CELEBRATE... TODAY IS THE DR PEPPER MUSEUM'S 19TH BIRTHDAY!  YAY!  We are so happy to be in our 19th year of serving you -- peppers around the world! -- by opening the doors of the historic Artesian Manufacturing and Bottling Company and telling the awesome story of Dr Pepper and the soft drink industry.  We have welcomed over 1 million people, and as a special celebratory treat here is a short history of the DPM in pictures! [caption id="attachment_32" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="The abandoned Artesian Manufacturing and Bottling Company"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_33" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="In such a sad state...but getting better!"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_38" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="The Founders contemplating the future of the Museum"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_39" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Officially making the Museum a reality!"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_41" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Opening day of the Museum! May 11, 1991"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_37" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="The ribbon cutting ceremony for the W. W. Foots Free Enterprise Institute"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_35" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Digging up the old parking lot to make the courtyard!"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_36" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Moving the giant original boiler out of the building and into the courtyard"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_40" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Gingerly moving an original Waco Dr Pepper sign into the courtyard"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_34" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="Old Doc and Peggy Pepper with our 1 millionth visitor family!"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_43" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="The Dr Pepper Museum today!"][/caption] REMEMBER... Today also marks the 57th anniversary of the tornado that devastated downtown Waco and took the lives of 114 citizens.  Before the tornado, downtown Waco was a bustling center of business, networking, and industry.  The impact of the tornado was so deep that it became too costly and hazardous to rebuild businesses and homes where they had been before, so the bustle that defined downtown for so long moved elsewhere.  We kinda like to think the restoration of the Artesian Manufacturing and Bottling Company was the spark that led to the amazing downtown revitalization we are experiencing today in Waco.  In an unfortunate coincidence, Oklahoma experienced several tornadoes yesterday, leaving five people dead and huge areas stretching up to Kansas in rubble.  Our hearts go out to our northern neighbors while they recover.