AIHP member Guy R. Hasegawa, PharmD, presented a lecture on prescription dispensing during the American Civil War at the August 25, 2022, annual meeting of the Mortar and Pestle Society, the charitable organization that supports the Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum in Alexandria, Virginia.
Dr. Hasegawa’s topics including prescription-writing practices during the mid-1800s; typical prescription ingredients; the measures, tools, and devices used in prescription compounding; and apothecary etiquette. He concluded his talk by demonstrating the preparation of common dosage forms (e.g., powder papers, pills, suppositories) using antique pharmacy apparatuses from his own collection.
Dr. Hasegawa is a widely published author on Civil War medicine. His most recent book is Matchless Organization—The Confederate Army Medical Department, published in 2021 by Southern Illinois University Press. Now retired, he served for many years as senior editor of the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy.
Edward Stabler established an apothecary shop in Alexandria in 1792. In 1805, he moved his operations to a building that is now the museum. His son-in-law John Leadbeater assumed ownership of the business in 1852, and the pharmacy remained in the same family until it closed in 1933. The museum was established in 1939.
The National Park Service designated the Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Shop as a National Historic Landmark in January 2021. The museum is an Institute member.
Contributed by William A. Zellmer, Past President of AIHP
Posted: August 30, 2022
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