W. Kandinsky, Dominant Curve, 1936

History of Coffee

In 1650, the first coffeehouse opened its doors in Oxford, England, its proprietor a Turkish Jew named Jacob.  In France, the first coffeehouse opened in 1672.  By 1843, there were thousands of coffeehouses throughout Europe and the American colonies.

In America at this time, only small amounts of coffee beans were imported to the colonies for many years.  Eventually, however, Dutch and French smugglers did introduce beans in great quantity, and coffeehouses opened in New York, Boston, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and elsewhere.  Most were more like taverns the genuine coffeehouses, since they served not only coffee but also chocolate, ales, beers, and wines.  They also rented rooms to sailors and travelers.  One famous coffeehouse in New England was the Green Dragon in Boston.  At first it was popular with British officers, but in later years it came to be the gathering place of John Adams, Paul Revere and other revolutionaries plotting against England.

Coffee World