In 1897, a Professor Heinrich Dresser, a German chemist, discovered a way to make a newly discovered drug, acetylsalicylic acid, into a pill form. This new synthetic chemical compound duplicated the salicylic acid found in the bark of the willow tree and became known as Aspirin. Dr Felix Hoffmann, who owned Hoffmann Laboratory where Professor Dresser worked, discovered the compound a few years earlier, but without a way to control the doseage, the product could not be sold. The new aspirin tablet was patented in 1898 and on 6 March 1899, the patent was purchased by another German pharmaceutical company called Bayer. Last year, Bayer celebrated it's 100th anniversary of selling aspirin. Below is a copy of this information I found on a German scientific website. A rough English translation is below it.

In 1898, in a much smaller footnote in history, Professor Dresser also invented Herion by accident. By the end of the American Civil War and the Europeon Crimean and Franco-Prussian Wars, morphine had become a worldwide addiction. He was trying to discover a non-addictive replacement for morphine. He thought he had succeeded with herion. In 1898, he reported that: "This drug can relieve pain just as well as morphine and furthermore my drug is not addictive. It prevents pain, produces sleep, and is definitely not dangerous." Along with his new drug, Professor Dresser produced the world's first junkie - himself.

Protokoll einer bahnbrechenden Erfindung:\line Hoffmanns Laborbericht vom 10. August 1897

Diese bahnbrechende Entdeckung rief sofort den damaligen Leiter des Pharmakologischen-Laboratoriums, Professor Heinrich Dresser, auf den Plan, der die Hoffmannsche Acetylsalicylsaure an sich selbst und in breit angelegten tierexperimentellen Untersuchungen prufte. Dies waren ubrigens die ersten Tierversuche uberhaupt, die in einem industrieeigenen Laboratorium durchgefuhrt wurden. Nach all diesen Untersuchungen beschrieb Professor Dresser 1899 in "Pflugers Archiv fur die gesamte Physiologie" die ausgezeichnete schmerzstillende, entzundungshemmende und fiebersenkende Wirkung der Acetylsalicylsaure, aber auch ihren herbsauerlichen Geschmack. Gleichzeitig wurden auch von dem damaligen Oberarzt am Diakonissenhaus in Halle an der Saale Untersuchungen an Patienten vorgenommen. Seine Ergebnisse wurden mit besonderem Interesse erwartet, da er "angesichts der fast taglich auf den Markt geworfenen und nach kurzer Zeit wieder verschwindenden Arzneimittel" als sehr kritischer Arzt galt. Er schrieb in seinem Prufbericht: "das Mittel versagte nie in seiner Beeinflussung der Schmerzen, der Schwellungen und des Fiebers, es ubte nie eine ungunstige Wirkung auf Herz und Magen, auch bei den Schwerkranken, aus."

Die vielversprechenden Ergebnisse mit Acetylsalicylsaure veranlassten die Firmenleitung der Bayer-Werke, den Wirkstoff in die Produktion aufzunehmen. Der Siegeszug von Aspirin konnte beginnen. Dazu war es notwendig, Aspirin in einer fur den Parienten moglichst einfach einnehmbaren Form zur Verfugung zu stellen. Auch die in der Schmerztherapie wichtige Dosierung mu\'dfte verbessert werden. Die bis dahin in Gebrauch befindlichen Pulverflaschen mit ihren ungenauen Entnahmemoglichkeiten waren keine befriedigende Losung. So gelang es bereits ein Jahr nach Markteinfuhrung der Acetylsalicylsaure, diese mit Starkepulver zu vermischen und in Tablettenform zu pressen. Durch seine gute Loslichkeit in Wasser und seinen pulverformigen Verfall war Aspirin leicht einnehmbar, und eine genaue Dosierung fur den Patienten war damit moglich geworden. Durch diese Vorteile entwickelte sich die Acetylsalicylsaure sehr schnell zum Schmerzmittel der Wahl. Selten war ein Medikament zur damaligen Zeit weltweit so popular wie Aspirin. Im Triumphzug rund um den Globus erwarb sich die weisse Tablette die Gunst von Arzten und Patienten und eroberte den internationalen Markt. Als im Februar 1900 das US-Patent fur die Herstellung der Hoffmannschen Acetylsalicylsaure erteilt wurde und im selben Jahr die internationale Registrierung erfolgte, konnte Aspirin auch in den Vereinigten Staaten produziert und verkauft werden.


ROUGH ENGLISH TRANLATION:

Log of an innovative invention: Hoffmann Laboratory report from 10 August 1897

This innovative discovery called immediately the director/conductor at that time of the pharmaceutical laboratory, Professor Heinrich Dresser, on the plan, which actually checked the Hoffmann acetylsalicylic acid and in broadly created animal experimental investigations. This were by the way the first bioassays at all, which were executed in an industrial owned laboratory. After all these investigations professor Dresser described 1899 in " Pfluegers file for the entire physiology " the excellent pain-satisfying and fever-lowering effect of the acetylsalicylic acid, in addition, its herb-like taste. At the same time also by the head physician at that time at the deacon eating house in hall at the Saale investigations at patients were made. Its results were expected with special interest, since it applied " in view of almost daily on the market thrown and after short time again to infinitesimal medicaments " as a very critical physician. It wrote in its test report: " the means malfunctioned never in its influence of the pain, the swelling and the fever, it never had an unfavorable effect on heart and stomach, also with the seriously ill people."

The promising results with acetylsalicylic acid caused the management of the Bavarian factories to take up the active substance to production. The triumphant advance of aspirin could begin. It was necessary to make aspirin available in a form as simply as possible. Also the dosage important in the pain therapy had to be improved. The powder bottles with their inaccurate withdrawal possibilities, up to then used, were not a satisfying solution. Thus it already succeeded one year at introduction on the market of the acetylsalicylic acid to mix and press in tablet form these with strength powder. By its good solubility into water and its powdered expiry aspirin was easily dissolved, and an exact dosage for the patient had become possible thereby. By these advantages the acetylsalicylic acid developed very fast for the pain means of the selection. A medicine was world-wide as popular rarely at the time at that time as aspirin. In the triumph course around the globe the white tablet approximately acquired itself the favour of physicians and patients and conquered the international market. When in February 1900 the US patent for the production of the Hoffmann acetylsalicylic acid was given and in the same year the international registration took place, aspirin could be produced and sold also in the United States.