The majority of ‘patent medicines’ on both sides of the Atlantic were not and never had been patented.

Door-to-door quack doctors were actually a thing. Part IV. Click here for Part I of Door-to-door quacks were actually a thing (She voided...

Well, THAT was careless.

"BY THE KING's ROYALL PATENT GRANTED TO ROBt TURLINGTON FOR HIS INVENTED BALSAM OF LIFE. LONDON. JANy 26 1754." Turlington used at least thr

Hezekiah was a veteran of the travelling quack business, having been on the road (but not on the run) for most of the last ten years

On a Tuesday night in May a "GANG of dangerous IMPOSTERS" were apprehended, "some of them with quack medicines".