Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University Anthropology Theses Department of Anthropology Fall 12-17-2014 Medicinal Vessels of the First Gilded Age (1870-1929): Properties of Promise or Hokum of False Hope? David L. Cook Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/anthro_theses Recommended Citation Cook, David L., "Medicinal Vessels of the First Gilded Age (1870-1929): Properties of Promise or Hokum of False Hope?." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2014. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/anthro_theses/88 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Anthropology at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Anthropology Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. i MEDICINAL VESSELS OF THE FIRST GILDED AGE (1870-1929): PROPERTIES OF PROMISE OR HOKUM OF FALSE HOPE? By DAVID L. COOK Under the Direction of Jeffrey B. Glover, PhD ABSTRACT From the excavation of Atlanta's first municipal dumps, a collection of the city’s oldest and most popular medicines has been analyzed. The process of identifying and exploring the stories behind the medicinal vessels of the Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) archaeological collection has led to several paths of inquiry. One such avenue is a look at local manufacturers, their impact, and their products. Focused on embossed glass bottles from 1860-1920 this thesis investigates the roles of medicinal bottles as symbolic for Atlanta’s Gilded Age. I gathered detailed information on nearly 100 products represented by 222 vessels. These artifacts are derived from three sites unearthed during the MARTA excavations conducted by Georgia State University archaeologists during the late-1970s. Each site represents an urban dump in a different way: core, periphery, and ii neighborhood. Beyond analyzing the vessels, special attention is given to the economic connections between Atlanta’s growth and medicine producers. INDEX WORDS: Archaeology, Historical archaeology, Glass bottles, MARTA, Atlanta history, Proprietary medicines, Gilded age, Garbology iii MEDICINAL VESSELS OF THE FIRST GILDED AGE (1870-1929): PROPERTIES OF PROMISE OR HOKUM OF FALSE HOPE? by DAVID L COOK A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the College of Arts and Sciences Georgia State University 2014 iv Copyright by David Lawrence Cook 2014 v MEDICINAL VESSELS OF THE FIRST GILDED AGE (1870-1929): PROPERTIES OF PROMISE OR HOKUM OF FALSE HOPE? by DAVID L. COOK Committee Chair: Jeffrey B. Glover Committee: Jennifer Patico Katherine Hankins Electronic Version Approved: Office of Graduate Studies College of Arts and Sciences Georgia State University December 2014 vi DEDICATION I would like to extend my most sincere thanks and apologies to all of those people who have endured the results of my passionate labor to complete this research. First of all to my lovely wife Krystal Cook, and our brilliant children Xavier and Maya: thank you for your patience over the years. Thanks to all of the close friends who listened to me riff, rant, and gnaw away at their patient ears: Robbie Finch, Jordan Ososki, Je’ Atkins, Amber Powers, Christos Karpis, Mike “Paul Simon” Johnson, Emma Mason, Meagan Moran, Brittany Thompson. I was only able to complete this work because of all of the people who have loved and supported me throughout this process. Dedicated to the memory of Craig Adam Crosby, my brother not forgotten. 1984-2008 vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The following people have lent to me their time and considerable expertise: Dr. Jeffrey B. Glover, Dr. Jennifer Patico, Dr. Katherine Hankins, Dr. Despina Margomenou, Dr. Christopher Morehart, Dr. Cassandra White, Dr. Faidra Papavasillou, Dr. Emanuela Guano, Allen Vegotsky, Dr. Dennis Blanton, Dr. Bethany Turner-Livermore, Fred Taylor, Ferdinand Meyer V, and Erin Drake M.A. I was privileged to have been guided and aided in my academic journey by so many thoughtful and bright mentors. My gratitude for this experience escapes my ability to express. I sincerely thank you all. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................... vii LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... xi LIST OF PRODUCTS INCLUDED IN APPENDIX .................................................. xii 1 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Outline of Thesis .................................................................................................. 3 2 THEORY: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY AND ADDRESSING CLASS ..... 7 2.1 Case Studies ......................................................................................................... 8 2.1.1 Historical Annapolis .......................................................................................... 9 2.1.2 The Tucson Urban Renewal Project ............................................................... 10 2.1.3 Freedman’s Town ............................................................................................ 12 2.2 Historical Archaeology in the South ................................................................ 13 2.3 The Phoenix Project .......................................................................................... 14 3 BACKGROUND: MARTA, GSU, AND THE PHOENIX PROJECT ................ 17 3.1 The MARTA Project: 1974 - 1986 ................................................................... 17 3.2 The Phoenix Project: 2011 - Present ............................................................... 21 4 THE SITES: ANTIQUE GARBOLOGY ............................................................... 25 4.1 9Fu114 – Maddox Park – The Mayson-Turner Dump .................................. 27 4.2 9Da89 – Edgewood Dump ................................................................................ 28 4.3 9Fu91 – Municipal Crematory at Hulsey/Rhodes .......................................... 29 ix 5 METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................... 34 5.1 Archaeological Analysis .................................................................................... 34 5.1.1 Depositional Lag of Glass Vessels .................................................................. 38 5.2 Historical Research on Products and Producers ............................................ 39 5.3 The MARTA Project’s Documentary Record ................................................ 41 6 HISTORY OF MEDICINES AND THE PFDA .................................................... 44 6.1 Access to Adequate Healthcare ........................................................................ 45 6.2 Cultural Notions About Disease and “Cures” ................................................ 46 6.3 Defining Ethical v. Proprietary Medicines ..................................................... 47 6.4 Effects on Pathology .......................................................................................... 48 6.4.1 Alleviating illnesses effectively ........................................................................ 48 6.4.2 Complications, poisoning, or death from products ........................................ 48 6.5 Proprietary Medicines in the US at the Civil War’s end ............................... 49 6.6 Production: Peddlers, Dealers, and (Soda) Jerks ........................................... 50 6.7 Effects of Class on Consumption ..................................................................... 54 6.8 The 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act .................................................................. 56 6.9 Atlanta’s Medicine Boom: The Players ........................................................... 60 6.10 Landscape Impacts ........................................................................................ 63 6.11 Conclusions..................................................................................................... 70 7 RESULTS .................................................................................................................. 74 x 7.1 Source Locations of Vessels .............................................................................. 74 7.2 Targets of Medicines ......................................................................................... 81 8 DISCUSSION ............................................................................................................ 85 9 CONCLUSIONS ....................................................................................................... 90 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................ 95 APPENDIX .................................................................................................................... 100 Appendix A: Medicinal Dossiers .............................................................................. 109 Appendix A.1 Categories of Medicinal Products ................................................... 109 Appendix A.2 Products ........................................................................................... 113 Appendix B – Data Set .............................................................................................. 174 9Da89