This volume (22 pages) is a typewritten biography of Elias Durand, a French immigrant who became a notable pharmacist and botanist in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the mid-19th century. The biography, written by a former apprentice, concentrates on Durand's final years in France and on his pharmaceutical career in the United States.
Durand's final apprentice wrote this biography, entitled Some Recollections of an Old Corner, in 1886. Two images are pasted into the book's opening pages: an illustration of Durand's pharmacy and a photograph of Elias Durand. The biography begins with a brief history of Durand's studies in France, as well as a description of his service as an assistant pharmacist in Napoleon's Army. The bulk of the narrative concerns Durand's experiences in the United States, first in Boston and Baltimore and then as a pharmacy owner in Philadelphia.
The author traces Durand's first jobs in America, including descriptions of Durand's encounter with a group of Native Americans outside of Baltimore (pp. 7-8) and his establishment of his own business, which he operated between 1824 and 1852. The biography frequently discusses Durand's role in the professionalization of the American pharmaceutical industry and mentions many of his accomplishments, such as his invention of an apparatus for making "carbonic acid water" (p. 10), his use of French literature and research to further American pharmacy expertise (pp. 11-12), his soda water and fruit juice concoctions (pp. 13-14), and his work bottling mineral water (p. 18). The author credits Durand with the creation of several medicines and notes the pharmacist's association with prominent Philadelphia doctors including Charles Meigs and Samuel Jackson. The biography also briefly mentions Durand's later botanical career and his personal life.
Elias Durand was born Élie Maloire Durand in Mayenne, France, on January 25, 1794. In 1808, he apprenticed with a local pharmacist, and in 1812 he moved to Paris, where he became certified as a pharmacist for Napoléon's army. Durand spent the next year studying in Paris, and in 1813 received a military commission as Pharmacien sous aide for the Fifth Corps. After being taken prisoner in present-day Germany, Durand escaped to Nantes, France, where he continued his pharmacological and botanical studies. He served in the National Guard following Napoléon's return from exile and moved to the United States in July 1816.
Durand worked for several pharmacists in Boston and Baltimore before moving to Philadelphia in 1824, where he established his own pharmacy. Capitalizing on his knowledge of scientific developments in Europe, he became a member of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia and a corresponding member of the Societé de Pharmacie of Paris. After his retirement in 1852, he pursued his interest in botany, establishing a large herbarium. Durand married twice, to Polymnia Rose Ducatel (d. 1822) and Marie Antoinette Berauld. He died on August 14, 1873.
