Jerry Thomas

Who was Jerry Thomas?

Jeremiah P. Thomas was an American bartender; because of his pioneering work in popularizing cocktails across the United States, he is considered "the father of American mixology." In addition to writing the seminal work on cocktails, his creativity and showmanship established the image of the bartender as a creative professional. As such, he was often nicknamed "Professor" Jerry Thomas.

Thomas was born in 1830 in Sackets Harbor, New York. He learned bartending in New Haven, Connecticut before sailing for California during its mid-19th century Gold Rush. While in California he worked as a bartender, gold prospector and minstrel show manager. He moved back to New York City in 1851, where he opened a saloon below Barnum's American Museum; it would be the first of four saloons he would run in New York City over his lifetime. After a time running his first bar he went on the road for several years, working as the head bartender at hotels and saloons in St. Louis, Missouri, Chicago, Illinois, San Francisco, California, Charleston, South Carolina and New Orleans, Louisiana. At one point he toured Europe, carrying along a set of solid-silver bar tools.