Ma always kept a bottle of carbolic acid tied with a string and hanging from the ceiling. It was kept there to keep us children from touching it. It was very poisonous and corrosive. She put two drops of the acid into water sweetened with sugar. I drank it and lay very still, thinking if the scarlet fever didn’t kill me the carbolic acid would. I was so scared of so many things that Ma would get angry and tell me what a silly person I was. Dr. Ben Cogdill came, but there was nothing he could do. “Your Ma’s remedy is as good as any,” he said.
—Florence Cope Bush – Dorie Woman of the Mountains
Today’s Thankful November giveaway is a used copy of Dorie Woman of the Mountains written by Florence Cope Bush. Leave a comment on this post to be entered. *Giveaway ends December 2, 2023.
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My dad was born in the late 1920’s in the Missouri Ozarks. He told about when he 9 he chopped his foot open while chopping sprouts in the pasture. He limped back to the house where his mom and grandma put his foot in a bucket an covered it with coal oil. He said the burn was worse than the axe. They wrapped his foot up and he hobbled around for a while , but it healed with no infection. He was a lucky boy. A year or so later he got polio and spent a year and a half in bed, but he survived that too. Always had one leg just a fraction shorter than the other.
I still have a memory of my daddy having to kneel down behind me so he could wrap his arms around me to keep me still while Mom held my nose so she could force a spoonful of paregoric into my mouth when I opened it. Poor mom and dad, like holding a clawing cat! I hated liquid medicine and bet I was the youngest kid ever to always ask the doctor if my prescription came in pill form. I would have rather swallowed a football than the awful tasting meds of the time.
Some of the old remedies would be frowned upon today, but then people weren’t going to the doctors every time you turn around either.
I remember my mama telling about taking a drop of turpentine or kerosene on a sugar lump for a bad cold. I would love to have a copy of Dorie Woman of the Mountains!
Oh the old time remedies, sounds so harsh but I don’t remember anyone dying because of them . I remember many of them mentioned in the comments…and there were several of them in my grandmothers bathroom cabinet. What memories! Thank for another chance to win this wonderful book about Dorie!
I’ve read of carbolic soap being used to clean and sanitize, and I always pictured it in a brick-sized bar like fels-naptha, applied with a scrub brush and bucket of hot water.
My mother had some kind of salve with carbolic acid in it in her medicine kit. She also had a black salve, paregoric, Watkins liniment, Vicks salve, rubbing alcohol and camphor. That took care of just about anything. One of the places we lived was almost 50 miles to a doctor.
Daddy’s cure for everything, back in the day, mercurochrome. I kind of laugh now but he was serious about its curative powers. Burns, cuts, bruises, you name it. I’ve heard of some of the things mentioned in the comments, but not what Dories mom used. She’s a wonderful story teller. Thanks again for an opportunity to get to win her book. Congratulations to whoever does. Jennifer
We have a bottle of Mercurochrome in our medicine cabinet that was bought not long after we were marred more than 62 years ago.
My parents always used Vick’s Vaporub on us kids. And I mean all over too. Behind our ears, throats, under our nose, in our armpits, the soft flesh at our hip bones, behind our knees and the bottom of our feet. Then put on all kinds of warm flannel and socks and get in a nice warm bed. It always worked and I felt better in the morning. As an adult, my husband made a ‘hot toddy’ for me one time. I was young at the time and very inexperienced with alcohol. Needless to say, all I remember is passing out and waking up the next day feeling better. Whew! That was a tough one. I’d like to know the rest of that story about taking the carbolic acid. Can’t say that I’ve ever heard of that before.
Mama used to have a little bottle of Save the Baby. She would put a drop of that liquid on a teaspoon of sugar and give it to us for a cold. I can almost smell it right now just thinking about it. It tasted terrible and I was weak stomached anyway and that smell lingered on even after I had swallowed it. I wonder if it is still on the market? I hope not. Mama did the best she could to doctor us up when any of us got sick. She was a sweet Appalachian Mama and I sure do miss her.
That carbolic acid sounds like agony, especially for a child. I remember mercurichrome. My dad wanted to use it on everything. I did not like having to use it because burned, if I remember correctly. I would enjoy getting to read her book. Thank you.
Tipper, thank you for today’s interesting post and the comments it generated.
I am going to step up onto my RN soapbox: it is a wonder that any of us survived the well-intended folk medicines of yesteryear. Carbolic acid is a potent antiseptic when applied to skin. When ingested, however, it is a poison, pure and simple.
Stepping down from my wobbly soapbox now.
The old remedies are interesting. My pawpaw would talk fire out of a burn. And I can remember taking paragoric syrup with lots of sugar. But don’t think anyone ever spoke of carbolic. Some of the things were scary like kerosene. But so are a lot of today’s medicines
Google says that today carbolic acid is used to sterilize surgical instruments. Can’t imagine having to drink something like that even if it is diluted!
I have heard of carbolic acid, but thankfully never had to swallow any. Our medicine cabinet was stocked just like many already mentioned. When I was 10 yrs. old I cut my toe with an axe. My Dad wasn’t home to take me to the Dr. so Mother poured turpentine on the cut. It burned so bad the germs ran away. After my Dad got home, he insisted I go the the Dr. He put three clamps in my toe, painted it with iodine which burned as bad as the turpentine. He didn’t even recommend a tetanus shot! Probably figured what Mother had done was enough! A few years ago I told our family doctor about the incident. He just smiled and said “You can’t argue with success”. He was from the old school of doctors and I cried when he retired. He passed away a couple years ago and was loved by many.
Tipper my grandmother would take it eyedropper and drop several drops of sweet oil. Whatever that was into my ear if I had an earache, don’t know if it cured it but it sure made it feel better..
carbolic acid is dangerous, poisonous, God help!!
I believe we would be a lot better off in most cases if we used more of the old time remedies used by our ancestors. I had a great aunt who had a vast knowledge of herbs and natural remedies. I would love to have a book or something filled with the knowledge of natural cures she knew about. There are so many side effects to the medications prescribed by doctors now, and most of them are only meant as a temporary “fix”.
My grandmother would doctor us with everything. There is only one time in my younger days she could not get me well and told my parents they had to take me to the doctor. I which I had paid more attention to those remedies but I was young and I was 12 years old when she passed. I do remember she made a burn salve out of elderberry and I don’t know what else besides lard. It worked I have not scars. I fell up against an old wood burning stove and caught myself with my hands and she put some of that on it and it healed right up. Thanks for posting your stories. It brings back memories. Have a blessed rest of the day!
Many of the names for the old medicines are very familiar to me. I remember the polio vaccine on a sugar cube. I would like to mention one remedy I remember an old neighborhood lady doing with my mother. When I started school 1st grade, no kindergarten or middle schools in the country schools, in 1960 it was common during the first 4-5 years of elementary/grammar school to have an outbreak of 2 or 3 types of measles, the mumps and chicken pox. Most of the older students had already had these by the 5th grade. Parents would intentionally expose their children to other children that were sick so they would catch it. It was thought that the younger we were the better/easier it would be. My mother caught measles from me or my sister, they would not “break out” on her. This old lady came and heated up several of the very old cast iron irons that had to be heated on a stove or in fireplace and some bricks that had been heated up on both sides of her and wrapped her up in blankets causing her to be hot. The measles soon broke out and in a few days she begin to get well. How did the ones of my age live through all of the things today’s exSpurts/ experts claim are harmful or will kill us? Because of trace amounts of mercury in the three mercurichrome, methalate and iodine, they were took of the market, how much of this would it take before it was harmful. I badly misspelled the first two. Personally I am a whole heap more worried about the drunk driving a Mercury car!
Yikes! Dorie is a trooper for sure! Had never heard of that old remedy.
I love reading about Appalachia, the people & food. I would love to have a copy of Dorie, Woman of the Mountains.
I hope Granny is doing well & all of your family.
Merry Christmas to All!
Taking carbolic acid SOUNDS dangerous,
however modern day meds have some scarier side effects! I am always entertained and educated when it comes to your and the girls posts and videos! I sure am thankful to be privy to you all.
These excerpts and comments remind me so much of my parents and grandparents. The only time I ever saw Daddy with alcohol was when he concocted his own home remedy for coughs – vodka, lemon and honey. My mother’s mother, Nanny, believed that Vicks Vapo Rub cured everything. I saw a Youtube video of different uses for VVR and thought that Nanny figured that out 60 years ago. 🙂
My mother gave me Vicks Salve (before it was VapoRub) by mouth. A little bit. About the size of a pea. I don’t remember what I took it for, brobly* croup. She rubbed it on my back, put it on a rag and taped it to my chest and even put a dap on my upper lip, to open my nose I guess.
OK! /pra-bubbly/
Never heard of carbolic acid used for medical uses but have heard of black draught and castor oil. When I was a kid my mother would give us kids a dose of castor oil if we said we was sick. It was mama cure all and as soon as I found out what it was I started not saying anything about being sick.
What an interesting story….I’ve never heard of carbolic acid.
Good morning! I’m loving the excerpts from this book ! It’s amazing what they had to deal with and how they did it ! Thank you so much for sharing all that you share with us !
I grew up in a rural area. There was only 1 doctor for our entire county & the surrounding areas. We were poor. We didn’t go to the doctor unless it was an emergency. For the 4 of us kids in my family I can remember only 2 visits, one for me & one for my sister. Both for bad cuts that needed stitches. For colds & such, my great grandmother mixed up a concoction of goat lard & herbs & stuff that I can’t remember what was & probably never did know! She rubbed that on our chests & the bottoms of our feet. Then she put a handkerchief on our chest which was stuck down by the lard & clean socks on our feet. Then she gave us a teaspoon of her homemade cough syrup & put us to bed covered with tons of quilts. We went to sleep pretty quickly & sweated up a storm. Pretty soon we were good as new!
Would love to win but not holding my breath!
I always enjoy hearing about old remedies. I remember mama using some things when we were sick that I would be scared to death to have used them today. Sometimes the remedy was worse than the sickness, but we all survived. 🙂
I wonder about some of the things our grandmas used to fix our ailments. Some we understand and then there are others that just make a person go, “Really?!!”
Brings back so many memories! My mom (mom of 9) had so many tinctures and potions, but we all lived through it. lol
More modern–there was a liniment called “Heet”. It had a dauber attached to the lid. It would almost literally set you on fire. Where it was put would be so hot it would turn bright red. Don’t know if it really helped but it would sure take your mind off of your pain.
My grandparents were really big on home remedies, in fact, they rarely went to a doctor.
I am going to blow off for a little bit. Really has nothing to do with remedies. I mentioned not going very often to doctors. I was a child of the 50 and 60’s and remember when a “family” doctor could and would treat nearly anything that ailed you. Some even had their own small hospitals. Nowadays in my area and I suspect it is true for other areas, the different medical offices or doctor offices are owned by the large hospital in the area. A “family” doctor is nothing but a referral service for sending you to some so called specialist. I think this is just a system of more doctors being able to get a piece of the pie (money) for the big daddy hospital that owns them.
I am 62 and as a child I cannot remember going to the doctor. Being raised by grandparents the old remedies were used and worked just fine. I would love to read the book.
I remember as a child being terrified of Mercurochrome because it stung so badly and stained you red!
It was really a very interesting book Dorie of the Mountains as my wife and I sat and listened to every word you read to us! She was certainly a women of character and a lively women at that! We love hearing you read stories to us every week! Thank you for doing that, we enjoy it so much!
Carbolic acid bad?
Acetylsalicylic acid good?
Acids burn your skin and your insides. Make you die!
Acetylsalicylic acid is aspirin!
Sulphuric acid bad? Used to make chemotheropy drugs.
Hydrochloric acid bad? Produced by your body in your stomach to kill bacteria and help digest food.
Lactic acid bad? Turns milk into buttermilk, yogurt, cheese, etc.
Acetic acid bad? Vinegar, used as antiseptic. Used to make pickles, kill weeds, clean windows, wash clothes.
Pop quiz tomorrow!
Time was when every doctor and dentist office smelled of carbolic acid (phenol). It was used to sterilize instruments to prevent cross-patient contamination. Raleigh had a Professional Building that housed the offices of most doctors and dentists in town. Just walking into the lobby in the ’40s and ’50s gave you a good whiff of the stuff.
I have eye drops that contain boric acid. I thought that was strange.
Boric Acid? That’s roach powder! You got roaches in your eyes? That must be turrable!
One of my cousin’s has our grandmother’s handwritten book of recipes. It contains recipes for cooking as well as recipes for antidotes for various ailments including insect and snake bites. She kept a curved needle and the ‘thread’ for sewing up wounds. She would take care of cuts for men and women in the community but sent children to the doctor in town so the area could be deadened first. She said she couldn’t bring herself to stick that needle in a child and hear them scream. She was the mid-wife and generally cared for a lot of minor ailments for anyone that came by. As a child anytime I got hurt Dad would say, “Go show your Grandma.” She almost had a fulltime job with my escapades. She even cared for a broken finger for me when I was about five.
Yes, I can remember Castoria, Castor oil, Vick’s Vapor Rub (Salve) for chest colds, and the Mercurochrome I remember very well. I have never heard of using Carbolic Acid. I like taking 1 tbs of Elderberry Syrup on a daily basic. Sometimes I miss taking it daily. I buy a large jar of that from Amazon. Epsom Salts, I can remember to, it is used to cure a lot of different things. Praying for Granny to have more strength. Tipper, your video of the family gathering for Thanksgiving Dinner was just awesome. All the food looked absolutely wonderful. God bless all the family.
I enjoyed Dorie Women of the Mountains when you read it to us on YouTube. It reminded me of so many things my mom did that was mentioned in the book. My mom gave us kids Castor Oil when we were sick with stomach issues. When we had congestion she made some kind of a hot onion herb mix in the cast iron skillet then wrapped it in a warm towel with Vicks to lay on our chest and then made a hot toddy for us to drink with hot tea, honey, lemon and whiskey. All her remedies worked. I don’t ever remember being scared of anything mom made us take when I was little, but I guess if I knew it was dangerous I probably would have. I’ve already been blessed with something this month and am very grateful, so if my name comes up again, please give to someone else. I just enjoy being apart of the blog conversation with all your readers. I enjoy reading their comments as much as I do your post. Thank you for bringing us all together to enjoy Celebrating Appalachia.
Tipper,
J.R. Watkins Company still has products on the market which contain phenol (carbolic acid).
We always had a Walkins salve with an active ingredient of carbolic acid for minor cuts, scrapes, burns and skin irritations.
Another medication we had on hand was Merthiolate which was the best I can remember for minor cuts and scrapes. It would, as the old people used to say, “set you on fire”, but I never remember a cut getting infected while using Merthiolate. For whatever reason, the FDA decided to ban the sale of Merthiolate.
Merthiolate contains mercury! Mercurochrome does too! So too does tuna and light switches.
Sanford, we kept Merthiolate, Mercurochrome, and Iodine, but sometimes we got just kerosene on a cut or abrasion. Our first child, now 60, got one of the last doses of paregoric before it was banned and one of the first doses of Salk polio vaccine on a sugar cube. Life goes on.
I had to have polio shots. The main one then two boosters. I lucked up and the second booster was on a sugar cube.
Sanford, there are sore throat sprays with phenol in them. I had no idea it was carbolic acid. I believe it was merthiolate that Daddy swabbed our throats with for sore throat. He dipped a long swab into the bottle and we had to open up and try not to throw up while he “painted” our throats. I don’t know if it helped but it sure was an awful treatment.
Just love your YouTube channel and the Blind Pig and the acorn .I bought one of y’all’s cookbook and simply love it too
That was such a good, good book. It looks like I’m not the only one to think that. : )
I just read about carbolic acid. Pretty lethal. Most households at the time had a bottle in their medicine cabinet. Thank goodness Dorie’s mother new what to do with it. Such amazing fortitude those people had to live and care for their loved ones high in the mountains.
Note:
Dr. Lister discovered carbonic acid (phenol). The first to use it In surgery. Listerine mouthwash is named after him.
All I can say is YIKES!
I bought The Tall Woman after reading about it here. It comes tomorrow and I can’t wait! My mom believed in doctors but not often if I had an earache it was sweet oil warmed in a teaspoon. Only went to the dr for it if my eardrum broke. Which it did a time or two. Thankfully she didn’t really believe in merthiolate because that stuff was painful! But then the mercurochrome had mercury too so who knows. But effective without pain. She gave us aspirin if anything hurt and Vicks on the chest for a cold. That was our medicine cabinet. Didn’t know enough to be scared but mama didn’t really believe in lots of cures. We just got better.
I grew up in the South too, Southern Africa, in a country named Rhodesia. My cuts and scrapes were painted some thing called Gentian Violet, which was a deep royal purple color and left a stain that lasted at least a week. It didn’t sting but it magically healed about any nasty scrape I ever had.
I think that is why I love these stories so much, life in Rhodesia in the 1970s was much like I surmise Appalachian life was like in the 1930s.
With deep respect.
Andrew Bruce McDonald
There were nine of us children in our family of which I am the youngest with a twenty two year gap between my oldest sister and me. I am sure my older siblings experienced more of those remedies than I did.
Howdy, Victor.
I too am the youngest of 9, but I suspect I’m a deal older than you (81). I was treated with many of the things mentioned in today’s comments.
Yes, you are Robert by 3/4 of a score!
Hi Tipper:
I am really finding the topics so interesting and I love learning from all the different comments. I have to say growing up there were five of us and I can honestly say we didn’t get sick that much at all, these remedies I do remember having in the house, that red mercurochrome, rubbing alcohol, I know whenever I got an earache Daddy would put a saucer to warm in the oven and place it over my ear, it worked for me, there was something about a toothache but i can’t remember what he done for that, Daddy was the one who treated us with these remedies, i remember my grandmother giving me ginger tea for an upset stomach , going back to the earache I forgot to mention Daddy put a cloth over the saucer before he put it on my ear, like I said back then we didn’t have much sickness that needed hospitalization, we ate good meals, lots of fresh air, I really enjoyed my childhood, I think it was similar to yours Tipper, another thing I did win if I don’t win today was a storybook “Little Red Riding Hood for full attendance in grade 2, anyway who knows this could be my lucky day, it’s my husband’s birthday. Thanks for the memories.
My mother should have put the baby aspirin even higher than she did when I was 2. They used to make the baby aspirin taste just like an orange creamsicle so little kids wouldn’t fuss about taking them, and we loved them. My sister and I were up before dawn, and while our mother slept, we dragged a chair over to the closet, got through the latch, and after a few tries standing on our toes on the chair, one of us got the bottle. My mother was up almost immediately, but it was too late. We had already eaten some. I remember the ride to the hospital in the rescue truck, but I don’t remember getting my stomach pumped. My poor mother. She had 4 of us aged 4 and under, and we made it even harder. So, if you ever wondered why they decided to start making baby aspirin slightly bitter, now you know. It’s our fault. Sorry. 🙂
I loved that book when you read it. hope you’ve had a great Thanksgiving
Momma always talked of this cure. She also spoke of using turpentine, coal oil, etc. I think some of the old ways are better than nowadays. Our 2nd great grandfather was an herbalist, he was also a medical doctor during the Civil War. Someone stole his herbal diaries from our great grandparents. I would love to have seen them as we use lots of old remedies now.
I would love to have a copy of this book! Dorie sounds a lot like my mamaw!
Are y’all getting ready for Christmas? I enjoy watching you place the greens!
I have not heard of that cure, but have heard lots of other ones.
Hearing a story like this makes me thankful for the lesser-extreme home remedies and even modern medicines and over the counter things I grew up with! If you were any manner of sick with a “bug” be it of the stomach or a head cold, there wasn’t hardly a thing that some staple items couldn’t fix! Things like ginger ale, chicken noodle soup, crackers, elderberry extracts or wine, stinging nettle tea, activated charcoal capsules, prune juice, Rock & Rye for a real bad cough, and of course local honey! And for anything those things couldn’t lick there was Pepto-Bismol, Vick’s “Salve” (vapo rub), ipecac syrup, and Mercuro-Chrome or Methiolate as it became later. As much “Vick’s Salve” and Pepto as my Granny and Dad used in their lives, you’d think they owned stock in the companies that made them! HA! They didn’t have to be sick or need it–they just used it. If it was cold season or just winter time, they couldn’t go to bed without using copious amounts of salve on their neck and chest and any stomach discomfort at all called for a swig of the pink stuff! I think the only two things there not really found today and probably somewhat dangerous like the carbolic acid mentioned in the book are ipecac syrup and Mercuro-Chrome/Methiolate. I still stand by that that latter one worked well and cured many a scrape or cut I got as a young boy…and you wore those faint red stains as a badge of honor for whatever foolery got you the injury!
Logan, my mom told a story about someone repeatedly stealing other kids’ sack lunches at her country school. The guilty party was revealed after one parent added croton oil to a peanut butter biscuit. Croton oil is a potent purgative.
Goodness, these stories make me both in awe of the people who came before us- Their know how and ability to survive, and thankful I was put in a time & place when I really don’t have to worry too much about illness and disease.
I’ve never heard of carbolic acid and I’m glad that it isn’t used today. Although, some of the remedies for today’s ailments are probably just as poisonous especially if taken incorrectly. My aunt had Scarlet Fever when she was a child in the 1940’s, but I’m not sure what medications were given to her. I do know that she was left with a heart murmur from it though.
My mom’s cure all was cod liver oil. If we were feeling down We would get what in our eyes was a ladle full of it (It was more likely a tablespoon), with an orange slice. I couldn’t eat oranges for a while because they tasted like that awful stuff. Consequently, I didn’t complain of illness and just toughed it out. I think that’s why my ammune system is so good now lol
Very interesting- have never heard of using carbolic acid internally. I love reading about the old time remedies and I’m grateful that we have some of the medicine we use today, but I know the remedies and treatments from before all had their own role and importance. Would love to read this book! Love your blog and YouTube channel. Wishing you and yours a merry Christmas season!
Hi Tipper. Gosh, this brought back memories!
Mom’s medicine chest had a blue box of rolled cotton, another one with rolled gauze, mercurichrome, iodine and good Ole Vicks Vapor Rub. I really hated getting my chest rubbed with the Vicks when I had a cold because it would feel like my skin was burning. I remember complaining loudly that the piece of woolen square she’d add to keep the chest warm itched terribly. I’d cry and she finally take it off. There was also a bottle of what mom called “horse linamint” which smelled horribly. Mom said it was good for sprains and aches. I remember her saying, “if it works for horses, it’ll work for people. Never saw a horse die from it.” I thought the smell alone would kill a person!
The words “carbolic acid” jangle a faint bell in my mind. I’m sure I heard them as a child but do not know in what connection. Thinking back, purt near all our doctoring was home remedies. We just had a few old standards, already mentioned here by others. But I can’t recall being sick enough to stay in bed except once with measles and that was precautionary. I must have had a light case of scarlet fever cause I did have shingles about ten years ago. My theory is us two boys were in the dirt enough we were “vaccinated” with every version of the “myicins” (remember them?) there was. Or maybe it was all the mountain tea (Gaultheria procumbens if memory serves). I remember turpentine on a spoonful of sugar for worms and, as Randy mentioned, kerosene for cuts. But turpentine would fix most things.
Cure was worse than disease! lol
Some of the old ways were scary but better than some of todays possibly! Reading this I can just picture the child being so so still ,scared to move a muscle. Many years ago some of the ‘little people ” from near Glenville/Cashiers area fixed up some yellow root hoping to help Daddys diabetes.
I so enjoyed listening to you read this book…but I don’t remember the carbolic acid!
Tipper i was at grandmaws for two weeks one time as a little girl and was playin dress up with some old highheeled shoes off the back porch and a scarf . I rammed my foot down in that shoe and come out screamin. My foot burnt so bad was swelling. I remember my grandmaw grabbed some turpentine poured it there on the scorpion bite on my foot and wrapping it up with a piece of old cloth she tore off of a old rag. I thought Lordy why would you put that stinkin stuff on there like that but it worked. In just a little while I had no pain and was good as new. I must have been around 5 years old when this happened but still remember it like yesterday. I truly don’t remember much as a 4-5 yr old child but I do this. I wish I knew all of them home remedies now they knew back then. I truly love to read anything you write about Tipper!
WOW…carbolic acid….a cure??!! That stuff is no joke! It can affect just about every system in the body…. heart, lungs, digestive tract, nervous system…even skin!
I remember my mother talking about drinking carbolic- she didn’t have anything good to say about it!
I remember paregoric. When my wife went into labor the first time, Mom gave her some paregoric which she said would ‘stop false labor’. Well, labor was for real, so when it didn’t stop we headed to delivery.
Carbolic acid must fall in the same category as Cod Liver Oil and Syrup of Black Draught. Any child that was ever administered a dose will accuse their parents of trying to kill them.
Morning, Tipper! Carbolic acid!! Good gracious. I’m very glad today we have medicines that are not as harsh as in Dorie’s day! I love you sharing books, especially memoirs, of people who grew up in the Appalachians. Thanks for all you do, Tipper.
If it don’t kill you, it’ll make you stronger. I am glad to have better medications these days.
Our medicine chest growing up was aspirin, mercurochrome, rubbing alcohol, elderberry wine, blackberry wine, and ginger tea. I don’t recall carbolic acid, lucky I guess! Elderberry wine was given each evening before bed as a preventive medicine for colds and flu. Only about an ounce per child, but we rarely got sick. When we did it was aspirin and ginger tea. There were eleven of us and we were a hardy healthy bunch.
It’s so interesting to read of the old time remedies people used so many years ago. I wish I could go back and ask my grandparents so many questions!
Me too & my greatgrands also . We had “monkey blood” in our cabinet. Probably mercurochrome.
Interesting! That would be scary for a child!
Oh my goodness, she was really scared. My baby sister had Scarlet Fever two times, same week two years in a row. She was very sick and we were all scared. This was in the late 60’s and we didn’t know as much as we do now. Love and prayers to all of you and Granny and Little Mama too.
Yikes! That’s a dangerous cure! My Mom and Aunt used to make mustard plasters when we had chest colds! It always worked! Amazing.
I’m always fascinated to learn about these old remedies!
It’s hard for me to imagine being on the receiving end- or the giving end, for that matter- of some of the remedies I’ve heard of from days gone by. Carbolic acid, turpentine, coal oil, etc seem like they would do more harm than good. But it’s all just perspective, isn’t it? 60 years ago we had the choice of Mercurochrome or Merthiolate for cuts and scrapes and now there’s ointments and sprays, even medicated bandages. And I’m sure some people can’t imagine using warm oil in an aching ear. I guess my point is, we use what we have and what we can get. And not all of the “old ways” should be discarded.
Oh yes, carbolic acid. By the time I came along it was aspirin and cool wash cloths for fever, plenty of ginger ale, and for the stomach bugs, syrup of ipecac, and kaopectate in our medicine cabinet. Strept throat which was pretty rampant in our area was treated with those new-fangled antibiotics that were popular after WWII.
I have never heard of that. It does sound scary! But apparently it was okay with doctors in that time. Have you heard of it, Tipper?
Lauren-I have but only in books.
Somehow we all survived Mother’s home doctoring.
Good Morning Tipper, I would have been terrified of having to take that carbolic acid! I am a child of old home remedies and am still here to talk about it. lol! I used them on my girl and my nieces and nephews too. “Dorie” sounds like a really good book.
Yipes. And here I thought my mom’s cod liver oil was bad.
For Robert and Myra, go back to yesterday’s post and read my late reply about Chattanooga. Myra it was them , not me, that went to the lake and I think they may have owned some property on Sand Mountain, I remember hearing them talk about having a garden there. I have been to East Gate Mall.
There were lots of old ways of curing illnesses back in the day. I remember my mama coming to me in the night with a smashed pill of some sort for croup. She said it was a croup pill. I have never heard of this since I was a kid. She would also rub Vick’s vapor rub on our chest when we coughed all night. We only had cold water in our house, so she would heat a pan of water in the morning and wash our chest before school. She said we would get pneumonia if we went out in the cold and she hadn’t washed it off. We didn’t go to the doctor for much. Mama just took care of us.
This was something I have never heard if. Homeopathic remedies are very peculiar but very interesting. My first question would be who taught thus mother to use Carbolic Acid for Scarlet Fever? Herbs were used extensively prior to the 19th century. I have studies herbal remedies in the Revolutionary War era. I am a member of the Historic Revolutionary War Reinactors Guild and I protray an Apothecary Shoppe Owner who provides herbs and tentures for personal use. I am going to have to research Carbolic Acid and try to determine when that acid was originally prescribed
for fevers or other illnesses. Thank you so much for sharing this post. Now I am on a mission to learn all I can about Catholic Acid.
Reminds me of the days of mercurichrome. Nothing like dabbing mercury on an open wound. Yet, we didn’t die 😉
I would love to have this book since I have never heard of this author, it sounds very interesting. I don’t know anything about carbolic acid but I can remember my mom rubbing my chest with Vick salve then putting a flannel (outting) cloth pinned to my nightgown on my chest for bad colds I think. I hope everyone is staying warm and safe, in the low country of South Carolina it pretty cool, 36 this morning and supposed to get in the 20s for a couple nights. I’m already thinking of spring and the garden I want to plant. Blessings to all
I love these little snippets from Dorie Women of the mountains. I would so enjoy reading the book.
I like reading “old timey remedies”, alot of them actually worked but are no longer used. I would enjoy reading this book.
Maybe yesterday’s remedies are just as good as today’s. It is all somewhat scary if you ask me. We just got to pray to the good Lord we get better if it’s his will. I would love to read more about Dorie.
Never heard of carbolic acid. I sometimes joke about the old time remedies and say the remedy was worse than the sickness. I guess many of them worked and we need to remember much of today’s medicines were not available back then. I still believe in putting kerosene on cuts or soaking a sprain in epsom salt water. I have seen kerosene work and help keep soreness and infection out of cuts too many times on me not to believe in it. Many of us older country kids kept sore feet when we ran barefoot in the summer from cuts or like me stepping on an old nail. Tie a kerosene soaked rag around it and go on. I ordered a copy of the this book yesterday, so don’t include me in the drawing but would sure like to win the book Appalachian Values, guess I will buy it next.
Hello from Middle Tennessee! I would love to hold this book in my hands and read and reread.
“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Well, maybe sometimes!
Linda I like to joke and tell people one of two things will happen, either I will get better or I will die. Like many others, I grew up in a poor family – never went without the necessities, maybe not the best, but had very little for our wants. . We seldom went to a doctor, just doctored our own self. I know this is not being smart but I hardly ever go to a doctor, it is serious if I do go. I think others go for every little ache, pain or scratch.
Goodness gracious, I thought for sure I had missed today’s email. But low and behold, here it is. I have never heard of the carbolic acid, but Castoria and Castor oil, yeppers, that did the trick for everything. Of course Vicks ran a close second. Who knows what the children of today would do with any of the old ways, but it did work for sure. Have a Blessed day and weekend. We are getting ready to do a bundle up as tonight it is suppose to be in the low 30s down here in upstate Florida. Praying for Granny’s strength to continue to rise.
Good morning everyone. I would be scared like Dorie if I drank poison like carbolic acid.
This book is my all time favorite. I sure would like to have my own copy.
I hope your mother is having good days and enjoying her pumpkin pie. Oh by the way, who cooked the green beans for Thanksgiving?
Blessings to all.
Brenda-Granny made them 🙂
You know we sometimes wonder how they survived childhood in the old days. There were a lot of strange or ‘different’ kind of cures back then, but many survived and thrived to live to an old age.
Sounds like mountain women knew how to take care of their own. I think the old ways are better in so many circumstances. But sure am glad my mama never made me take that acid.
Carolyn
Thankful for your blog and youtube channel.
words we still live by..keep the medicines away from the kids…
Thinking back to some of the remedies my Mammie shared to my mom when I was a little girl some 60+ years ago. I only wish I knew all of them to write down and share with future generations. Dorie was such a strong woman and such an interesting read.
Dorie Woman of the Mountains has been my favorite book you have read to us. I would love to be fortunate enough to win a copy. Thanks for all the happiness you bring to so many of us.
Good morning!! 32 degrees here with a beautiful Beaver Moon.
Had to look up carbolic acid – potent stuff – indeed it was used as an antiseptic in the late 1800s – but on medical instruments. Of course, we all know, necessity is the mother of invention.
God bless.
I think I would be scared too.
It’s amazing to me that these old remedies were commonplace. We don’t usually hear of these today. Thank you for sharing! I would welcome a copy of this book starring Dorie, and truly enjoy it. God Bless everyone here, especially Granny 🙂 Theresa in PA
That’s something I had never heard of.
Dorie Woman Of The Mountains is my favorite book you’ve ever read to us, I just loved it, and to know the stories were true and not so very far away from where I live makes it even more special.
Tipper, I don’t know when you will see this but I remember you mentioning that granny called up and wanted you to bring her some left over food down the other day when Matt had cooked for you on the wood stove. Did you say she requested a piece of pie? Tipper, idk if you or Granny knows this or not but, absolutely ALL SUGAR has to be eliminated out of the diet of someone battling CANCER. The sugar feeds the cancer cells therefore it continues to grow and live. No sugar starves it out and it can’t continue to grow so the cancer cells die out. My husband is a going on 6 year stage 4 lung cell cancer he went through radiation and chemo like Granny has. Please Tipper talk it over with the doctor if you need to but please cut out ALL SUGAR no matter what kind even Natual from and fruit sugar any sugar.. please for the love of God Almighty! Please except my true heart felt plea to you and Granny!