Kilmer House

Fred Kilmer In 1889, one of the most remarkable employees in the history of Johnson & Johnson arrived at our growing array of buildings as our new director of scientific affairs.  Just as the arrival of Robert Wood Johnson had created a whirlwind of excitement and activity at Johnson & Johnson, the entrance of the quiet, more introverted Fred Kilmer was about to do the same. Modern Methods of Antiseptic Wound Treatment: Published in 1888, it helped spread the adoption of antiseptic surgery. Since Kilmer had put together the groundbreaking Modern Methods of Antiseptic Wound Treatment fo

When Johnson & Johnson founders Robert Wood Johnson, James Wood Johnson and Edward Mead Johnson were born in the mid-1800s, one of the most basic developments in science and medicine that we take for granted today -- an understanding of the causes of infection – hadn’t been discovered.  During the Johnson brothers’ early years, that scientific discovery and its practical application to surgery would completely transform medicine.  In 1886 (125 years ago!), those brothers, now grown up, built on that discovery and its application.  How?  They started a business to make the first mass produc

By the time Fred Kilmer wrote back to Sir Joseph Lister in 1891, he was able to describe in great detail the Company’s sterilization and manufacturing procedures – including our Aseptic Room, the steam sterilizers and the water filtration system.  These high-tech facilities and pioneering equipment were all made possible by another partnership during the early days of Johnson & Johnson: the partnership between science and engineering as personified by James Wood Johnson and Fred Kilmer. Mr. Science…meet Mr. Engineering. Fred Kilmer (left) and James Wood Johnson (right) When James Wood John

Surgery before it was sterile, with the surgeons in street clothing, and a complete lack of aseptic procedures. Although it seems hard to believe today, as recently as the late 1800s the concept that surgery should be sterile was still facing an uphill battle.  Some people found it hard to believe that invisible “germs” (as they were called) were causing the high rates of post-surgical infections.  Others (some surgeons included) still believed that infections weren’t caused by germs at all, which inclined them to view sterile surgery as an unnecessary affectation.  Surgeons who did want to tr

While we generally think of benchmarking as a modern concept, it’s something that has been around for a long time. (The name has its origins in the horizontal markings surveyors chiseled into stone buildings centuries ago in Europe.)  For a business, benchmarking is critical, so it comes as no surprise that getting out of the office to see what others are doing is a longstanding tradition at Johnson & Johnson.  In fact, in 1899, Fred Kilmer went to Europe on a working vacation to do just that:  benchmarking. In 1899, the U.K. (home to Sir Joseph Lister) and Germany (home to microbiology p