Miracle cures for hair loss were sold by snake-oil salesmen in the Old West and they are sold on the World Wide Web today. A “cure for baldness” has long been a profitable claim for nostrums. The Old West snake-oil salesman might sell his product as a cure for baldness when his audience was made up mostly of men, and a cure for “women’s complaints” when his audience was mostly women. In the next town, he might sell it as a cure for rheumatism. The common thread in all of his claims is they are unverified by any scientifically acceptable evidence. We might believe that we are more sophisticated and knowledgeable than the citizens of a small town in the Old West who gathered around the wagon of the snake-oil salesman to hear his pitch. While it is true that we are probably more knowledgeable because there is more information to know about, it is also true that the purveyors of nostrums incorporate today’s advanced knowledge into their claims. The Nineteenth Century snake-oil salesman might base his claims on “secret knowledge” passed along to him by an ancient medicine man. The purveyor of nostrums today is more likely to use words taken out of context from the sciences of genetics and biochemistry to link his claims to scientific research. Buyers beware!

In the early 19th century most Americans healed themselves, as their ancestors had for centuries. Professional medical assistance was either too far away, too expensive, or both. Even wealthy urban families usually attempted some sort of home health care before the doctor was called. This care was usually administered with the aid of books, pamphlets, and proprietary medicines purchased at the general store. Proprietary medicine advertisements were the mainstay of newspapers in the Old West. Newspapers carried notices for medicated vapor baths, artificial teeth, genuine Galvanic Rings, the Anodyne Necklace and other amulets. Some patent medicine companies spent more than $100,000 a year advertising their products. Patent medicines were the hottest-selling items on store shelves. If the labels on the medicines were to be believed, they could handle just about any and every complaint. One concoction grandly promised to cure 30 different disorders, including “nervous debility caused by the indiscretions of youth.” Mostly they relied on heavy lacing alcohol to work their proclaimed wonders. It didn’t really cure what was ailing you but you didn’t mind so much.

I keep telling myself that things have got to get better. Business calls will eventually be returned, books sales will improve, and McDonald’s cherry pies will never be put on hiatus to make room for some feeble attempt of a holiday pie with a filling no one can identify. But here it is. Another Monday and no improvements. This is the perfect time for another Old West advertisement. American fashions were influenced by European designers, but at the beginning of the century seventy-five percent of all clothing in the country were homemade. Observers said they could detect the potato-sack-like cut of a homemade garment a mile away, especially next to a tailor-made piece or, later in the century, a store bought or factory-made garment. Indeed, until the 1840s, when clothing became more readily available in stores, most Americans wore clothing sewn by themselves or their own mothers, sisters or daughters. The Boss of the Road Clothing House, located in the mining town of Grass Valley, California, opened its door in 1863 and featured the latest styles for the entire family. Among the most popular items sold to women there were calico dresses and a head covering called the “flat”. The flat was a woman’s low-crowned straw hat with a very wide brim. Many men purchased the roundabout; a short, close-fitting jacket, also known as a monkey-jacket.

In 1800, four-fifths of all Americans worked on farms. During the second half of the century, many abandoned farm life to work in the city, in shops and in manufactories. Some of these people found a better way of life. Others became disillusioned. Out of work pioneers poured over the advertisements in local papers searching for a job. Many unskilled people sought work as electrochemical-platers. Objects like tableware and food containers were coated with a thin layer of metal to prevent corrosion and obtain a hard surface or attractive finish. Sounds exciting!