herb assistance please

[Hummingbird]

Good Morning!

I need your help. An acquaintance is doing some reenactments of the Lewis & Clark journey and is portraying the "doctor" on the trip. Since she knows I have a big herb interest she's asked me what would have been the "medicinals" that Lewis & Clark would have carried with them for their own use. Now, I know they did a HUGE amount of botanical research while on the trip but I'm looking for what they would have planned and taken with them. Any ideas where I could find the informationi?

Thanks all!

Nance

[halfpint]

We studied Lewis & Clark last year, here is a site that has information on a lof of the plants used:

http://www.lewis-clark.org/content/c...?ChannelID=156

If the link above doesn't work, use the one below and click on Natural History, then plants:
http://www.lewis-clark.org/


Another site we used a lot was PBS:
http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/

[Cyngbaeld]

You can find 'A Modern Herbal' online. It is old enough to be in public domain. Mrs Greaves tells about all the old herbs and you can figure out which they would be likely to have. They also would have used a great many that the American Indians were accustomed to using.

[Hummingbird]

Thanks so much! I've forwarded the information and have been having fun looking at it for myself. I knew I came to the right place!

Nance

[AnnaS]

Here's what they bought for the expedition (and where and how much it cost)

"Joseph Carlisle, Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Exhibition researcher compiled the following information for the Missouri Historical Society, from Gary E. Moulton, Ed. The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press 1983-2000, and Donald Jackson, ed. Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, with Related Documents, 1783-1854. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1962. As you will see, nearly all of the medicines brought on the expedition by Meriwether Lewis were somehow related to bleeding or purging through vomiting or an enema. Many medicines were also used to treat venereal disease. Medicines were taken orally or injected into the penis or anus with instruments called clysters, which looked very much like cake decorators - for putting messages or flowers on cakes in frosting. Clysters were made of a metal called pewter."

(Purchased of George Gillaspy and Joseph Strong of Philadelphia 5/26/1803):

15 lbs. pulverized Cort. Peru ($30)
- Powdered Peruvian Bark containing quinine used to treat fevers.
1/2 lb. pulverized Jalap ($0.67)
- Powdered Jalap derived from the Mexican morning glory used as a laxative/purgative
1/2 lb. pulverized Rhubarb ($1)
- Powdered Rhubarb used as a laxative/purgative
4 oz. pulv. Ipecacuan ($1.25)
- Powdered Ipecacuan, Brazilian root used as an emetic/purgative/diaphoretic for the treatment of fevers
2 lb. pulv. Cream Tartar ($0.67)
- Powdered cream of tartar (potassium bitartrate) used as a purgative/diuretic
2 oz. Gum Camphor ($0.40)
- used as a stimulant and as a diaphoretic
1 lb. Gum Assafoetid [Assafoetic/Assafoedita] ($1) used as a purgative. This was foul smelling and considered to have no medicinal value.
1/2 lb. Gum Opii Turk. opt. ($2.50) Common Poppy for producing opium used as a pain killer.
1/4 lb. Tragacanth ($0.37) an inert gum for making pills.
6 lb. Sal Glauber ($0.60 or $0.10 per lb.)
- Glauber's salt (sodium sulfate) used as a purgative
2 lb. Sal Nitri [saltpetre] ($0.67) potassium nitrate used in treatment of fevers and gonorrhea; also used as a diuretic/diaphoretic
2 lb. Copperas ($0.10)
- metal used in making inks
6 oz. Sacchar. Saturn. opt. ($0.37)
- sugar of lead/lead acetate used in the treatment of eye problems and also with penal syringe for treatment of gonorrhea
4 oz. Calomel ($0.75)
- mercurous chloride used as a purgative and also used in the treatment of syphilis
1 oz. Tartar Emetic ($0.10)
- white salt compound used as an emetic
4 oz. Vitriol Alb. ($0.12)
- White Vitriol (Zinc Sulfate) used in the treatment of eye problems
1/2 lb. Rad. Columbo ($1)
- root of columbo, a dried root with a bitter taste used as a tonic for indigestion and diarrhea
1/4 lb Elix. Vitriol ($0.25)
- elixir of vitriol (ethylsulfuric acid) used as a tonic for stomach problems; flavored with cinnamon and ginger
1/4 lb. Es. Menth. pip. ($0.50)
- essence of menthol or peppermint used in the treatment of digestive problems
1/4 lb. Bals. Copaiboe ($0.37)
- Balsam of Copaiba used for treatment of rheumatism; also used in penal syringe for treatment of gonorrhea
1/4 lb. Bals Traumat ($0.50)
- compound tincture of Benzoin used for treatment of cuts and abrasions
2 oz. Magnesia ($0.20)
- used as a purgative
4 oz. Laudanum ($0.50)
- tincture of opium used as a pain killer
2 lb Ung. Basilic ($1)
- compound of pine resin, yellow wax, and lard used as an ointment or salve
1 lb. Ung. Calimin ($0.50)
1 lb. Ung. Epispastric ($1)
- causes a discharge; used as a blistering agent
1 lb. Ung. Mercuriale ($1.25)
- Mercury used in an ointment or salve for treatment of syphilis and other venereal diseases; diaphoretic
1 Emplast. Diach. S. ($0.50)
- diachylon simple, a plaster or salve made of the juices of several plants. Consists generally of oxide of lead and oil or glycerin mixed with lead salts for treatment of wounds and abrasions.
50 doz. Bilious Pills to order of B. Rush ($0.10 per dozen or $5 total)
- combination of calomel (mercurous chloride) and jalap; a purgative/laxative
2 oz Nutmegs ($0.75)
- used to flavor oral medicines
2 oz. Cloves ($0.31)
- used to flavor oral medicines
4 oz. Cinnamon ($0.20)
- used to flavor oral medicines

Medical Equipment of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
(purchased of George Gillaspy and Joseph Strong of Philadelphia 5/26/1803)

1 Set Pocket Insts. small ($9.50)
1 Set Teeth Insts. small ($2.25)
1 Clyster Syringe ($2.75) - used for administering enemas
4 Penis Syringes ($1) - used for treatment of gonorrhea
3 Best Lancets ($0.80 ea. or $2.40 total)
- used for bleeding or blood-letting
1 Tourniquet ($3.50) - for amputations
2 oz. Patent Lint ($0.25)
- linen or fleece-like material for poultices and dressing wounds
6 Tin Canisters ($0.25 each or $1.50 total)
3 8 oz. Gd. Stopd. bottles ($0.40 each or $1.20 total)
5 4 oz. Tinctures bottles ($1.85)
6 4 oz. Salt Mo. ($2.22)
1 Walnut Chest ($4.50)
1 Pine Chest ($1.20)
1/4 lb. Indian Ink ($1.50)
- black pigment in the form of sticks used for writing
2 oz. Gum Elastic ($0.37)
- rubber from the buckhorn plant; bark has some medicinal qualities, however, not soluble in water, and may have been used to seal containers

[Hummingbird]

WOW oh WOW!!! Thank you so much!!! This is amazing. Where did you find all of this information? She may be able to use the resource for their reenactment. Thanks again!

Nance