U of A PhD student and Museum Advisory Council President Caitlin Yoakum recently visited the University of Arkansas Museum to study the historical pharmaceutical collection. Just in time for Halloween, she delves into the “poison candy myth” and the unregulated, sometimes dangerous side of 19th and 20th century medications.

Candy from a Stranger

This time each year, many parents have feared that their trick-or-treaters may come home and bite into a candy bar that has an unknown substance, needle, or, the absolute worst, a razor blade. This fear is largely due to a “poisoned candy myth” that has persisted since Halloween celebrations at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution (Best and Horiuchi, 1985). In recent history, the Brothers Grimm and Walt Disney popularized Snow White biting into her infamous poisoned apple and perpetuating the fear that one of our basic necessities, food, was unsafe when provided by a stranger.

However, apart from the enduring legacy of Snow White, there has never been a proven case of a stranger using Halloween candy to murder a child (Best and Horiuchi, 1985; Kawash, 2013). At best, the myth has been used by some parents and caregivers to carry out premeditated murders of children in their care by attempting to blame strangers for the tampered candy (Brunvand, 2001). So why have we always been told by our parents to never – even outside of the Halloween season – take food or candy from strangers? Where did the poisoned candy myth come from and, more importantly, what does its perpetuation say about modern society?

Illustration of old woman trying to give an apple to Snow WhiteFigure 1. Snow White contemplating taking an apple from a stranger. Source: Flickr.

The Industrial Revolution facilitated numerous major societal shifts across the world. Most notably, the production of many goods would increasingly occur outside of a household. For the first time in human history, people were buying all types of processed and refined foods, drugs, and tonics that had been made by the hands of complete strangers. At this same point in history, the prescription of many doctors was experimenting with various natural and synthetic ingredients, which unintentionally led to negative health consequences in children.

The perfect storm of these major societal changes is claimed as the likely beginning of the modern poisoned candy myth (Kawash, 2013). There are numerous accounts of doctors citing “poisoning” as the cause of strange illnesses or symptoms in children that had eaten candy in the hours or days before. However, little to no investigation would be done to determine if poison was the culprit of the illness. The fact that many doctors (and more importantly the people they treated) took this at face value, shows just how far this myth had become a reality in the minds of early 20th century society. Yet if there are few, if any, scientific findings to support this myth, what events led to this myth becoming so commonplace in certain societies?

Unsurprisingly, it likely occurred during the most recent time period (excluding today) when society seemed to be in constant upheaval – the 1960’s and 1970’s. This was the time of the civil rights movement, women’s rights movement, satanic panic, and, importantly, the golden age of serial killers. In many instances, this time period led to a massive polarization on ideas, which fueled an immense fear of strangers, neighbors, friends, and family. For example, The New York Times warned parents in 1970 that Halloween treats were more likely to bring “horror rather than happiness” that year (Klemesrud, 1970). There were a few isolated cases of people being cruel to kids with their Halloween treats, such as a dentist giving out laxatives disguised as candy or a bitter woman giving older trick-or-treaters steel wool and dog biscuits to discourage them from taking away opportunities for candy from younger trick-or-treaters. Additionally, a month before Halloween of 1982, the infamous “Tylenol Murders” occurred which saw seven people die due to cyanide-laced pills prior to the advent of tamperproof bottles. Still, even with no strong evidence for poisoned Halloween candy over the past few centuries, many contemporary parents will undoubtedly and thoroughly search their children’s candy for opened wrappers and puncture wounds before their candy hauls may be consumed.

Medicine Cabinets of Yesteryear

Although the poisoned candy myth seems unlikely, it is not too farfetched when you take a tiny peek into medicine cabinets of yesteryear. Prior to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) taking a hard look at what is safe for consumption, many drugs had very little oversight in their production, distribution, and packaging methods. Using the University of Arkansas Museum Collections, we can get a unique insight into what the average 19th and 20th century person saw each time the medicine cabinet opened. For example, Green Forest, Arkansas was once a major distribution center for Bishop’s Pills (Figure 1), which were promoted as a surefire way to relieve irritable bowel symptoms and ulcers.

Bishop's Pills box
Back of Bishop's Pill Box

Figure 2. A box of Bishop’s Pills distributed throughout Arkansas from Bishop’s Drug Company. The list of ingredients (left) shows the highly toxic compounds used in the medicine. Source: Caitlin Yoakum.

This “relief” was due to a rather toxic concoction of ingredients which included Calomel (induces vomiting), Belladonna extract (one of the most toxic and deadly plants in the world), strychnine alkaloids (a highly toxic alkaloid from the seeds of the nux vomica tree), and Podophyllin (a cytotoxic agent that is now used to treat genital warts). When these ingredients are ingested orally, they can cause severe stomach cramping, vomiting, confusion, bone marrow suppression, and diarrhea. So, instead of providing a relief to irritable bowel symptoms and ulcers, this unregulated medicine was likely to be detrimental or fatal if taken in high enough doses.

Rumor has it that, by the 1890’s, there were more bottles of Grove’s Chill Tonic (Figure 2) sold in the United States than Coca-Cola – a surprising fact given that Coca-Cola contained a relatively high dose of cocaine until 1929. Although there is no data to support this, it seems likely that many households used this “tasteless” tonic to treat the fever and chills brought on by malaria.

The main ingredient is quinine, which is admittedly still used to treat aggressive malarial infections today but is no longer considered a first line treatment. However, this substance is highly controlled due to the serious negative side effects of too much quinine or too long of an exposure. These include, but are not limited to, deafness, low blood platelets, an irregular heartbeat, headache, ringing in the ears, trouble seeing, and sweating. Many individuals praised the medicine for its taste after lemon syrup was added to enhance the taste of the medicine.

Many of the bottles in our museum used morphine and opium as main ingredients – two highly controlled substances that are still in use today but are unlikely to be cherry flavored cough drops directed towards teething children. These drugs – while useful – were widely available to many people over the counter with very little instruction as to how to properly use them.

Grove's Chill Tonic box

Figure 3. The box a bottle of Grove’s Chill Tonic would have been purchased in. Source: Caitlin Yoakum.

Many of the bottles and packaging in our collection have large “POISON” labels and include potential antidotes if too much was ingested. For example, Vapo-Cresoline (Figure 3) was once heralded as a germicide that would cure all respiratory ailments, from whooping cough to the common cold. The consumer was directed to pour a small amount of Vapo-Cresoline into a kerosene lamp and allow the liquid to vaporize throughout the room. While this would have been a highly toxic substance if ingested and would therefore be dangerous to have lying around the house, there is little evidence it did anything useful even when inhaled.

Vapo-resolene bottle - front
Vapo-resolene bottle - back

Figure 4. Vapo-Cresoline front and side bottle. Used as an inhalant to solve a variety of respiratory problems, this bottle came with antidotes in the case of accidental internal ingestion. Source: Caitlin Yoakum.

In addition, silver nitrate (Figure 4) was once used to induce vomiting when dissolved in warm water and swallowed, even though this compound is a known poison. Today, we use silver nitrate as an anti-infective for burns and wounds and it is no longer considered an oral medication for any reason.

Finally, Digiglusin (Figure 5) is appropriately marked as a poison but is still in use today – under strict supervision of a physician. This medication is useful when a patient has heart failure as it strengthens the muscles of the heart and produces a stronger heartbeat. The list of common side effects only includes diarrhea, loss of appetite, headache, drowsiness, fatigue, confusion, blurred vision, irregular heartbeats, skin rash, breast enlargement, and severe stomach upset.

Silver Nitrate bottle
Digiglusin bottle

Figure 5. A bottle of silver nitrate pills, the intended use of which was to be dissolved in water and drunk to induce vomiting. Source: Caitlin Yoakum.

Figure 6. Digiglusin tablets used for congestive heart failure. Source: Caitlin Yoakum.

While each of these historical medicines were terrifying in their own right, my personal favorite and one that I wish was still over the counter today is Sa-tan-ic liniment (Figure 6). This spooky substance was used to cure muscle soreness, rheumatic pain, aches and pains due to exposure, simple neuralgia, toothache, bruises, sprains, strains, and minor cuts. Who knew capsicum, camphor gum, turpentine, and oil myrbane combined could solve essentially any minor ache or pain one could have?

I would not actually use the liniment, but the packaging alone could have convinced me to purchase it. Surprisingly, this bottle isn’t a response to the public satanic panic of the 1970’s and 1980’s, but this three-ounce bottle could be purchased for a mere 60₵ in the early 1900’s when it was first distributed. This ointment would likely produce a burning/tingling sensation on the skin – not unlike the modern day icy hot. However, modern day icy-hot will actually treat aches and pains whereas Sa-tan-ic liniment would do very little.

Sa-tan-ic Liniment Bottle

Figure 7. Sa-tan-ic Linament that could be used to treat a variety of aches and pains, but was only intended for external use. Source: Caitlin Yoakum.

Our museum has a wonderful collection that teaches us about the society and culture of medicine throughout the 20th century and the dangers that many of these medications would have posed. Many of these – sold over the counter and with little regulation – could have produced disastrous effects if taken by vulnerable individuals or in too high of doses. But did the constant label of “POISON” on so many medications plant a seed in the mind of everyday people that strangers want to poison us? Maybe. Would strangers that had access to many of these medications every day have the potential to do so? Absolutely. One thing that is for certain – particularly after researching these artifacts – I have never been more grateful for the strict regulations imposed on all drug companies to make sure that what we use is safe and well-researched.

Halloween 2020 will likely be different with COVID-19 and require special procedures to keep everyone safe. But whenever you next trick-or-treat, this year or next, trust the stranger handing out the full-size Snickers bar in a Frankenstein mask! Let your children wander the neighborhood (with a supervised eye) and approach the houses with porch lights on! Keep two pumpkin buckets on hand in case the first fills up before the night is over! You will be safe in assuming that the only reason you will need to tell the children you are checking their candy for poison and needles is so that you can secretly stash away the good ones for your own consumption.

LITERATURE CITED

Best J (1993). Threatened Children: Rhetoric and Concern about Child-victims. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.

Best J, Horiuchi GT (1985). The Razor Blade in the Apple: The Social Construction of Urban Legends. Social Problems 32(5): 488-499.

Brunvand JH (2001). Encyclopedia of Urban Legends. W.W. Norton Company and Inc. New York, NY.

Davis AB (2005). Halloween and Devil’s Night: the Linked Fates of Two Folk Festivals. Found at: http://missourifolkloresociety.truman.edu/Missouri%20Folklore%20Studies/devilsnight.htm

Kawash S (2013). Candy: A Century of Panic and Pleasure. Faber and Faber, Inc. New York, NY.

Kemesrud J (1970). Those Treats May Be Tricks. The New York Times. Pg. 56.