U. S. A. Hospital Department, Medical Department, containers produced during the Civil War.

By Dr. Michael Echols, American Civil War Surgical Antiques

The U. S. Army Medical Department, or its divisions of the Union Army during the Civil War, was in charge of providing medical supplies for the troops during the War.  The U. S. Army Hospital Department (U.S.A. Hosp. Dept.) was the division that ran and supplied the hospitals, administered the purveyors of medical supplies, and made purchases of surgical and medical equipment and supplies.  The Medical Department was in existence prior to, during, and after the Civil War.  The U.S. Army Hospital Department existed prior to and during the Civil War, but was not active after the Civil War as a separate entity and you don't see items marked for the Hosp. Dept. after the Civil War.  You will see bottles embossed with "Med'l Dept" and those are for the Medical Department during the War if there is no other raised or embossed information such as "Quart" on the bottle.  If extra information is on the bottle, then it's post-Civil War for the Medical Department.

Military medicine was put up in bottles, tins, and jars for storage.  Glass containers can be found in various military medical carrying chests (panier), kits, or saddle bags, but they easily broke and were replaced, when possible, by soldered tin containers that were painted black (Japanned) and used cork stoppers.  Post-War containers have screw-tops, but the ones used during the War years were closed with cork stoppers. 

The cream-ware jars were glazed ceramic containers with a non-screwed lid, and used for pills and salves.  Both jars and lids had paper labels as did many of the bottles unless color coded for a specific chemical like a poison.

The Medical Department medicine bottles came in a number of variations as to embossing, but the majority are embossed with "U.S.A. / Hosp. Dept" in two lines across the upper middle front of the bottle, on the 'shoulder' of the bottle, or in a circle on the middle front of the bottle.  There are variations of this guideline, but these are the main examples and most common seen. 

There is a Medical Department variation of the bottles, which during the War is marked "U.S.A. / Med'l. Dept".  After the War, Medical Department bottles are marked "U.S.A. / Med. Dept." or with the previously mentioned raised additional information called a slug plate.

The most common colors of the bottles are: clear or aqua, and variations of olive.  There is great variation of the olive bottles due to chemicals added to the silica during production which produce cherry, puce, red, and yellowish variations.  More rare are the blue (cobalt), puce, and dark green colors.

Variables in value relate to the rarity of the style, size, or color, not to mention the condition of the bottle.  Historical collectors generally value color variations less than 'bottle' collectors, who tend to prize color variations much higher than the relationship to the Civil War.  Hospital Department bottles are a sub-division of Civil War medicine, but also a sub-division of 'bottles' in general. 

Civil War collectors tend to not be as hung up on the colors as are bottle collectors, generating a value difference in the two camps.  Another value division is relative to 'dug' vs 'attic' found bottles.  Dug items were found in 'dumps' or a privy near a hospital or field site during or after the War at a military fort.  Attic finds occur anywhere and tend to be very clean and in excellent order.  Dug bottles have a lot of 'crud' on and in them due to having been buried in water and as a consequence, mineral accretion.  These minerals and 'crud' can be removed by a process of polishing by tumbling and according to most bottle collectors to whom I've spoken this does not decrease the value, but in fact may increase the value.  Civil War collectors are mixed on this issue.

There is an excellent reference by Mike Russell on U.S.A. Hosp. Dept. bottles published both on-line and in print and I'm going to paraphrase from his work on some data about the bottles:

"Russell says his research indicates that Hospital Department bottles were mainly manufactured at factories in Pittsburgh, and Baltimore, the principal manufacturer was at Pittsburgh with the secondary manufacturer at the Baltimore Glass Works. 

Bottles blown at the Pittsburgh factory exhibit concave, slightly recessed, bases with a four point star design, initials (SDS), or a simple dot.  Baltimore Glassworks examples are flat based and exhibit weak embossing.

Civil War period bottle embossing styles fall into several major types:

(1) Two Straight Lines; the top line is “U.S.A.” printed in raised letters.  The second line reads, “Hosp. Dept.”

(2) “U.S.A Hosp. Dept.” embossed in an oval.  In this pattern, the “U.S.A” curves along the top of the oval and “Hosp. Dept.” curves below.

(3) “United States Army Hospital Department” spelled out in a straight line.

(4) “U.S.A” arching over “Med’l Dept.” (This is the only style incorporating the abbreviation for USA Medical Department dating from the Civil War era.)

Numerous bottle colors exist.  The most common color is clear followed by aqua.  Rarer colors include cobalt, emerald green, apricot and dense purple or puce.

Hospital Department Bottles range in size from a 2 ½ inches high oval shaped vial to a quart size 9 ¼ inch tall cylinder.  Neck styles vary from narrow openings to a wide mouth.  Data on color and sizes can be found in: The Collector's Guide to Civil War Period Bottles and Jars, by Mike Russell, 1988 and subsequent publication dates."

Above: A Medical Department produced tin (painted black) container.  Some of these tins were sold as surplus after the Civil War and others were shipped to the forts out west after the War.

   

Above: U.S.A. Med. Dept. glazed ceramic jar with lid

Below is a list of common names of chemicals and 'drugs' provided in a Civil War medicine wagon.  These names or the latin names can be found on the paper labels attached to containers.  The edited list is from the Supply Tables provided in the Medica Materia listings of Medical Department publications available in the Medical and Surgical History of the War of the Revolution.

Civil War Medical Wagon Drug List

acetate lead
alcohol
alcoholic extract of belladonna
alum
aromatic spirit of ammonia
aromatic sulphuric acid
bicarbonate potassa
bicarbonate soda
blistering cerate
blue mass
calomel
camphor
carbonate ammonia
castor oil
cerate of cantharides
chlorate of potassa
chlorate potassa
chlorinated solution of soda
citrate iron and quinia
citrine ointment
collodion
compound cathartic pills
compound extract of colocynth
copaiba
creosote
croton oil
Dover's powder
extract of belladonna
fluid extract cinchona (aromatic)
fluid extract ginger
fluid extract ipecac
fluid extract of aconite root
fluid extract of cinchona, aromatic
fluid extract of colchicum seed
fluid extract of ginger
fluid extract of ipecac
fluid extract seneka
Fowler's solution,
fused nitrate silver
glycerin
ground cayenne pepper
Hoffman's anodyne
iodide of iron
iodide of potassium
iodide polassium
ipecac 
laudanum
mercurial ointment,
mercury with chalk
morphia
nitrate of silver (crystals)
nutmegs
oil of turpentine
olive oil
paregoric
permanganate of potassa
pills of camphor  
pills of compound extract of colocynth
pills of opium
pills of sulphate of quinia
powdered compound extract colcoynth.
powdered gum Arabic
powdered ipecac
powdered opium
powdered Rochelle salt
powdered squill
powdered subsulphate iron
powdered tartaric acid
pure chloroform
pure glycerin
purified chloroform
resin cerate
Rochelle salt, 16 oz.
simple cerate
solution chloride zinc
solution of ammonia
solution of chloride of zinc
solution of chlorinate of soda
solution of persulphate of iron.
spirit of nitrous ether
strong alcohol
stronger ether (for anaesthesia)
stronger ether
subnitrate bismuth
sulphate cinchona
sulphate magnesia
sulphate of copper
sulphate of morphia
sulphate of quinine
sulphate zinc
sweet spirit of nitre
syrup of squill
tannic acid
tartar emetic
tincture chloride of iron
tincture of opium
whiskey

                  

Left: Circular embossing of U.S.A. /  Hosp. Dept.

Right: "U.S.A." arching, and  "Med'l. Dept" embossed straight across

Above: Straight across embossing of U.S.A.  /  Hosp. Dept.

Above: 'Dug' bottles with calcium and silica discolorations from being submerged

Dr. Michael Echols is strictly a collector of Civil War Hosp. Dept. containers and not a dealer.  If you would like to read more information on this topic or contact Dr. Echols, search Google for 'American Civil War Surgical Antiques' or My eBay page.

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