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In reading the literature, I found this interesting quote: "This (herb), which has slowly wedged its way into attention, is persistently forcing itself into conspicuity. The probabilities are that in a time to come, it will be ardently sought and widely used, for it is not one of the multitude that have flashed into sight, been artfully pushed, then investigated, found wanting, and next dropped out of sight and out of mind."
These words could have been written by any of the specialists in medicinal plants in recent years. But they come to us from a time when echinacea was first becoming known. To be specific, they were written by pharmacist, John Uri Lloyd (1849-1935) in 1904.
Echinacea first introduced pharmacologically in 1895
Lloyd, one of the most prominent historical figures in the history of American medicinal plants, introduced the first pharmaceutical preparations of echinacea in 1895, through his company Lloyd Brothers Pharmacists, Inc., of Cincinnati.
Lloyd had first learned of echinacea in the mid-1880s when he and his botanist brother, Curtis Gates Lloyd, received plant material from a self-styled physician in Pawnee City, Neb. -- Dr. H.C.F. Meyer. The latter made a patented medicinal blood purifier that included the roots of several plants whose uses he had learned from the Indians of Nebraska. One of those plants Meyer sent to the Lloyds for identification. Curtis Gates Lloyd identified the plant as Echinacea angustifolia.
Meyer, convinced of the herb's healing virtues, offered to come to Cincinnati to demonstrate the plant's powers against snake bite by allowing himself to be bitten by a rattlesnake. The Lloyds declined the bizarre offer. Instead, through the encouragement of Dr. John King, an important 19th century Eclectic physician, John Uri Lloyd made a preparation of the plant and gave it to Dr. King for further investigation.
The large number of extravagant claims made for the healing proper ties of echinacea strongly prejudiced Lloyd against it.
He wrote, in part, that, "However, Dr. King, with his usual thoughtfulness, consideration and care, proposed to investigate the matter, and from the drug forwarded by Dr. Meyer, I at once made for Dr. King several specimens of liquid preparations and then 1 passed the subject from my mind one among a multitude of such...