Swaim's Panacea (also called Swaim's Celebrated Panacea) was an American

patent medicine A patent medicine, sometimes called a proprietary medicine, is an over-the-counter (nonprescription) medicine or medicinal preparation that is typically protected and advertised by a trademark and trade name (and sometimes a patent) and claimed ...

sold by William Swaim (1781–1846)Colonial and revolutionary families of Pennsylvania; genealogical and personal memoirs, vol. IV
p. 12 (1911) of Philadelphia, starting in approximately 1820, with formulations still being sold into at least the 1920s. It was advertised to cure various diseases including scrofula, mercurial disease, deep-seated syphilis, rheumatism, sores, swellings, etc.Wolfe, Richard J. ''Tarnished idol: William Thomas Green Morton and the introduction of surgical anesthesia: a chronicle of the ether controversy'', p. 574 (2001)England, John W
The First Century of the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, 1821–1921
pp. 73–74 (1922)

History

Swaim was originally a bookbinder, and the popular story went that he discovered the recipe on the page of a book he was binding at his New York shop. More likely he obtained the recipe from Dr. N.J. Quackinboss who had administered it to Swaim himself. Quackinboss was using a formulation previously published by a Dr. McNeven which originated from France, where a remedy called the "Rob de Laffecteur" invented by the French apothecary Pierre Boyveau was very popular.Lloyd, John Uri
History of the Vegetable Drugs of the Pharmacopeia of the United States
p. 41 (1911)Stein, John Bethune
The Rob
''Medical Record'', (June 7, 1913), pp. 1021–23 Swaim moved to Philadelphia and began to market his own version of the cure, at least by 1820, and perhaps as early as 1811.Advertisement
''The Democratic Press'' (June 21, 1811) (2010 discussion at antique-bottles.net includes scan of 1811 advertisement for Swaim's Panacea, though Swaim's advertisements and other reports later dated his start to 1820) After getting permission to administer his concoction to some local asylum residents to alleged beneficial effect (and gathering numerous endorsements,(2 August 1823)
Medical Quackery - Swaim's Panacea
''

New York Evening Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established i ...

'', p. 2,col. 4 (editorial questioning an article published in Philadelphia "tending to bring into discredit the Panacea", and defending "the efficacy of Mr. Swaim's discovery.") including from local physicians), he was able to sell his product at high prices ($3 a bottle, a significant sum at the time), and became very wealthy with a net worth of approximately $500,000.The Manufacturing Interests of the City of Buffalo ...
p. 86 (2d ed. 1866)''American experiences: readings in American history, Volume 1'', p. 218 (1994) Nancy Linton

Swaim used a symbol of Hercules killing the

Hydra Hydra generally refers to: * Lernaean Hydra, a many-headed serpent in Greek mythology * ''Hydra'' (genus), a genus of simple freshwater animals belonging to the phylum Cnidaria Hydra or The Hydra may also refer to: Astronomy * Hydra (constel ...

in early advertisements of his product, which was being bottled in rectangular bottles by 1825, and in green cylindrical bottles by 1829.History of Drug Containers and Their Labels
p. 78 (1999) Swaim advertised heavily, and took advantage of developments in commercial lithography in the 1830s to advertise his concoction with a portrait of a woman named Nancy Linton, advertising her "actual appearance" after being cured, although this appearance still looks rather gruesome to modern eyes. The panacea contained mercury, and Linton's appearance appears to reflect signs of

mercury poisoning Mercury poisoning is a type of metal poisoning due to exposure to mercury. Symptoms depend upon the type, dose, method, and duration of exposure. They may include muscle weakness, poor coordination, numbness in the hands and feet, skin rashe ...

."Every Man His Own Doctor": Popular Medicine in Early America
pp. 38, 43 (1998)

Mercuric chloride Mercury(II) chloride (or mercury bichloride, mercury dichloride), historically also known as sulema or corrosive sublimate, is the inorganic chemical compound of mercury and chlorine with the formula HgCl2. It is white crystalline solid and is a ...

(called corrosive sublimate at the time) did have a prior history of being used to treat syphilis.

Oil of wintergreen Methyl salicylate (oil of wintergreen or wintergreen oil) is an organic compound with the formula C8H8O3. It is the methyl ester of salicylic acid. It is a colorless, viscous liquid with a sweet, fruity odor reminiscent of root beer, but often a ...

and

sarsaparilla Sarsaparilla often refers to the sarsaparilla soft drink, made from Smilax plants. Sarsaparilla may also refer to: Biology *Several species of plants, of the genus ''Smilax'', including: **''Smilax ornata'', also known as Honduran or Jamaican sar ...

were prominent ingredients of Swaim's product. By 1828, the Philadelphia Medical Society published a report strongly refuting Swaim's laudatory claims and previous endorsements of the popular panacea, as had the New York Medical Society. Respected physicians who had endorsed the product as promising in the beginning, such as

Nathaniel Chapman Nathaniel Chapman (28 May 1780 – 1 July 1853) was an American physician. He was the founding president of the American Medical Association in 1847. Chapman founded the ''American Journal of the Medical Sciences'' in 1820 and served as its edito ...

who later founded the

American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is a professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. Founded in 1847, it is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was approximately 240,000 in 2016. The AMA's state ...

, disavowed their early approvals.Medical Society of the State of New Yor
Report on Swaim's Panacea
(1827) Despite Swaim's claim that the product contained no mercury, the medical reports showed otherwise.Report on Quack Medicine
'' The Christian Spectator'', pp. 431-38 (August 1828), Vol. 2, No. 8Quack Logic
''The Journal of Health'' (March 24, 1830), pp. 222–23 (Vol. 1, No. 14)Young, James Harvey

ch. 5 (1961) Swaims Panacea 1890

After William Swaim died in 1846, his son James continued the business until his death in 1870, along with Franklin Stewart, a Philadelphia physician and Swaim's "Medical Director".Gura, Philip F. & James F. Bollman
America's Instrument: The Banjo in the Nineteenth Century
p. 140 (1999) (Stewart's son Samuel Swaim Stewart invented the Banjeaurine.) "Swaim's Laboratory" was located in Philadelphia at 113 S. Seventh St, just below

Chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

for many years. Sometime after 1890, production was moved to

Clifton, Staten Island Clifton is a neighborhood on the North Shore of Staten Island in New York City, United States. It is an older waterfront neighborhood, facing Upper New York Bay on the east. It is bordered on the north by Stapleton, on the south by Rosebank, ...

in New York. In 1900,

James F. Ballard James Franklin Ballard (July 16, 1851 – April 23, 1931) was an American entrepreneur and art collector specializing in rugs from Asia and the Middle East, and medieval prints by such artists as Albrecht Dürer.Shoemaker Page 617-619 During his li ...

of St. Louis, who produced a number of patent medicines, acquired the rights to Swaim's Panacea and all other Swaim products from the Swaim family.(November 1900)
Swaim's Preparations, Landmarks of the Proprietary Trade Came to St. Louis
''The National Druggist'', Vol. 30, No. 11, p. 440 In the 1910s, the United States government fined Ballard $30 for misbranding of products under the

Pure Food and Drug Act The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, also known as Dr. Wiley's Law, was the first of a series of significant consumer protection laws which was enacted by Congress in the 20th century and led to the creation of the Food and Drug Administration. ...

of 1906, including Swaim's Panacea, as he was continuing to advertise the product with the amazing claims that had then been made for over 90 years.4373. Misbrqanding of ...
''Notices of Judgement Under the Food and Drugs Act'' (1916)Cramp, Arthur J., ed
Nostrums and Quackery, Vol. II
p. 584 (1921)Swaim's Pancea
National Museum of American History (photographs of post-1900 bottle, which states in part "The business of Swaim's Laboratory was purchased by James F. Ballard from Eliza Battanchon Swaim, on Oct. 22, 1900 and was moved from Staten Island, N.Y., to St. Louis, Mo., in that year.") It appears the product continued to be sold at least into the 1920s. Swaims Panacea 1895

Copycats

The success of Swaim's Panacea generated a number of copycat products, including "Swayne's Panacea", "Swinn's Panacea", and "Parker's Renovating Vegetable Panacea," the last of which claimed a lineage older than Swaim and used an image of Hercules having already killed the Hydra in its advertising. The Swaims cautioned purchasers to avoid knock-offs, and to look for the distinguishing features of their bottles and labeling.

Swaim's Panacea in popular culture

The popularity of the Panacea is reflected in publications of its time. For example, the product was mentioned in the song ''The Connecticut Pedlar'' (c. 1851), where the pedlar's list of offerings includes "Swaim's panacea and Jonses's drops too."The Connecticut Pedlar
(1851)(sheet music) And in an 1849 letter to the ''Southern Literary Messenger'',

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...

defended the poetry of

Bayard Taylor Bayard Taylor (January 11, 1825December 19, 1878) was an American poet, literary critic, translator, travel author, and diplomat. As a poet, he was very popular, with a crowd of more than 4,000 attending a poetry reading once, which was a record ...

against critics "who possess little other ability than that which assures temporary success to them in common with Swaim's Panacea or Morrison's Pills." Abolitionist

William Lloyd Garrison William Lloyd Garrison (December , 1805 – May 24, 1879) was a prominent American Christian, abolitionist, journalist, suffragist, and social reformer. He is best known for his widely read antislavery newspaper '' The Liberator'', which he found ...

mentions "taking my third bottle of Swaim's Panacea" for scrofula in an 1836 letter.A House Dividing Against Itself, 1836–1840
p. 189 (1971) One of the most comprehensive accounts of the story of Swaim's Panacea is in the 1961 book '' The Toadstool Millionaires: A Social History of Patent Medicines in America before Federal Regulation'' by

James Harvey Young James Harvey Young (September 8, 1915 – July 29, 2006) was social historian most well known as an expert on the history of medical frauds and quackery. Young was born in Brooklyn, New York. He received his Ph.D. in history from the University ...

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links

Swaim's Panacea
at ''The Quack Doctor'' (2009)
Some Remarks Upon a Publication by the Philadelphia Medical Society Concerning Swaim's Panacea ...
(1828) (Swaim's response to the Philadelphia Medical Society report), via Google books
A treatise on the alternative and curative virtues of Swaim's panacea ...
(1833), via Google books (Linton appears on page 86) Patent medicines Syphilis

History

Copycats

Swaim's Panacea in popular culture

See also

References

External links