Object Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Henry Thayer & Company Medicine Bottle recovered from City Centre Plaza, c. 1847-1920. |
Object Name |
Bottle, Medicine |
Description |
Henry Thayer & Company Medicine Bottle recovered from City Centre Plaza, c. 1847-1920. Bottle has a short neck that tapers out to cylindrical body. The rim was ground down flat and double ring finish. The bottle is colorless glass and shows evidence of glass machine manufacture. A banner that outlines the name "H.T.& Co" impressed in the front of bottle. A 1 inches short narrow neck flares out 1.4 inches to a 4.75 inches cylindrical body. |
Date |
c. 1847-1920 |
Creator |
Henry Thayer & Company |
Role |
Manufacturer |
Catalog Number |
1999.048.053 |
Dimensions |
H-7 W-3 D-3 inches |
Collection |
3D - Containers |
Inscription Text |
"H.T.& Co" (embossed on the shoulder of bottle). |
Provenance |
20 boxes of archaeological material excavated from the City Centre Plaza site at 950 Main at Middlefield in Redwood City. Excavation for development, done by Basin Research Associates. |
Notes |
Most medicinal bottles also had a narrow neck and mouth (aka bore or throat) since this conformation was most useful for pouring out the typically liquid contents. A narrow neck and bore likely limited evaporation through or around the cork also. Cylindrical (round in cross-section) bottles were used frequently by druggists to dispense their products, although the other flat paneled shapes also covered in this section appear to have been more popular and more commonly used. [http://www.sha.org/bottle/medicinal.htm#Round Druggists] In 1847, Henry Thayer M.D., opened a laboratory on Main Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts to produce his newly developed line of herbal extracts for sale to the medical profession. Born in 1828, into one of Massachusetts' founding families, he was trained in the medical arts of his day by his physician father. His method produced, for the first time, standardized strengths, enabling physicians to regulate dosages accurately. The company, named Henry Thayer & Company, prospered and broadened its line of products and has been described as the largest manufacturer of pharmaceuticals in America at the time of the Civil War. [http://www.thayers.com/?fa=history] |
Search Terms |
Archaeology Bottles City Center Plaza Drug Stores Henry Thayer & Company Medicine Privy Redwood City |
Subjects |
Bottle industry Bottles Drugstores Medicine |
People |
Thayer, Henry (Doctor) |
Credit line |
Courtesy of the City of Redwood City |