DIXIE CUP CELEBRATES 80TH BIRTHDAY (SEPT. 9)

DIXIE CUP CELEBRATES 80TH BIRTHDAY (SEPT. 9)

NEW YORK (Wireless Flash) -- You might want to raise a toast on Thursday (Sept. 9) in honor of the 80th birthday of the Dixie Cup. On September 9, 1919, New York-based entrepreneur Hugh Moore officially unveiled the Dixie Cup, the first paper cup. However, he made the cup for health reasons, not convenience. Before the Dixie Cup was invented, most folks drank water out of shared tin cups -- and spread all sorts of viruses. Originally, the Dixie Cup was marketed under the name "Health Kup," but in 1923 the company started selling cups to ice cream parlors and wanted a less clinical name. No one knows why the name "Dixie" was chosen but company spokesman Mark Lindley suspects the name sounded friendlier than "Health Kup." This Thursday, Dixie will officially celebrate its 80th birthday in New York's Central Park, by unveiling the world's largest Dixie Cup, a 9-foot-by-9-foot model that can hold 1,360 gallons of water.