33 Inventions That Started as a Mistake But Turned Out to Be Life-Changing

In 1872, the Chesebrough Manufacturing Company unveiled a groundbreaking product, thanks to Robert Augustus Chesebrough’s ingenuity. Venturing into Pennsylvania’s oil fields in 1859, Chesebrough stumbled upon a waxy material known as ‘rod wax,’ used by oil workers to heal their cuts and burns. This discovery led him to extract petroleum jelly, introducing the world to Vaseline, a remedy that started from the rig pumps.

The journey of Vaseline, from simple petroleum jelly to a household name, was propelled forward when Robert Chesebrough patented it, transforming a makeshift healer into a medicinal marvel. The Chesebrough Manufacturing Company, responsible for this innovation, found a new home under Unilever’s roof in 1987. Today, Unilever continues its legacy, producing Vaseline globally and proving the enduring power of a good discovery.