Maine
In 1848, John B. Curtis, of Bangor, Maine, cooked up his first batch of spruce chewing gum on the Franklin stove in his home. After labeling his new product as “State of Maine Pure Spruce Gum” Curtis traveled around New England, selling his gum as a wholesaler. His success, however, was not overwhelming because his gum apparently tasted too much like pure spruce. Eventually he moved his business to Portland and traded in the spruce for paraffin gum, which he was able to artificially flavor himself.