Felix Hoffmann synthesizes acetylsalicylic acid at Bayer

Background. In 1897, scientists at Bayer investigated acetylsalicylic acid as a less-irritating alternative to common salicylate medicines. The name Aspirin derives from Spirsäure, the German term for salicylic acid extracted from meadowsweet. This context frames the synthesis work, though the specific plant source mentioned in legacy data is not supported by the provided passages.

Synthesis. Felix Hoffmann is reported to have synthesized acetylsalicylic acid on 10 August 1897 while working at Bayer, a date given by one source and contested, with some accounts placing the work earlier in August or on a different day. Sources indicate he produced the compound in a pure, stable form, though one account attributes this to Hoffmann or perhaps Arthur Eichengrün. There is historical contention regarding whether this work was undertaken under his own initiative or under Eichengrün's instruction, with Bayer asserting Hoffmann's invention.

Marketing. By 1899, Bayer had named the drug Aspirin and began selling it globally. Initially, it was marketed as a powder supplied in glass bottles. The trademark was registered worldwide, though later legal actions resulted in the loss of trademark status in several countries due to widespread generic usage.