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Colonial-Era Pharmacy
Before the organization of pharmacy in the early 19th century, pharmacists prepared and sold medicines on their own in apothecary shops or at medicine fairs. These pharmacists often took on the role of a physician, both diagnosing and treating those who would seek them out. -
Pharmacopeia established
In 1820 the US Pharmacopeia was established. The Pharmacopeia set in place a guide for medicines accessible to the public, including what ingredients were in medicines and what their intended functions were. The Pharmacopeia established a standard for pharmacists to follow. -
Philadelphia College of Pharmacy
The Philadelphia College of Pharmacy was founded in 1821, and is cited as the first step forward in the development of a system of pharmaceutical practice in the United States. -
Mrs. Winslow's Soothing Syrup
An example of quack medicine, this "soothing syrup" was given to babies and small children to calm them down. The ingredients of the syrup contained alcohol and enough morphine to be lethal to a child with just one teaspoon. Mrs. Winslow's Soothing Syrup was given the nickname "baby killer," as it is estimated that thousands of babies/children would go to sleep and never wake up as a result of overdose. This medicine was sold without an ingredient list and remained on shelfs until the 1930's. -
Practical Pharmacy
William Proctor Jr. writes Practical Pharmacy, the first American pharmacy textbook, in 1849. Proctor is known as the father of American Pharmacy, as he legitimized and structured pharmaceutical practices as well as modernized the way we do pharmacy today. -
American Pharmacists Association
The APhA was founded in 1852, helping to regulate the safe practice of dispensing medicine. The founding of the APhA marked an important shift in how pharmacies functioned: Before this point, patients were given treatments based on their symptoms, but afterwards were given treatments based on a diagnosis of a disease, and pharmacies within the APhA dispensed medicines deemed to be safe. -
Lydia E. Pinkham's Vegetable Compound
Lydia E. Pinkham developed what she called a vegetable compound, consisting of pleurisy root, life root, fenugreek, unicorn root, black cohosh, and a lot of alcohol (~20%). The mixture became immensely popular for women in the 19th century, as it was marketed as a general tonic for all womanly/uterine problems. The mixture has since been debunked as useless and fraudulent, as Pinkham's motives were only economic in nature. Despite this, derivative of Pinkham's tonic can still be bought today. -
Modernization of Medicine
With industrialization came commercialized forms of medicine: gelatin capsules, the tablet, and the enteric-coated pill were all invented in the 1870-80's. These inventions spoke to a growing tide of pharmacy dominated by companies: pharmacies began to stock their shelves with prescriptions produced en masse instead of custom producing their own medicines. William Proctor mourned, "If the pharmacist becomes a mere dispenser of medicines, 'he relapses into a simple shopkeeper." -
Medical Breakthroughs
Louis Pasteur developed the rabies vaccine in 1885, a medical breakthrough that has influenced how we develop vaccines today. Pasteur used a weakened version of rabies to immunize a rabbit, giving the rabbit the ability to fight off all rabies. Felix Hoffman developed aspirin in 1892, one of the most widely used and generally applicable medicines to date. -
Pure Food and Drug Act
With industrialization of American society, concerns of food and drug quality led to public outcry in the United States. In pharmacy, medicines were largely unregulated by government, so the Pure Food and Drug Act helped to make sure medicine sold to consumers was legitimate. -