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[Identification of item], in the David B. Shatzer medical battery sales account book, 1883 January-September, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.
Purchased, 2010
Processed by: Alice Poffinberger, November 2010
Encoded by: Alice Poffinberger, July 2011
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This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
David B. Shatzer was a salesman in Franklin Co, Penna. Census records indicate that Shatzer may have also been a shoemaker at this time. Possibly b. 1841 in St. Thomas (Franklin Co.), Penna.
Collection comprises a copy (48 pgs.) of "Pierce's Memorandum and Account Book designed for Farmers, Mechanics and all people" distributed by the World's Dispensary Medical Association. Half of the pages were printed with advertisements and testimonials for Pierce's pharmaceutical products, along with his articles on the diseases of women, men, liver, blood, and lungs. It also includes an advertisements for the Invalids' Hotel and Surgical Institute in Buffalo, N.Y. The rest of the pages contain handwritten notes made by Shatzer regarding his sales of Downing's galvanic battery, which was likely an electronic device used to treat various ailments, including headaches, rheumatism, neuralgia, and joint pain. Shatzer primarily recorded testimonies about the effectiveness of the device, but a few notes provide his sales figures. In addition, some notes suggest that Shatzer also sold pictures, copies of the Lord's Prayer and other prayers, and a product in bottles. It is clear that all of his sales were in Franklin County.
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