The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-06-10
THE DRUG TRADE
D THE. GATEWAY A !. I AZ
lAssln Other Lines. Rich.
rnond Leads In
Drugs.
FIVE JOBBlNC, TWO
SPECIALITY HOUSES

Of Goods Annually and
Invade Entire South
and Also the Far Il
West.
The wholesale drug business is not q
\, new industry IN Richmond. From time
i im,aemorial, there have been 5obbing
ldrug houses IN this city u and one OF the
I largest OF to.day-Purcell, Ladd &; Com
i spany--tas been In 4 existence. wi thout
~ change of the style OF the firm. since
sS 1910. III 85ys tn
However. very few OF the city. and out
u 0f-town readers OF The Times-Dispatch
I have any idea OF the extent OF Rich-
Il. nond's wholesale drug business Of to-
Is day. Theirs are houses her dealing In
\ specialties that sell goods OF their own
\ manufactu from Oregon to Texas. and
H from Boston to Florida; that Is to say.
n; and @ have travelling & men scattered
4 throughout this vast territory.
It IL true that the houses which deal
iR an drugs 4 generally confine their opera
N lions To- aa smaller territory. almost ems
t!rely to the South Atlantic Statesv but
& the two specially houses traverse the
A vast scope Of country named.
III The following are the Who'll sale drug
n stores OF Richmond Purcell. Ladd q
h Company. Powers. Taylor Company
a Bodeker Drug Company. Owens e Minor
* Company, and Vaughan, Robertson &
q Company. The two specially houses are,
& Richard Gwathmeys q Company. and the
Il South Atlantic Phnrmaca5 company.
Il Vo1i,,,1A nf RI,sir1e = a. Ssi 4t8 ga
The business one last yea - by these
a seven houses aggregated abou three mil
4 lion dollars, and they travel thirty-odd
u men. The first Ave named do their
Il principal work In the States Of Virginia,
d West Virginia. Maryland. North Caro-
n lima, South Carolina, Georgia. East Ten
n nessee and Eastern Ken lucky. 81 They sell
# e few III nearby sections OF Pennsylvania.
II The two last named, the speciality houses.
81 invade thirty States, as stated ,s from
Il Oregon to Florida. & ;ag$ y iass ss :ss
Richard Gwathmey & Co. go direct to-
y the doctors, and IN time get their special
4 prescription goods in the hands OF Job
2 bers and send their retail Gus toners to
X the latter for supplies. They necessarily
do an Immense business by correspon-3
@ dence, ms well as \ through agents in large
e cities and travelling men, Only yester-i
ii day one OF Il their active travellers res
\ ported from Cincinnati. having Just COM
rleted ia tour Of the State OF Kentucky.
N touching at all the large towns. 5SSs 5S
" The South Atlantic Pharnaca Com
pany which does different kind OF spe-
y cialty business, manufacturing all Of its
pharmaceutical goods, does not cover,
y so large a territory but their business
s growing and the fame OF the house Is
spreading RAPIDLY throughout the ooun-
try.s n
The Old Timers.
OF the Ave houses that do a general
wholesale drug business, that OF Purcell.
!Ladd and Company is ]. the Oldest. the
house having been established. as before
\ stated. In the year $50! IT has come down
u to father and son. and Is still run by the
$Purcells and the Ladds.s In the count
K ing-room Of this house. there hangs on
the wall in a neat frame the original
copy OF an old bill for drugs sold to "A. p.
Richardson, at Barhamsyllle. Va. The
!. bill bears date December 8. 1862, and the
\ old copy was given to Colonel Purcell
for preservation about ten years ago.
Z This, however. was not the first bill
4 bought by Mr.. Richardson from the
house. but was the Oldest copy he could
find at. the Tina among his papers. Mr..
Richardson died several years ago, but
hist drug business descended to & his son.
< ana the house still buys goods from the
& old firm Of Purcell, Ladd & Company.
The Bod eker Drug Company Is another
old firm. TIL style OF the firm has been
changed, but the name Bodeker has been
associated with the drug business IN
Richmond for more than sixty years. @
The Ovens & Minor company Is also
II one OF the old timers That concern did
q retail business many, many years ago.
E and has been wholesaling also for q
Ia, stu Ia Ia =
n never been changed since the co-part-
nershp was first formed, q except that II
was Incorporated and the word .'com.
panyp added. AZ 50 asA
@ Powers Taylor Company, while not .
a old as some Of the others. has been do
ing business In Richmond many years.
en ns ae they ays ct s ssn
fame OF Richmond into much newly dis
The. concern = Vaughan. Robertson
drug house In the city It Is composed
OF hustlins young men, who know the
business and how to push It to Ssuccesa,
successful It has 5outgrown its present
" quarters a nd has Just closed a contract
rsn19GS
and Main Streets. This building Will DO
\ steel and concerte and when compl eted
A6Wll! Do OIlS " Illo largest ana gDe6L arek
"a nged laolesale II drug stores in the
South, s
Immense Stores Necessary.
One who has not given the matter
special attention has no idea how muun
ment Of a large Wholesale drug businesa,
Il In the first place, q large stock must
Y be carried and the greatest care must
4 be taken In Its storing, RI IS n ~
4 One Richmond house, for Inst nce co.
( cupies q six-story house that has forty
feet frontage and runs back 100 feet, ii
], addition they have q !, deta ehed " wa res
gether forty-one thousand square feet
4. Of floor room 10 required for he BUSH
ness and the proprle tors. would not claim
drug business in Richmond, either. when