Wake up and Smell It!

Coffee Houses have been around as early as the late 1400’s in the Middle East

They were introduced to Europe by invading Turkish armies, who left coffee behind when they were pushed out by European armies

Fun Fact: In Turkey a woman could legally divorce her husband for not providing her with enough coffee

Coffee houses were brought to England by a merchant who dealt with Turkish goods.

The first English coffee house was called “The Turks Head” and it opened in 1652

Fun Fact: The word “tips” came from coffee houses. It means “To Insure Prompt Service” people would point coins in a jar to get their order quickly.

The British called their coffee houses “penny universities” since coffee cost a penny and men would go there to talk business

Fun Fact: Edward Lloyd opened his coffee house in 1668 and it was so popular with businessmen that it’s still operating as Lloyd’s of London Insurance Company (J-Lo insured her butt with them for $1 million, Tina Turner insured her legs with them, & America Ferrera insured her smile for $10 million)

Coffee houses were so popular in England that they spread to France, Germany and eventually America when the British colonized the new world

Coffee houses were the center of businesses in America

Fun Fact: The New York Stock Exchange was originally held in a coffee house because so much business was done in them.

Coffee houses were places in Europe that men could go to and share ideas with friends & neighbors

A large portion of the population couldn’t read, so people would go to hear others read famous works by the likes of Voltaire, Rousseau, Montesquieu, & Benjamin Franklin

“Ah, that is a perfume in which I delight; when they roast coffee near my house, I hasten to open the door to take in all the aroma."Jean Jacques Rousseau

Women were often excluded from business & therefore, coffee houses What were they going to do?

Wealthy Parisian women would host salons They would invite authors to come &

speak, actors to recite plays, & people to come in to discuss the ideas of the Enlightenment

Fun Fact: Participating in salons was often the only way these women would have access to an education, since women almost never were allowed to attend school