Cheracol was a cherry-flavored cough syrup sold by The Upjohn Company, with trademarked versions appearing as early as 1927. It was made using an extract from Wild Cherry tree bark (also known as Black Cherry or Chokecherry). This bark contains cyanogenic glyosides, tannins and flavoroids. In its history, Cheracol also contained potent ingredients, like morphine, codeine, chloroform, and alcohol. It was a very popular product for Upjohn, selling very well right up to 1990. Alas, the Cheracol brand is no longer sold.

Upjohn sold products containing the extract from wild cherry bark starting in 1899. Back then the product name was named "Wild Cherry". It was formulated as a syrup, a fluid extract and a wine. I've included photos below of a couple of bottles of Wild Cherry in my collection. The liquid inside is still in perfect condition after a hundred years.

Upjohn launched "Cheracol D" around 1966, which replaced codeine with dextromethorphan hydrobromide. This change allowed for over-the-counter (OTC) sales. At the Portage manufacturing site in the 1950s and 60s, railroad box cars full of wild cherry bark were unloaded inside Building 41 and taken to the Percolating Section, where fluid was extracted from the bark.

In 1968, one of the most popular TV series was "The Beverly Hillbillies", and Granny on that show was a cultural icon. She visited Upjohn in Portage in that year to help promote Cheracol D cough syrup.

The Cheracol D bottle on the top left below was unique in that it has two labels, one in English shown below and on the other side is a label in Spanish.

The Cheracol bottle on the top right below was solely an advertising item. It never contained any product. Batches of these bottles were made in 1970 and 1986.

Judging by the logo on the 1-gallon Cheracol bottle below, it was manufactured before WWII. This was the good stuff. It contained morphine!

Here's a Cheracol D TV ad from 1969 and here's a Cheracol D TV ad from 1975.