Lincoln’s Laboratory
Science History Institute
Sometime during the Civil War, G.M. Whipple & A.A. Smith, publishers in Salem, Massachusetts, produced envelopes (or covers) printed with this colorful illustration. It depicts Abraham Lincoln, dressed in a patriotic cap and robe, as an apothecary seated in front of a pot labeled “Pure Refined National Elixir of Liberty” and surrounded by advertisements for his pro-Union concoctions, including “Scott’s Extirpation Powders” (named after General-in-Chief Winfield Scott) and “Butler’s Mineral Pills” (a nod to Major General Benjamin F. Butler). Miniatures of prominent Confederates Jefferson Davis and P.G.T. Beauregard hang in specimen bottles on a nearby shelf. While thousands of unique patriotic covers were produced in the North during the conflict, few could boast the detail and creativity of this Whipple & Smith production.
Related topics: Abraham Lincoln
