In the eighteenth century, the apothecary served as a bridge between the physician and the patient, much like a pharmacist does today. When someone needed materia medica (medicine), she made a visit to the apothecary’s shop to order the appropriate remedy. The apothecary’s duty was to prepare and dispense the order of medical supplies and drugs to whomever ordered it, whether it was a nurse, a patient, or General Washington’s army.
Take a step back in time to explore some pharmaceutical remedies used in the American Revolutionary era. Medical diagnoses were classified based on symptoms rather than causes, as biology and chemistry had not quite made their impact on the theory of disease yet. Click “See the Apothecary” to receive a Revolutionary-era prescription for your specific ailment, or click “Browse the Inventory” to rummage through the apothecary’s cabinets to see what’s there.
Femina Medicus: Women in Medicine During the Revolutionary War 