In 1887 William McLaren Bristol and John Ripley Myers decided to invest into a failing drug manufacturing firm called The Clinton Pharmaceutical Company, located in Clinton, New York. In May, 1898, the new name of the company became Bristol, Myers Company. The hyphen replaced the comma after Myers death in 1899. Bristol-Myers' first nationally recognized product was a laxative mineral salt. Bristol-Myers found that when this salt was dissolved in water, the taste was similar to the taste of the natural mineral waters of Bohemia. Another Bristol-Myers triumph in the early 1900's was Ipana toothpaste. This toothpaste included a disinfectant in its formula to protect against the effects of bleeding gums. With this success, Bristol-Myers became an international company. In 1929, Bristol-Myers became a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. With the end of the war in 1945, Bristol-Myers realized that pencillin and other antibiotics would be in demand. Bristol-Myers began to supply antibiotics with great success. The Bristol-Myers CEO's decided to acquire other well managed smaller companies, such as Clairol, Mead Johnson, Drackett, Zimmer and Westwood. For those with Diabetes, a couple of wonderful products to try are: Bristol Myers Choice DM Diabetic Comfort Sock. Specially made with Friction Free fibers to help reduce friction against the skin. Bristol Myers Diabetic Advanced Foot/Cream Powder Rich, moisturizing cream that dries as a light powder. Specially formulated for the unique needs of people with diabetes. Non-irritating formula.