Brewed Awakening: The Evolution of the Coffee Industry
Shields Library (Lobby - Left Side of Main Staircase)
October 28, 2025 - March 20, 2026
Coffee is a stimulating beverage. So is its history.
Historical evidence points to Ethiopia as coffee’s origin. The first mention of coffee in print appears in a Persian text from the 10th century. The method of roasting and pulverizing beans to infuse water with coffee likely first occurred in the 15th century. Until the 17th century, the majority of coffee was consumed throughout Persia and the Ottoman Empire.
Coffee first arrived in different parts of Europe by the early 17th century. However, European coffee houses did not proliferate until the late 17th century, increasing steadily through the 19th century. They also served tea and chocolate.
In the United States, soldiers’ coffee consumption during the Civil War continued postwar, which revitalized the domestic coffee industry. The New York Coffee Exchange was established in 1882 in response to increased importation of coffee. By the 1880s, the United States was importing one-third of the world’s coffee, leading to what is now considered the “first wave” of coffee.
ACUSD Coffee House Cookbook
Associated Students, University of California, Davis (ASUCD) Records, AR-111
Coffee has found a home within UC Davis since 1968, when the Coffee House was founded as “an alternative to existing corporately owned and operated” services on campus. In 1986, the Coffee House Cookbook was published, offering a compilation of recipes that highlighted the quality of ingredients.
Coffee lives on today at UC Davis through the UC Davis Coffee Center. Founded in 2013, it is the only multidisciplinary research facility in the United States to directly focus on coffee research and education, including roasting coffee for sale at the UC Davis Stores.