The Interesting History of Vaseline (aka Petroleum Jelly)

Vaseline, or petroleum jelly, is used for just about everything. Chances are you have a jar of the stuff sitting in your medicine cabinet or drawer somewhere in your home. A plucky inventor saw the potential of the substance back when it was being discarded as a byproduct of oil production.

On a cold, dry night, you may have reached for a jar of Vaseline to take care of the nuisance of chapped lips. But when you slathered the Vaseline on, did you ever wonder what the stuff was, exactly? If you peel off the label and read the ingredients, there is usually only one listed under the drug facts — 100% White PetrolatumUSP. What is that, where did it come from, and why does this particular thing work so well? The answers to those questions are rather interesting.

Robert Chesebrough had something happen to him that none of us would want — his job became obsolete. Chesebrough was a chemist, and his job consisted of clarifying kerosene from the oil of sperm whales. But his job came to an end when oil was discovered in Titusville, Pennsylvania. He didn’t let his new-found unemployment get him down, however, and he decided to travel to Titusville to figure out what new products could be made from the black stuff coming out of the ground.