Charles F. Erhart

Charles F. Erhart was a German-American businessman and co-founder of the pharmaceutical company Pfizer. Born in Germany, Erhart immigrated to the United States in the mid-19th century, where he and his cousin Charles Pfizer established their chemical business in Brooklyn, New York.

Early Life

Charles F. Erhart was born in Ludwigsburg, Germany. Little is known about his early life before he immigrated to the United States. He was a trained confectioner, a skill that would later prove instrumental in the success of Pfizer.

Pfizer

In 1849, Erhart and his cousin Charles Pfizer founded Charles Pfizer & Company in a red-brick building in Brooklyn, New York. They produced an antiparasitic called santonin, which was used to treat intestinal worms, a common affliction at the time. Erhart's confectionery skills were put to use to create a palatable almond-toffee flavor for the santonin, making it easier for people to take.

The company expanded its product line to include other chemicals and pharmaceuticals, and by the 1860s, Pfizer was a leading manufacturer of citric acid. This was a key ingredient in the emerging soft-drink industry, and Pfizer's production of it helped the company to grow and prosper.

Later Life and Legacy

Erhart's later life and death are not well-documented. However, his legacy lives on in the company he helped to found. Pfizer has grown into one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies, with products sold in more than 150 countries.

Erhart's innovative approach to making medicines more palatable set a precedent for pharmaceutical manufacturing. His contributions to the field of pharmacology have had a lasting impact on the industry.

See Also

• History of Pfizer
• Pharmaceutical industry in the United States
• List of German Americans