Ninety-eight years ago today, one of the most famous names in lung cancer history was first registered as a trademark in the United States. On September 30, 1919, the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company was granted U.S. Registration No. 126760 for the mark CAMEL for “smoking-tobacco and cigarettes.” Though not registered until 1919, the CAMEL mark was first used for deathsticks in 1901, has been used continuously in American commerce for more than a century, and was purportedly the brand of choice among doctors in the 1940s. The CAMEL mark remains in use, the 126760 registration is still in force, and CAMEL cigarettes are just as good for you as they were a hundred years ago. Hey, smoke up, Johnny!

By Internet Archive Book Images [No restrictions], via Wikimedia Commons.