19th century

Goss & Co.

According to a correspondent of the Monthly Gazette of Health (vol 5 1825), the proprietor of Goss & Co was a former shop assistant going by the unlikely name of Mr Crucifix. While Mr Crucifix insisted that his company had genuine surgical credentials, it had a terrible reputation among the medical profession. The Medical Adviser and […]

Compound-Magnetic Bands and Pads

The Jevons brothers capitalised on the Victorian fashion for electro-magnetism with a range of products – including the “Goliath Belt,” the “Chest Strengthener” and the “Spinal Reviver” that could be worn discreetly under the clothing. One of their adverts described the terrible state of a person deficient in the vital or magnetic force: …the poor dyspeptic, […]

Alex Ross's Complexion Globules

This double advert shows only a fraction of the cosmetics range sold by Alexander Ross. He sold several products for the hair, including his famous Cantharides (Spanish Fly) Oil for curing baldness, and Golden Hair wash that turned the hair “a golden colour after a few usings.” Other products included a Skin Tightener liquid for […]

Tricosian Powder, Huile de Cachmere, etc.

As someone with a “countenance of moderate pretensions,” I can see the allure of some of these products … TRICOSIAN POWDER. For rendering Red or Grey Hair and Whiskers a beautiful Black or Brown. THIS POWDER, which is a very curious dis- covery in Chemistry, will be found, upon trial, much […]

Hance's Candy

Apologies for the lack of background information or ironic commentary on this one, but I’m too busy celebrating the launch of my first novel. For more info on that, have a look at my website. Otherwise, today’s ad has a suitably literary (or least vaguely poetic) section. H A N C E ‘ S C […]

Rowland's Alsana Extract

The Rowlands – a father and son team – mainly produced cosmetic products. The one shown below veers more towards the medical side of things, as did their Cerelaeum elixir for headaches and vertigo. They also sold a tooth powder called Odonto, a beauty preparation named Kalydor and a hair dye called the Essence of Tyre. Their most famous product, […]

Dr Williams' Pink Pills for Pale People

Here’s another big-business remedy, this time originating in Canada. “Dr Williams” was a brand name, and the pills were manufactured by George T. Fulford of Brockville, Ontario. Born in 1852, Fulford went into the patent medicine business in 1886 and four years later bought the rights to the Pink Pills recipe from Dr William Jackson for $53.01. The Pills […]

Dr. Pierce's Pleasant Pellets

Dr Ray Vaughn Pierce (pictured, courtesy of Project Gutenberg) was an über-quack whose laboratory in Buffalo, NY, produced millions of dollars worth of patent remedies. As well as the Pleasant Pellets shown below, there were Dr Pierce’s Anuric Tablets, Dr Pierce’s Favorite Prescription, Dr Pierce’s Vaginal Tablets, Dr Pierce’s Extract of Smart-Weed and Dr Pierce’s Golden Medical Discovery – […]

Grimstone's Eye Snuff

Grimstone’s Eye Snuff was widely advertised, purportedly at a cost of £5000 per year to its inventor. Testimonials were often included in the ads, and the product even inspired one satisfied customer to write a poem about it (Quoted in The Champion and Weekly Herald, 3 Feb 1839): . From Blackwood’s Lady’s Magazine for May […]

Dr. Stolberg's Voice Lozenge

I don’t have much info on these lozenges, but other similar products of the time tended to be based on cayenne pepper. Later in the 19th century, cocaine also became a popular ingredient, albeit in very small amounts. In 1844, according to the Eclectic Magazine, Dr Stolberg “bequeathed the secret of his voice lozenge – with presents of which he […]