Book of Medicines, circa. 1850-1880
This book belonged to Charles William Moore, a chemist, who owned a Chemist & Druggist Shop on Bank Street from c.1860 until 1909.
Born in 1827 in Shalford, Charles’ father was a farmer and local land owner. After attending school, Charles worked in Cheltenham before coming back to work for a chemist in Chelmsford.
In 1855 Charles married Mary Ann Wilson and, by 1861, they had two children and were living at Number 19 Bank Street above Charles’ shop. Their daughter, Kate, never married and stayed with her father at Bank Street until he died in 1909. Their son, Thomas Charles, moved to London and went in to the silk trade. He inherited the diary which was passed down through the male line.
Within the diary there are handwritten recipes for all different kinds of medicines, creams, powders, tinctures, sweets and toothpaste. There are also recipes for everyday brews for the home including bug wash, a mixture to entice rats and furniture polish. These recipes would have been used regularly by Charles to create his products within the shop to sell. There are several different versions of the recipes where Charles is changing and perfecting them.
