previously known as Columbia School of Mines) is the engineering and applied science school of Columbia University. It was founded as th ...

, graduating in 1887 as the school's first class of metallurgic engineers. After graduation, he was employed by the Government Survey of the

Harlem Ship Canal Spuyten Duyvil Creek () is a short tidal estuary in New York City connecting the Hudson River to the Harlem River Ship Canal and then on to the Harlem River. The confluence of the three water bodies separate the island of Manhattan from th ...

, and became associated with the

Pennsylvania Steel Company The Pennsylvania Steel Company was the name of two Pennsylvania steel companies. The original company was established in late 1865 by: J. Edgar Thomson, president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, Samuel Morse Felton Sr., recently retired president of ...

and

Carnegie Steel Company Carnegie Steel Company was a steel-producing company primarily created by Andrew Carnegie and several close associates to manage businesses at steel mills in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area in the late 19th century. The company was forme ...

. From 1897 until his death, he was the general manager of the Spanish-American Iron Company, situated near the village of

Daiquirí Daiquirí () is a small village, 14 miles east of Santiago de Cuba. It became a focal point of the United States invasion of Cuba in the Spanish–American War. Overview Spanish General Arsenio Linares y Pombo ordered the area from Daiquirí to ...

, about 14 miles east south-east of

Santiago de Cuba Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. It lies in the southeastern area of the island, some southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana. The municipality extends over , and contains t ...

Invention of the Daiquiri

It is said that the drink was invented when Cox ran out of gin while entertaining American guests. Wary about serving local rum straight up, Cox added lime juice and sugar to improve the rum’s taste. Consumption of the drink remained localized until 1909, when Admiral Lucius W. Johnson, a US Navy medical officer, tried Cox’s drink. Johnson subsequently introduced it to the Army and Navy Club in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

, and to ports of call around the world. Through to the navy's supply of vitamins by adding citrus to their rum in hope to defeat scurvy, he amongst other had acquired a taste for citrus. So the success of the newly born Daiquiri at the Army and Navy was enormou

The credit given to Cox remains disputed, with some sources stating that he was assisted by a Cuban engineer named Pagliuchi, or that the drink had already been a Cuban specialty.

Personal life

Cox died on August 31, 1913, in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. He lived in

from the late 1890s until 1913, when failing health prompted him to return to New York. The writer and journalist

Richard Harding Davis Richard Harding Davis (April 18, 1864 – April 11, 1916) was an American journalist and writer of fiction and drama, known foremost as the first American war correspondent to cover the Spanish–American War, the Second Boer War, and the First ...

wrote his novel ''Soldiers of Fortune'' (1897) while a guest at Cox's house (O’Toole, 79). Cox was a member of the

Alpha Delta Phi Alpha Delta Phi (), commonly known as Alpha Delt, ADPhi, A-Delt, or ADP, is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. Alpha Delta Phi was originally founded as a literary society by Samuel Eells in 1832 at Hamilton College in Cli ...

fraternity,

University Club of New York The University Club of New York (also known as University Club) is a private social club at 1 West 54th Street and Fifth Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Founded to celebrate the union of social duty and intellec ...

, University Club of Pittsburgh, and the

Rainier Club The Rainier Club is a private club in Seattle, Washington; it has been referred to as "Seattle's preeminent private club."Priscilla LongGentlemen organize Seattle's Rainier Club on February 23, 1888 HistoryLink.org, January 27, 2001. Accessed onli ...

of Seattle.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cox, Jennings People associated with drinks American mining engineers American expatriates in Cuba Columbia School of Mines alumni 1866 births 1913 deaths Engineers from Maryland Lowell High School (San Francisco) alumni

Biography

Invention of the Daiquiri

Personal life

See also

References