Embossed on the bottle: “THE DUFFY MALT WHISKEY COMPANY // ROCHESTER N.Y. U.S.A. // ONE FIFTH GALLON // PATD AUG.24 1886 // 6”
Permanent Location
Storage Room 0010
0010-A3-1 Row B
Temporary Location
On exhibit “Quack: The Exhibit that cures all” at Museum of Health Care, 29 June 2017.
Length
25.6
Diameter
7.6
Unit Of Measure
centimeters
Copy Type
original
Reference Types
Internet
Reference Comments
Malt Whiskey, Wikipedia
False Advertising and the Legacy of Duffy’s Pure Malt Whiskey, Sipp'n Corn
How Mr. Duffy Outwitted Uncle Sam– and Got Rich, Jack Sullivan
Walter B. Duffy. RocWiki
Research Facts
Malt whiskey is whiskey that is made from a fermented mash produced primarily from a malted grain. Unless otherwise indicated, it is generally assumed that the primary grain is barley, although whiskey is also made using malted rye or other grains.
Malted whiskey was the specialty of the Walter B. Duffy Co. and it was marketed across the United States as a heart tonic, remedy for pneumonia, consumption and haemorrhages.
Ultimately, “The Great American Fraud” helped lead to the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1906. This movement, along with the temperance movement and growing sophistication in medical knowledge, spelled eventual doom for Duffy’s.
Beginning in 1915, Duffy's Pure Malt Liquor ceased to make medicinal claims other than its being a "tonic stimulant" and "household remedy." As Prohibition set in, Duffy's dropped the label "whiskey" and marketed its product strictly as a "tonic."
Empty hand blown semi transparent watery green tinted glass pharmacy bottle with shield shape and rectangle base; body has flat arch-shaped front and back walls; right and left side walls angle outward from base and curve into round shoulders; short, cylindrical neck, round neck ring, and unthreade…
Empty hand blown semi transparent watery green tinted glass pharmacy bottle with shield shape and rectangle base; body has flat arch-shaped front and back walls; right and left side walls angle outward from base and curve into round shoulders; short, cylindrical neck, round neck ring, and unthreaded cylindrical finish; lines from a two-piece mold on sides from base to neck ring; no cork stopper; seams disappear in the neck and pontil mark, the bottle was probably "blown-in-mold"
Number Of Parts
1
Provenance
Found in Collection.
Dates
1820
1860
circa 1820 - 1860
Date Remarks
Presence and length of mold lines
Material
glass: green
Permanent Location
Storage Room 0010
0010-A3-9 Row A
Length
19.4 cm
Width
9.9 cm
Depth
4.4 cm
Unit Of Measure
centimeters
Condition Remarks
Chemical residue covers majority of inside surfaces; minor chipping at base; glass is cloudy; minor scratches throughout exterior surface; various sizes of bubbles in glass
Copy Type
original
Reference Types
Book
Internet
Reference Comments
Polak, Michael. Bottles: Identification and Price Guide, 1994.
University Health Network - Academy of Medicine Collection
Category
Pharmacy and Drug Artifacts
Classification
Pharmacy, General
Accession Number
1980.18.70
Description
Empty mauve semi-transparent three-mould glass bottle tapering from the rounded shoulders to the smaller square base with medium-wide collar; embossed on one side manufactuers name; missing paper product lable and closure; this bottle design is typical for gin bottles.
Empty mauve semi-transparent three-mould glass bottle tapering from the rounded shoulders to the smaller square base with medium-wide collar; embossed on one side manufactuers name; missing paper product lable and closure; this bottle design is typical for gin bottles.
Number Of Parts
1
Provenance
Acquired from the Academy of Medicine; source: Mr. Dean Charters.
On exhibit “Quack: The Exhibit that cures all” at Museum of Health Care, 29 June 2017.
Length
15.3 cm
Width
5.0 cm
Depth
4.7 cm
Unit Of Measure
centimeters
Dimension Notes
Base = 3.6 x 3.5 cm; width of shoulder noted above
Copy Type
original
Reference Types
Internet
Research Facts
Netherlands Steam Distillery Co. made Kiderlen Superior Gin and was available through distributors in Edinburg, Scotland in 1894 and Montreal in 1903; hard to locate information about this manufacturer and product. Images of this product show an opaque glass with 'E. Kiderlen' embossed with the 'E' starting on the upper shoulder with the text top down. This bottle is semi-transparent with the text bottom up with the 'E' on the base'. Trademark for Kiderlen Gin was #26,965.
Rectangular cream and tan paper booklet titled 'Come into the Kitchen' produced as a promotional cookbook for the Lydia E. Pinkham Medicine Company; rectangular cream paper front and back cover consists of single folded paper sheet with title and illustration of young woman cooking in kitchen on fr…
Rectangular cream and tan paper booklet titled 'Come into the Kitchen' produced as a promotional cookbook for the Lydia E. Pinkham Medicine Company; rectangular cream paper front and back cover consists of single folded paper sheet with title and illustration of young woman cooking in kitchen on front cover and illustrated advertisement for Lydia E. Pinkham’s Vegetable Compound Tablets on back cover; rectangular tan paper pages have illustrations, testimonials, women’s health and general advise, recipes, order forms and advertisements for a variety of Lydia E. Pinkham products printed on both sides in black ink; cover attached to pages by two thin grey metal staples; 32 pages.
Date of 1929 provided in donor file; examples in other collections dated 1930
Material
paper: cream, tan
ink: black, yellow
metal: grey
Inscriptions
Printed on front cover: “Come into the KITCHEN”; printed on back cover: “Lydia E. Pinkham’s // Vegetable Compound // Tablets!”; FOR THE CONVENIENCE OF // BUSY WOMEN, LYDIA E. PINKHAM’S // VEGETABLE COMPOUND IS NOW // SOLD IN TABLET FORM. EACH // BOTTLE CONTAINS 70 TABLETS, // OR 35 DOES. ABOUT THE SAME // NUMBER OF DOSES AS IN A // BOTTLE OF LIQUID MEDICINE // Chocolate Coated // Carry your medicine // with you. take it // regularly wherever // you are. // JUST AS EFFECTIVE // AS THE LIQUID // COMPOUND // Lydia E. Pinkham // Medicine Company // Lynn, Mass.”
Permanent Location
Storage Room 2005
2005-
Length
17.7 cm
Width
11.4 cm
Depth
0.2 cm
Unit Of Measure
centimeters
Condition Remarks
Minor fading all over; minor creases and tears along edges
Copy Type
original
Reference Types
Website
Reference Comments
“Lydia E. Pinkham.” Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc., 2019. Accessed 10 July 2019.
“Lydia E. Pinkham Medicine Company Records, 1776-1968 (inclusive).” Harvard Library Viewer, Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass., 2019. Accessed 10 July 2019.
Research Facts
Lydia E. Pinkham was a popular patent medicine producer famous for her Lydia E. Pinkham’s Vegetable Compound and other remedies; products were marketed as treatments for a wide variety of women’s health issues; Lydia E. Pinkham developed a relationship of trust with many female consumers who felt uncomfortable with male medical professionals; she marketed her products with images of her face and slogans like “Only a woman can understand a woman’s ills”; an all female Department of Advise was formed to respond to the many letters she received, and she also produced many pamphlets and manuals for women’s health and well being; the health benefits of her products were never proven and her Vegetable Compound contained high concentrations of alcohol; increased regulations in drug advertising forced the Lydia E. Pinkham Medicine Company to remove many of the medical claims for its products.