Robert Augustus Chesebrough, an American chemist, first discovered petroleum jelly, which he later marketed as Vaseline. In 1859, while traveling to Titusville, Pennsylvania, he witnessed oil workers using a waxy substance left on their oil rigs to treat cuts and burns. Intrigued by its healing properties, Chesebrough extracted the substance, later named petrolatum, and began experimenting with it. By 1870, he had perfected the product and trademarked it as Vaseline.
Chesebrough was a firm believer in the healing properties of his discovery and even consumed a spoonful of Vaseline each day, attributing his longevity to the practice.
