In celebration of World Pharmacists Day, RCSI Heritage Collections are highlighting materials in the Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson (HCR) Pharmaceutical Chemists collection and marking events which have occurred to celebrate the release of the collection to the public.
The collection was donated to RCSI Heritage Collections in October 2023, by Michael and Christopher Shiell, both great-grandsons of one of the company’s founders, Henry Conyngham. The Shiell brothers worked as joint-managing directors of the company until the pharmacies were sold to Boots in 1998. The following blog post will outline brief historical context of the company and its founders and will then explore some collection highlights and end with how researchers can access the collection.
Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson Pharmaceutical Chemists:
Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson Pharmaceutical Chemists was founded in 1897 by William Hayes (1843-1918), Henry Conyngham (1845-1931) and Sir Thomas W. Robinson (1864-1946). Already established chemists, William Hayes bought a premise at 12 Grafton Street in 1864, and this location eventually became the headquarters of HCR. Henry Conyngham acquired his medical hall in 1879 which was located on Upper Baggot Street and Sir Thomas Robinson had bought the branch business of John Evans in Kingstown (now Dún Laoghaire) in 1889.
In 1897 they came together and decided to amalgamate their businesses which led to one-hundred years of business trading as Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson Ltd., or Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson Pharmaceutical Chemists. Some of the founders, most notably William Hayes and Sir Thomas Robinson, were active and involved in the wider pharmaceutical profession. The former (William Hayes) was one of the founders of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland and a member of the first council of the society in 1875 and elected its president in 1891 and he remained a member of the society until 1895. The latter (Sir Thomas Robinson) was vice president of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland from 1891 to 1892 and president from 1938 to 1940 and he also served as an examiner in pharmacy. He was also the first president of the Dublin Drug Association which was founded in 1909 and later renamed the Dublin & Provincial Retail Drug Association as it expanded over time. The successor to this association was the Irish Drug Association which dates to 1935, and this was absorbed into the Irish Pharmacy Union.
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| RCSI/HCR/11/03/84 |
RCSI/HCR/11/03/85
RCSI/HCR/11/03/86
Collection Highlights: Advertisements, Price Lists & Marketing Materials
The advertisements, marketing materials and price lists were a very fascinating and visually stunning section of the collection. From Harley’s Rodine Rat Poison, to Jane Seymour Beauty Services, to Phosferine, to Marshall’s Red Mixture to ‘Something about Sheep’ these advertisements, marketing materials and price lists not only provided patrons with practical information on the products being sold but they also provide a glimpse into the social trends and the practical, fashionable as well as medicinal needs of society at particular points in time.
RCSI/HCR/02/01/17,
RCSI/HCR/02/01/26, RCSI/HCR/02/03/21, RCSI/HCR/02/03/08 & RCSI/HCR/02/03/25
Collection Highlights: Indentures of Apprentices
The collection also boasts three early twentieth century indentures which
employed three men to apprentice to Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson Pharmaceutical Chemists at different stages in the early 20th century. The first indenture dates to August 30th, 1909, and was made between HCR and Frank Strahan to apprentice and learn the trade of pharmaceutical chemist and druggist for a period of four years. The second indenture dates to October 8th, 1918, and was made between Valentine Guy Bowen and HCR to apprentice and learn the art of pharmaceutical chemist, retail chemist and druggist for a period of four years. The third indenture dates to September 1st, 1923, and was made between HCR and Patrick James Purcell for a period of four years to apprentice and learn the art of a pharmaceutical chemist. Interestingly, the first two indentures make general references to conduct and obeying the ‘masters’ who in this case are Messrs Hayes, Conyngham and Robinson Limited of Grafton Street however, the indenture from 1923 between HCR and Purcell takes the regulation of the apprentice’s conduct a step further by stating that:
‘He shall not commit fornication, or contract matrimony, within the said Term. [...] He shall not play at cards, Dice Tables, or any other unlawful games, whereby his said Master may have loss with his own or other Goods during said term Without License of his said Master he shall not Buy or Sell. He shall not haunt or use Taverns, Ale-houses, or Playhouses, nor absent himself from his said Master’s Service Day or Night, unlawfully, but in all things as an honest and faithful apprentice, he shall behave himself towards his said Master, and all his during the paid Term.’
What was interesting about the indentures was certainly the language and terminology used as well as how the stipulations began to differ between the indentures, but also the commentary they provided on the educational commitment needed to become a qualified pharmaceutical chemist or a registered chemist or druggist. The education required to become a pharmaceutical chemist included courses in various subjects relating to pharmacy such as botany, chemistry and Materia Medica along with apprenticeships as these indentures demonstrate. While the structure of the current qualifications in becoming a pharmacist has evolved and changed quite drastically based on advancements and research in the field and new methods of learning, etc., the combination of classroom learning and practical work through placements, still remain core elements of pharmaceutical education and luckily for students now, a game of cards or dice and the odd jaunt to the “tavern” are not as restricted any more.
What was interesting about the indentures was certainly the language and terminology used as well as how the stipulations began to differ between the indentures, but also the commentary they provided on the educational commitment needed to become a qualified pharmaceutical chemist or a registered chemist or druggist. The education required to become a pharmaceutical chemist included courses in various subjects relating to pharmacy such as botany, chemistry and Materia Medica along with apprenticeships as these indentures demonstrate. While the structure of the current qualifications in becoming a pharmacist has evolved and changed quite drastically based on advancements and research in the field and new methods of learning, etc., the combination of classroom learning and practical work through placements, still remain core elements of pharmaceutical education and luckily for students now, a game of cards or dice and the odd jaunt to the “tavern” are not as restricted any more.
RCSI/HCR/01/01/07
Collection Highlights: Register and Sale of Poisons
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RCSI/HCR/01/04/01 |
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| RCSI/HCR/04/02/04 |
Collection Highlights: Formula Books
Another significant and incredible subsection of the collection were the Formula Books. Thesecontained lists of ingredients for various remedies, medicines and tinctures such as ‘Elixir of Nitrous Ether’, ‘Elixir of Saccharin’, ‘Elixir Simplex’, ‘Rosemary Hair Wash’ as well as Conyngham’s ‘Anticholera Mixture’ and were handwritten in bound volumes. During a stakeholder event that the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences held a couple of months ago, we were asked to put together a small exhibition of material and some of the formula books were part of the items chosen. It was very exciting and fascinating to see everyone at the breakfast engaging with the material and commenting on what the remedies, etc., were being used to treat and how some of these formulas still provide the basis for how a variety of illnesses are treated today.
Collection Highlights: Medicine and Product Labels
Related to the formula books, is the fabulous collection of medicine and product labels in the collection which were sold in the HCR pharmacies. These included:Almond Oil
Ammoniated Tincture of Quinine
Aromatic Spirit of Sal-Volatile
Basilicon Ointment
Chillie Paste
Clarke’s Blood Mixture
Cod Liver Oil
Colocynth and Hyoscyamus Pills
Compressed Tablets of Saccharin
Cream of Tartar
Cyanide of Potash (Poison)
The Dublin Cough Mixture
Doctor Rubin’s Concentrated Spirit of Camphor
Dr. Erasmus Wilson’s Celebrated Lotion for Fixing the Hair (I showed my hairdresser a picture of this label and she was equal parts fascinated and horrified)
Egyptian Syrup of Figs
Essence of Jamaica Ginger
Dr. Blaud’s Ferruginous or Iron Pills
Finest Mitcham Lavender Water
Fragrant Tincture Myrrh for the Teeth and Gums
Genuine Bear’s Grease
Eau de Cologne Johann Maria Farina
The names, descriptions and artwork on each of the labels was striking and such a contrast to the packaging we see today in modern pharmacies. The detail that went into the packaging and the language used to describe the products had such an air of confidence using words such as ‘purity’, ‘eminent’ and ‘efficacious’.
RCSI/HCR/04/01/38
Collection Highlights: Contraception in Modern Ireland
The collection also charts the role that pharmaceutical chemists’ played in promoting public health throughout the 20th century in the state and one item that sparked yet another need to research further was a photocopy of an editorial entitled ‘The Sale of Condoms’ which was, as the name suggests, surrounding contraception in Ireland in the 1980s/90s. The article can be referenced in conversation with Section 17 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1935 making the importation and sale of contraceptives illegal and the Censorship of Publications Act 1946, which banned books about family planning or contraceptives. Up until the much of the activism and campaigning that took place in the 1970s, the Irish public had very significant barriers in accessing resources and methods for asserting their own agency when it came to family planning and sexual relationships.2 After a series of legislation (Health (Family Planning) Act, 1980) and the Health (Family Planning) (Amendment) Act, 1985, the sale of non-medical contraceptives (condoms and spermicides) without a prescription was allowed to people over 18 at pharmacies, however it was still illegal to advertise contraceptives and use of the birth control pill remained restricted. In addition, the amended Act had an anomaly, and that was that while a pharmaceutical chemist and a dispensing chemist and druggist could sell contraceptives, any pharmacy owned by a limited company were still unable to sell contraceptives and HCR happened to fall into this category. This excerpt, in my view, represented a very important moment in Irish public health and a very important moment in advocating for autonomy over one’s reproductive health and sexual choices as well as the Irish public’s right to make their own decisions on what their families would look like for them.
RCSI/HCR/02/02/18
Collection Highlights: The 1916 Rising
The collection also includes an account by Frederick Robinson, a son of Thomas Robinson on the 1916 Easter Rising. It is incredibly fascinating as it provides an ordinary citizen’s experience of witnessing the Rising and their perspective on the conflict. Frederick explains in the account how they first came to realize what was happening in Dublin and how two days after the start of the conflict on April 26th, “Tom and [himself] though[t] [they] would go as far as [they] could into town town [sic] as things seemed so quiet”. He goes on to say, “[the] day was one of the hottest of that week and more fit for bathing than battling”. My favourite excerpt from the account is the following:“[We turned] up the nearest side street and [found] ourselves at the corner of Merri[o]n Sq. Things were quiet here so we thought a visit ought to be paid to Stephens Green. Up one side of the Square and down Baggot St brought us the Shelbourne Hotel corner of the Green. Here there were a fair crowd of people in spite of the crossfire going on between the Rebels in the College of Surgeons and the Military in the Shelbourne Hotel. The Rebels had at this time evacuated the Green. The only things of note to be seen here the barracades [sic] of Motors across the street in front of the Shelbourne Hotel and the barricaded entrance and windows of the Hotel itself. [....] The firing here was becoming too frequent to be enjoyable so we set off for home again, down Baggot St and Pembroke Rd. To Ballsbridge arriving 12 oc.”
RCSI/HCR/10/01/21
Collection Highlights: The Robinson Family Photographs
The archive also boasts a large photographic |
| RCSI/HCR/11/04/02 |
Heritage Week 2025: From Apothecaries to Innovation
As part of the heritage week celebrations in August and to celebrate the launch of the Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson Pharmaceutical Chemists collection on RCSI Heritage Collections online catalogue and digital collections platform, a talk was planned which explored the history of pharmacy, the Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson Pharmaceutical Chemists archive collection and current innovations in the world of pharmacy. Professor Judith Strawbridge (Director of Education, RCSI School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences), Erin McRae (Project Cataloguing Archivist, RCSI Heritage Collections) and Professor Helena Kelly (Head of School, RCSI School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences) each presented in order of the themes listed and the heritage week event included a reception for the Shiell family along with their friends and other members of the public.
From left to right:
Erin McRae (Project Cataloguing Archivist), Professor Helena Kelly (Head of
School, RCSI School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences), Professor Judith
Strawbridge (Director of Education, RCSI School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular
Sciences), Professor Tracy Robson (RCSI Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic
Affairs), Michael Shiell (Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson Pharmaceutical
Chemists archive collection donor and ex-joint managing director of HCR),
Professor Cathal Kelly (RCSI Vice Chancellor and Registrar) & Christopher Shiell
(Hayes, Conyngham & Robinson Pharmaceutical Chemists archive collection
donor and ex-joint managing director of HCR)] Copyright: Maxwell Photography