Coffee originated in Ethiopia and was first consumed as tea made from dried coffee leaves and cherries. It later spread to Yemen where beans were roasted and brewed. Dutch, French and British merchants then transported coffee beans from Yemen and other ports to Europe and their colonies. Wherever Europeans colonized, they established coffee plantations using slave labor. Coffee houses originated in the Ottoman Empire and later spread to Europe and America, becoming popular social and political gathering places. Turkish coffee houses also served as village centers for news and discussion. Today, over 500 million people are involved in the global coffee trade.

1. Coffee:Brewing History

3. The first European exposure to coffee as a drink came through trade with the country of Yemen.

6. Armed merchantmen and national militaries conquered islands and nations to secure ports for their merchant fleets

8. Coffee in it’s different stages Young Trees Green Cherries Ripe Cherries before and after Harvest

10. Arabica coffee is often harvested by hand today as well.

11. Robusta coffee which grows at lower elevations can be harvested using modern automated methods

15. Coffee houses became popular among the student body at the local universities.

16. The third coffee house to open in Oxford was known as Tillyard’s and eventually became famous for something other then the house roast.

17. Tillyard’s Coffee House gained a reputation as the place for people with an interest in the sciences to gather and discuss their research

18. Over the years the patrons of Tillyard’s gained a reputation for their skills at scientific observation and investigation.

20. The coffee house quickly became a popular fixture of London society

21. Unlike Oxford where the coffee house became a center for building community in London the coffee house was a center of political dissent.

22. In 1675 king Charles II attempted to shut down the coffee houses in the city to put a lid on the dissent.

24. Over the years the coffee houses in London grew into institutions we would be familiar with today.

25. Lloyd’s Coffee House served as a popular meeting place for the men who owned and invested in merchant ships. The idea of insurance underwriting grew out of their discussions of ways to prevent the financial catastrophe of a lost ship. Lloyd’s Coffee House eventually became Lloyd’s of London which insures the QEII and NASAs Space Shuttle fleet.

27. Like their English counterparts at the time - taverns in New England also provided private rooms for the meetings of Masonic Lodges.

28. Anyone who watches the history channel is probably aware of the connection between the Masons and the American Revolution.

29. Coffee had a special place in the hearts and minds of the American Revolutionaries as well since the tea tax specifically and British tea in general were hot point topics.

30. The coffee houses of New York city followed in the traditions of Europe and served as centers of business and politics.

32. Literate villagers would sit and read the news paper, often reading aloud for the benefit of the illiterate villagers.

33. Village coffee houses served to bridge the social gap allowing men of all ages and social standings to gather together outside the market or mosque.

34. In Turkey during the 1920s the coffee house was a place reserved for men, women were required to find their own gathering places.

35. Turkish coffee houses like their British and American counterparts were places where people talked politics and aired their grievances.