The earliest version of lemonade—kashkab, made with barley, mint, pepper and citron leaf—traces back to 10th-century Egypt. When lemons arrived to North Africa, they became part of a sweeter drink called qatarmizat—a blend of lemon juice, water and sugar.

In the 12th century, Egyptian doctor Ibn Jumay wrote that lemonade “quenches one’s thirst and revives one's strength” and was a cure-all for sore throats, hangovers and upset stomachs, writes Toby Sonneman in Lemon: A Global History. Perceived health benefits reached 16th-century Britain, where doctors sometimes prescribed it to the sick, Sonneman adds.

By the mid-1600s, carbonated lemonade was so popular in Europe, that Paris street vendors sold the drink from carriers worn on their backs, even unionizing as “Compagnie de Limonadiers.”  

Scurvy, a disease caused by a severe lack of vitamin C, led to the deaths of more than 2 million sailors through the 16th to 18th centuries. A breakthrough in prevention came in 1795, when the British Royal Navy ordered its sailors to consume a daily ration of lemonade.

During later conflicts with Spain—Britain’s main source of lemons—the drink was modified to include limes from Caribbean colonies. Leading to the nickname “Limeys” for British sailors.

Lemonade was popular in the United States as early as George Washington’s presidency. He likely served it mixed with dry white wine and orange juice.

First lady Lucy Hayes often served lemonade at the White House from 1877 to 1881, when her husband, President Rutherford B. Hayes, banned booze, earning her the nickname “Lemonade Lucy."

By the late 19th century, lemonade gained more traction as the Women’s Christian Temperance Union touted it as a non-alcoholic alternative. “Good-bye to liquor, here’s to lemonade" was even a Sunkist slogan from that era.

The 1918 Flu Pandemic further cemented the drink’s place in American culture, as Sunkist marketed hot lemonade as a remedy. Although it wasn’t a cure, the campaign significantly increased lemon sales in California.

American circuses are credited with popularizing pink lemonade. A 1912 obituary claimed Chicagoan Henry E. Allott accidentally invented the drink by dropping cinnamon candies into lemonade from a concession stand. Another tale suggests a vendor used water colored red from a circus performer’s tights to make his lemonade.

The concept of a lemonade stand was first mentioned in an 1839 newspaper article about a “Ladies Fair” in New York. By the mid-19th century, lemonade vendors were common in New York, as reported by The New York Times in 1880: “a customer can have a glass of ice-cold lemonade, made before his eyes, for five cents.”

Initially an adult endeavor, the 20th century saw children running lemonade stands due to economic conditions, suburban sprawl, and labor and school laws which freed children from work. 

The proverb about resilience has been traced to a 1915 obituary by Elbert Hubbard for vaudeville actor, Marshall Pinckney Wilder. Hubbard wrote: “[Wilder] picked up the lemons that Fate had sent him and started a lemonade-stand.”