1880–1884Reputable sourceWell documented
The Bonsack Machine and the Mass-Produced Cigarette
On the timeline · around 1880–1884 ·
What happened
In 1880, James Bonsack patented a machine that automatically rolled cigarettes — one machine could make around 120,000 a day, versus a few thousand by a skilled hand-roller. James 'Buck' Duke seized on it, and his American Tobacco Company came to dominate the industry.
Why it matters
The machine turned the cigarette from a niche product into a cheap, mass-produced good. Combined with aggressive marketing, it launched the cigarette century.