Indispensable To All Women

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Text on Button Indispensable to All Women Chichester’s Pills; Chichester Chemical Co. Philadelphia, PA.
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Black and blue text on a white background with brown edges with a portrait of a young woman.

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Chichester’s Pills, a patent medicine which were manufactured from 1881 into the 1950s, were branded as a “Relief for Ladies,” promising to alleviate “functional derangements of the female organism” – in other words, menstrual pain. Originally, the pills were called “Chichester’s Pennyroyal Pills.”  This name was later changed when the herb pennyroyal was found to be toxic, although it is unknown whether the original pills contained the herb.  Chichester’s Pills became the center of a federal campaign for truth in advertising, which culminated in the 1920 libel lawsuit, “Chichester Chemical Co. vs. The United States.” Following the lawsuit, Chichester’s changed their packaging, and the pills were presented as more of an herbal supplement than a cure-all medicine. 

Sources

Chichester Chemical Co. v. United States. (2019). Retrieved August 4, 2020, from https://www.leagle.com/decision/193156549f2d5161399

Kreidler, M. (2014, June 03). Diamond Brand (Whispered Secret) Pills. Retrieved August 04, 2020, from https://centerforinquiry.org/blog/diamond_brand_whispered_secret_pills/

Catalog ID AD0243