Melvin Albert "Bert" Weed (1882-1964) began in the pharmacy business in 1898 as a clerk at Seattle's Bartell Drug Company. After college he partnered with Albert G. Keene (1854-1924) and worked as a pharmacist at Lake Washington Pharmacy. In 1906, Bert married Keene's daughter Mamie Luella Keene (1881-1970), and they had one daughter, Luell (Weed) Guthrie (1910-1987). Lake Washington Pharmacy became Weed's Pharmacy in 1910, operating for over 50 years in the same Central District location at 2601 Jackson Street.
The original cartoon drawing pictured here advertises Weed's Tolu Turpin Compound and Antispetic Gargle, medicinal blends created by Dr. Weed to combat the Grippe, Spanish Flu, and colds. Ingredients listed on the Tolu Turpin label include Heroin, Chloroform, and Alcohol, and the label promises it to be "pleasant" and "effective." The drawing is signed "McT," but no other information is known about the artist, or how the drawing was used.
Caption information source: "Druggist Fetes 50th Anniversary" The Seattle Daily Times, July 3, 1952, page 13.
Physical Description: 1 drawing : color ; 19 x 12 in.
Additional Information: Digital copy of this item available thanks to funding from a 2016 Institute for Museum and Library Services grant. Metadata updated as part of a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the Library Services and Technology Act, through the Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State. View the finding aid for this collection at https://archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark:80444/xv09640
Credit: MOHAI, Collection on Weed's Pharmacy, 1971.5098.32
