John Pemberton created Coca-Cola as a way to wean himself off of morphine, which he became addicted to after taking a saber to the chest during the Battle of Columbus.
John Pemberton began to experiment with opium-free medicine, as he knew his morphine addiction was dangerous. Pemberton devised his own concoction, which used coca leaves and kola nuts and was called French Wine Coca.
A local prohibition law was enacted in 1886, so Pemberton was forced to remove the alcoholic element and his formula thus became Coca-Cola.