Drug Store Ledgers - December, 2014

December 21, 2014

Porter House Register

Example of prescription page

Recently, three large, heavy ledgers were donated to the Kings County Museum in Kentville Nova Scotia from a local family.  Inside are literally hundreds of prescriptions filled by the earliest drug stores in the town and pasted on the pages.  The prescriptions date from 1868 to 1899.  One ledger is labelled Porter House Register as shown in the photograph but inside is prescriptions written by Dr. W. S. Woodworth a "specialist in women's diseases".  There are also a few pages near the end that list names and dates of visitors at the Porter House.  Another is from the L. J. Cogswell drug store,  the first in Kentville opened on Main Street in September 1868.  The third is from the R. S. Masters drug store also opened on Main Street and active from 1884 until 1899.  These ledgers represent an important record of medical practise at the time which was much different from modern times.

All of these ledgers have condition issues particularly with the covers.  Only the Porter House Register ledger has a relatively good cover.  The others are loose and very worn.  An assessment found the following condition issues:

• white mould and dust (mould is no longer active)
  

  

  Insect holes in ledger binding

• insect holes (insects are no longer active and none were found)
• debris such as cement and solder in between some pages!
• small leaves and branches in several pages
• tears and folds
• water staining and ink smearing therefrom
• rust coloured patches
• black dust
• writing on inside cover
• torn binding
• dried, loose adhesive
• mouldy, musty smell

These ledgers represent a considerable challenge in conservation.  There are a few basic things that we can do with a limited budget but the best course of action would be to contract a paper conservator to rebind and stabilise all three ledgers.   Essentially restructuring each ledger to handle the weight and fragility.   Given that we are a small community museum with a very limited budget this work would be outside our budget.  The challenge for us will be to find an organisation that would be willing to fund this work.  Perhaps a pharmacy or a medical organisation?  However, I was able to vacuum each page with a soft brush attachment using a vacuum with a HEPA filter.  There was a considerable amount of dust removed and all this work was done with a mask and gloves.  Several researchers have looked at these and needed to wear this protective gear.  Once it was vacuumed the mask is not necessary unless the individual has allergy issues but I do recommend it in all cases.  Secondly, we can put a sheet of acid free paper in between each page to facilitate long term storage by isolating each page from the other.  This reduces the influence of acids used in the paper making process from leaching into other pages.

These ledgers are a fascinating read of the drug store dispensing practises of the time.  I leave you with a photograph of my favourite thus far.  A recipe for a
liver pill using widely available ingredients dated from 1891 made up of rhubarb, dandelion and Podophelium (extract from the fruit of the Mayapple plant).  All parts of this latter is poisonous except for the fruit which can cause "unpleasant digestion".  Please don't try this at home!!!!

Time Capsule Contents (Continued) - December 9, 2014

December 9, 2014

In June of 2014 we opened a time capsule that held three newspapers, two business cards and seven handwritten pages.  These handwritten pages found in the Kings County Academy (Kentville, Nova Scotia) time capsule from 1929 have been transcribed by a volunteer at the museum.  Most pages have faded or missing letters or words.  In some cases these can be inferred via context but the transcription author acknowledges it does introduce the possibility of errors in transcription.  As you will see he has marked in red those places where he had to make a judgement call on what was written.  Sadly there are a few passages where it is unknown.  On the other hand, this document is a priceless record of the state of the school district from 1888 until 1927 (earliest and latest dates mentioned).

The original author is unknown since it was not signed.  But by not signing we can infer the intent was to give an overview rather than a personal account.  Certainly, it does give an overview of the changes to the school including the names and terms of the Principals, changes to curriculum, classes offered, library initiatives, staffing changes and so on.

We are grateful for the considerable time and effort on the part of our transcriber who continues to selflessly devote many hours to all things historical.  It is just such volunteers who are the mainstay of our community museum.

Previous posts related to the Time Capsule in this blog have had photographs of some of the handwritten pages which show the faded lettering and water staining.  All of these entries and additional related information may yet become part of an exhibit on the history of education in Kings County.

I have attached a link to the transcription in PDF form below.  Anyone who may have additional information on this important educational history can let us know at the museum.  See our website Kings County Museum for contact details.

NOTE: the abbreviation ms in this document refers to the handwritten pages as manuscript.

KCA Time Capsule Handwriting Transcription

Teapot Repaired - Randall House Museum

August 19, 2014

I was asked to repair a broken teapot at Randall House museum after it had been broken in transit on a flight from Alberta.  A set of china had been carefully wrapped in bubble wrap and placed in a hard shell carry-on bag but, sadly, the teapot split into two large pieces.  The good news is that the break was relatively clean and given that they were larger pieces were easier to handle for repair.

I would recommend that china and other fragile artifacts be packaged in layers of foam and tightly secured in a hard shell case to avoid movement while being transported.   Foam can be carved to the shape of the artifact both on a bottom and top layer which can then be wrapped to prevent movement.

Firstly, a general statement - conservators are not restorers.  Restoring is a very specialized field requiring considerable training and experience.  For example, ceramics restoration would require a solid grounding in chemistry to understand glazing, painting, firing, and general analysis of the many materials used in creating a ceramic piece.  A restorer would fill cracks and do colour matching for the plain parts of the repair and the coloured parts.  Their work can usually produce results that would be able to render the break (fracture) invisible to the naked eye.  As you can imagine, this is a time consuming and expensive process and therefore is normally only undertaken where budget permits.

Secondly, conservators can do minor repairs such as putting this teapot back together without the crack filling and colour matching.  Conservation work is normally done with the caveat that the repairs are reversible and at least visible under a microscope.  These are ethical considerations in all conservation work.

Here is a photograph of the teapot prior to the repair work.

Randall House Teapot - before repair

Tools and materials used in this repair....exacto-knife, wooden skewer (sanded to a fine point), small soft brush, and HMG B72 adhesive.

Here are the steps I took in the repair of the teapot....

• photographs are taken before and after the work
• using a small, soft brush I carefully brushed along the break on both pieces over a sheet of paper to see if any smaller fragments came loose....none did....and to make sure no loose pieces would hamper fitting the larger pieces together,
• apply a minimum amount of conservation grade adhesive along the break,
• hold the pieces together for at least two minutes by hand in this case but larger clamps can be used in some cases.  The adhesive used is flexible for two minutes and then hardens allowing for minor adjustments.
• carefully remove excess adhesive with an exacto-knife all along the join, inside and out.  The knife is held at a very flat angle to just pick away without doing further damage.
• examine the join by moving the exacto-knife from side to side at various points along the break to determine the evenness of the join.  If necessary, the join can be reversed and redone if not satisfactory.  The adhesive used can be softened with a hairdryer at a low setting.

Here is a photograph of the teapot with the excess adhesive and a gap showing.  The break did have a very few of the gaps and was otherwise a very clean break.  The small and minimal bits of adhesive were carefully removed with the exacto-knife.

Randall House Teapot - before clean-up

With this repair done the teapot can be put in a display with proper lighting and placed in such a way that the break would be either not visible or essentially invisible.  The break and repair along with this description now become part of the history of the artifact.

Time Capsule Contents (Continued) - July 19, 2014

July 19, 2014

Handwritten Page 1 - enhanced

Perhaps the most important artifact in the Time Capsule from June 19, 1929 is the seven handwritten pages discussing the Kings County school at the time.  The title on the first page is Kentville Schools and there is no signature at the end which likely signifies it is a short history of the school rather than a personal account.  From the first paragraph mentioning a report from 1888 it captures our attention considering it may hold information from that time until 1929.  I have a photograph of the first page which will help to set the tone for future transcription and exhibit.  Our intent is to show these pages sealed in mylar envelopes to prevent deterioration.  Mylar is used because it is inert and has been proven to be safe for longer term storage and display.  Mylar is one of several choices (polypropylene bags being another) in comic book storage particularly for Golden or Silver Age comics but also for any truly valuable comics.  Either types of bags are clear so can be used for display purposes. However, polypropylene bags may yellow over a longer period of time so is not the best choice.  Additionally, we can keep each page in the mylar envelope with an acid free backing board to ensure that it will not bend.   It is best for these pages to be unfolded once only and stored flat which we have now done.  Repeated unfolding may damage them.  Think of them as fibrous material which may break from repeated bending.  These pages are currently stored unfolded, flattened and in acid free folders pending purchase of mylar envelopes (on order).  Displaying them in an exhibit in mylar envelopes can allow for viewing of the pages which will show the public the handwriting, fading, staining, etc. of the original.  These are all important parts of the history of the artifact. 

Handwritten Page 7 - enhanced

Transcription of all seven pages will be done.  As you can see by the photographs there is some fading along the right side and water damage in a few spots.  This next photograph shows the last page which will be a challenge to transcribe due to more serious fading from water damage.  However, with the use of image enhancement software we can attempt to bring out the more faded writing.  You can also see that there is no signature at the bottom.  This begs the question, who is the author?   

Inks used in writing from the time period as with many other inks will fade over time.  Direct sunlight is particularly damaging so these pages will be displayed and stored away in a carefully controlled low light setting for exhibit and stored in acid free boxes for longer term storage in a humidity and temperature controlled environment.

I mentioned in the last post that there are techniques to bring out faded writing.  There are two worth mentioning: ultraviolet light (UV-A light or black light) and infrared light.  Both are light at a longer wavelength and depending on the ink used each may work better.  Since ultraviolet is the easiest and lower cost we would normally try it first.  It is commonly used to authenticate oil paintings, antiques, and bank notes.  Infrared light is more challenging because it uses more expensive equipment in a special setting.  The phrase "infrared reflectography" is used for a technique that will show underlying layers in oil paintings such as drawings used as a guide by the artist.  I mention these for use with the handwriting on the inside corner of the time capsule lid and possibly for some of the faded writing in the handwritten pages if it is necessary.

Conservation Tips:

Use mylar envelopes for storage of fragile paper, pamphlets, etc.  You can purchase these in various sizes from comic book stores or on-line.  Although more expensive than polypropyline it is well worth the extra expense.  Measure your artifact first to determine the best size to use.  Note: modern comics are smaller than 8.5 by 11 standard page size so be sure to order the correct size.  Most comic stores (at least in my area) stock the modern comic size only.

Always keep fragile papers away from direct sunlight and strong lighting of any kind.   Light is particularly damaging to inks and some papers.  You can bring these artifacts out from time to time to look at them but minimize light exposure.  In a museum environment lighting may be set to come on when someone enters a room to view them or limited to only a few hours of viewing.

Time Capsule Contents - July 2, 2014

July 2, 2014

Two weeks after the public opening of the time capsule I opened it again to start the conservation work necessary to record the objects as they are removed.  This photograph shows the tools I will use (starting from the far right):

Getting Ready

• an exacto-knife with a larger flat blade, 
• a probe flat on one end, pointed on the other, 
• a metal ruler for measurements, and 
• a pen and paper to take notes.

First thing was to take the capsule measurements:

• 18.8 cm long, 11 cm wide, and 8.5 cm tall including the lid, 
• 18.5 cm long, 10.5 cm wide, and 8.2 cm tall without the lid

The contents of the time capsule are (more details following):

• 7 handwritten sheets of paper
• 3 newspapers (details to come later)
• one small business card - Dominion Atlantic Railway 
• one large business card - Town of Kentville

The capsule reacted strongly to a magnet implying that it has high iron content.  The exterior and interior does show patches of reddish coloured corrosion which is another clue to iron content.  The lid was made of a single flat piece of metal with notches in the four corners and folded over to produce an edge.  One of the consequences of this is that there are minute openings in each corner which could allow moisture to enter the capsule.  Moisture was evident on opening day on the paper observed.

Small business card

Handwritten pages - pinned together

The first thing I noticed upon opening the lid was that the handwritten sheets of paper folded on the top were now loose from the sides of the capsule.  It is likely that it dried out to the point where it came loose.  However, the newspaper below it was still attached to the sides.  The folded up, handwritten pages came out easily with no tearing.  On the other side a small business card in very bad shape was attached to the paper but came loose very easily.  It is not easily readable but does have two lines printed in the lower left corner: Dominion Atlantic Railway and Engineer and Mechanical Supervisor.  The person's name in larger lettering is printed in the middle.  All is obscured by black spots and general deterioration.  It is very fragile and requires special handling.

Carefully releasing edges

Below this was a folded up newspaper with some parts attached to the sides of the capsule.  I used an exacto-knife with a larger, flat blade to scrape along the sides to loosen the attached bits.  This was done all around the sides.  The newspaper came loose after a few minutes with minimal damage.  This newspaper was dated April 18, 1929, two months before the capsule was placed.

Beneath this was another newspaper.  I was able to loosen the newspaper using the exacto-knife.   It was dated June 19, 1929.  The date the capsule was placed.

What is in the bottom?

Below this was a third newspaper and unlike the others this one had attached itself to some parts of the capsule beneath it causing slightly more tearing.  This could not be loosened via an exacto-knife due to the location.   However, it came out with only minimal damage.  Some bits of newspaper are left intact in the bottom of the capsule along with a very well preserved business card for a Mr. Henry Morse Kentville Town Clerk and Treasurer.  Although some small pieces of the newspapers were torn on removal all the text is readable except for the pieces shown at the bottom which will be left as is.

In my next blog entry I will show details of the handwritten pages.  It is currently being transcribed by one of our museum volunteers.  I will also write about the inscription on the inside corner of the lid.  There are a few techniques that can be used with the right equipment to make the inscription clearer.

Time Capsule Opened - June 19, 2014

June 27, 2014

85 year old time capsule

On June 19, 2014 at the Kings County Museum in Kentville, Nova Scotia I had the opportunity to open a time capsule 85 years to the day when it was deposited in 1929.  The capsule as shown in the photograph consists of a metal box approximately 10 cm wide, 10 cm high, and 25 cm long (exact measurements will be posted at a later date).  It was deposited in a granite block with a carved out space specifically made for it.  The capsule was one of two found on the site of the Kings County Academy, a decommissioned school demolished recently in Kentville, Nova Scotia.  It has corrosion on the outside and what appears to be patches of cement throughout the exterior.  The corners of the lid show gaps which introduced the possibility of moisture getting inside.  The other time capsule found onsite in fact was opened by demolition staff and was a mass of muddy brown watery material.  It has not been processed to see if anything solid is inside but will be at a later date.

First view after opening

I will explain the best approach in conservation of this historically precious artifact and its contents.  Keep in mind that the museum has a mandate to preserve and protect the cultural history of Kings County which means we must take the safest approach in examining, evaluating, documenting and exhibiting historical artifacts.  Most activities of this nature would be done in a laboratory setting where environmental conditions can be carefully controlled.  These photographs show the artifact outside of the sealed plastic envelope it was stored in.  It is kept in a humidity and temperature controlled and secure area until worked on and returned to it when done.  It is critical to maintain moisture levels at a steady state  to ensure the artifact and its contents do not dry out or become moist in high or low humidity levels too rapidly.  This latter condition can rapidly deteriorate some artifacts.

Documents close-up - water marks

Paper tearing from lid removal

The lid came open relatively easy with very little pressure applied.   As shown in photograph "First view after opening", inside was found two distinct collection of papers: one a handwritten letter of several pages folded and stuffed on top; below it is a newspaper page.  In both cases the papers show evidence of effects of moisture: both black and red spots as well as some other obvious water marks.  In addition both of these papers are obviously "fused" to the sides of the capsule and the bottom newspaper could be "fused" to something unknown below it.  The accompanying close-up photograph shows these in detail.  How did this occur?  It is quite possible that this is the result of repeated freezing and thawing cycles over 85 years.  Condensation will form on the surface of metals below 10 degrees Celsius.  The fusing presents a significant problem to their removal.  There is the possibility that the two documents could be fused together which means they could tear apart and destroy some of the writing if removed separately.  With some parts fused to the side it introduces more chances of tearing.  Another photograph (see lid inscription below) shows evidence of tearing in the corner of the handwritten page.  It is likely this occurred when the lid was removed.  

The best approach is to use a tool which is flat and narrow with a sharp edge to carefully break apart the papers fused to the sides and then carefully try to remove the papers as a package.  The other option might have been to apply a small amount of steam to the edges which might facilitate releasing them from the sides.  There are steam tools that can be used with a wand to pinpoint accuracy.  However, this is not a good choice in this case since the handwritten sheets are already showing evidence of moisture damage.  Where documents are "water fast" this would be a viable option.

Interior lid inscription

The inside of the lid shows bits of paper and an inscription initially transcribed as:

Ben (or is it Eric?) Schofield 
Rockwell Mtn 
June 19/29

On the left, centre in the photograph is a fragment of the handwritten paper torn from the pages.  This occurred when the lid was pulled off.

I will be doing further work on the capsule over the next few weeks and will post the results over time.  In all cases the contents and the capsule will be carefully measured, the handwritten letter transcribed, everything photographed and catalogued.  It is anticipated that an exhibit will be put together to show the results to the public at a later date.

Silver Artifacts Conservation - April 17, 2014

April 17, 2014

Small trophy - full view - before

Tarnish is formed on the surface of silver when it is subject to high humidity, moisture or air pollution.  The silver combines with sulphur in the air or moisture to form silver sulfide (AgS) which is black in colour.  Removing this black material is usually done by polishing with a soft cloth.  Silver is easily scratched when polished.  In fact, no matter what you use to polish it there will be minute bits of silver worn away each time you polish often only visible by using a microscope.  Over time this will become a critical issue with silver laminates since the silver itself can be worn down to the base metal.  Not only do the scratches become unsightly but then you may have the brass colour showing through in some other parts of the artifact.  Often the base metal is a copper alloy such as brass but can be many other types of metal.  This photograph shows a trophy with a black sheen of tarnish, silver laminate on a copper alloy base, dust on the wooden base, and a strip of scotch tape.  The tape was loosely attached at the top back edge (reason unknown).

Small trophy - close-up - before

Conservation of silver involves several steps but the intent is to avoid  or at least minimize scratching the surface.  This is accomplished by using the softest materials readily available and a few simple techniques.  There are many commercial silver polishes available that are widely used and certainly perform the polishing quite readily.  However, what many conservators use is precipitated calcium carbonate which is a more pure form of chalk that is very gentle in the polishing process.  This material can be purchased relatively cheaply at most pharmacies.  You need very little every time perhaps only a tablespoon which you mix with distilled water to make a paste.  So the combination of the chalk with no impurities and a pure form of water will combine to make a polishing substance with very limited chance of scratching.

Small trophy - close-up - after

Small trophy - full view - after

Always use nitrile gloves to handle the silver to reduce contact with the oils, salts, and ammonia found on skin.  With every artifact the first step is to gently wipe the surface with a soft cloth to remove dust or any other grainy substances that may be present.  Moistening the cloth with distilled water may be done as well.  The polishing paste is then applied to the silver artifact with a soft cloth.  I apply it gently in a circular motion over the area to be polished.  I usually do this twice and find that in most cases there is still a bit more tarnish removed a second time. The polishing process is finished by a gentle wiping with a clean soft cloth. Again, the cloth can be moistened with distilled water.  

Lastly, the best way to store silver is wrapped in acid free paper within a tightly sealed polyethylene bag and at a relative humidity of 40% or less.  There are some conservation grade treatments that can be applied as a layer to the surface.  Also, there are anti-tarnish strips that can be stored in the bag with the artifact wrapped in the acid-free paper so it does not come in contact with the strips.

These photographs are of a trophy that was conserved in this manner.  This trophy dates from 1950 and was awarded during the Apple Blossom Festival in Kentville Nova Scotia Canada.