MARION, Va. (WJHL) — Where is the real home of Mountain Dew?
The origins of Mountain Dew have been debated among people in Marion, Johnson City and Knoxville, but the Commonwealth of Virginia has officially recognized Marion’s claim.
On Wednesday, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) announced it had approved nine new state historical markers.
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One of those nine markers was approved for the Town of Marion and recognizes it as the “Birthplace of Modern Mountain Dew.”
Marion’s connection to the soda stems from resident William H. “Bill” Jones, who helped develop the Mountain Dew formula.
The DHR stated in a news release that the drink did originate as a clear, lemon-lime beverage in Knoxville in the 1940s, and distributors bottled early Mountain Dew in Johnson City and Lumberton, NC.
According to the DHR, Jones became the president of Marion’s Tip Corporation in 1957, which was a flavor formulator for sodas. He then got the trademark for Mountain Dew and refined the formula in 1961. Jones also conducted taste tests with Marion residents.