What happened 1729 AD

1729 - The first mechanic cocoa grinder was invented in Bristol, UK. Walter Churchman petitions king of England for patent and sole use of an invention for the “expeditious, fine and clean making of chocolate by an engine.” The patent was granted by His Majesty King George II to Walter Churchman for a water engine used to make chocolate. Churchman probably used water-powered edge runners for preparing cacao beans by crushing on a far larger scale than previously. The patent for a chocolate refining process was later bought by J. S. Fry & Sons in 1761.

The man who signed the US Declaration of Independence, Josiah Bartlett, was born in Amesbury, Massachusetts Bay.