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Margaret Gurowitz is Chief Historian, Johnson & Johnson, and is a member of the Corporate Communication department.

Kilmer House

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CHAPTER 95

If A Train Leaves Chicago...

By Margaret Gurowitz
Sep 30, 2009
chicago-temple-radio
The old Temple Radio Plant in Chicago It’s 1933 -- the depths of the Great Depression.  The economy is struggling, the U.S. has a staggering 25% unemployment rate, and the New Deal legislation is in its early stages.  Most of American industry is cutting back.  But for Johnson & Johnson, it’s time to open a plant in Chicago.  Like everywhere else, Chicago had been hit hard by the Depression, but 1933 did hold some bright spots.  Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry opened in 1933.  Chicago hosted the World’s Fair that year, highlighting a century of progr
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CHAPTER 96

Seabury & Johnson

By Margaret Gurowitz
Oct 31, 2009
Wood & Tittamer
Question:  How many of the three Johnson & Johnson founders also started another successful company?  Answer:  Two of them. Readers of Kilmer House know that Edward Mead Johnson left Johnson & Johnson in the 1890s to found another business, based on products to help infant digestion – a business that is still around today.  But did you know that Company founder Robert Wood Johnson was a founding partner in another health and medical products business before Johnson & Johnson?  That business was Seabury & Johnson.  Here’s the story: Wood & Titt
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CHAPTER 20

Medicated Plasters

By Margaret Gurowitz
Apr 30, 2007
Plasters
Delivering medicine through the skin seems like the latest cutting-edge innovation, but it’s actually very old.  In fact, some of the first Johnson & Johnson products delivered medications in that way over 100 years ago: medicated plasters.  Medicated plasters were a way for people to apply a treatment directly to an affected area of the body.  They were made up of an India rubber base impregnated with a variety of compounds that delivered pain relief and a variety of medicines.    These plasters had a fabric backing and were covered with crinoline (a ty
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CHAPTER 97

Les Paul and LISTERINE®

By Margaret Gurowitz
Oct 31, 2009
TV Sponsorship ID for "Les Paul and Mary Ford at Home"
When people think of LISTERINE® Antiseptic, probably the last thing they think about is electric guitars.  But they should, because LISTERINE®  and the electric guitar go back more than half a century together.  What was the connection?  It was through Les Paul (1915-2009), one of the inventors of the solid body electric guitar, who passed away this summer at age 94.  The LISTERINE®  Brand sponsored his groundbreaking television show in the 1950s. This on-screen sponsorship ID appeared at the beginning of every episode of Les Paul and Mary Ford at Home Start
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CHAPTER 98

The Transcontinental Dinner

By Margaret Gurowitz
Oct 31, 2009
Hotel Klein
Today we take new technologies like high-tech videoconferencing, instant messaging, Twitter and video chats for granted.  But that wasn’t always the case.  Ninety-three years ago (on May 29th, 1916, to be exact), Johnson & Johnson took part in a demonstration of the latest cutting-edge technology:  the opening of the first transcontinental telephone line opened between New Brunswick, New Jersey and San Francisco, California.  The demonstration was such a big deal that it was held at a special Transcontinental Dinner at one of the leading hotels in New Brunswick, New Jer
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CHAPTER 99

Are You Tough Enough for the Aseptic Room?

By Margaret Gurowitz
Oct 31, 2009
Johnson & Johnson Aseptic Dressing Label 1899
Regular readers of Kilmer House have read about the aseptic, or sterile conditions that Johnson & Johnson maintained over 100 years ago in order to manufacture the first mass produced sterile surgical dressings and sterile sutures.  So I thought it would be interesting to post some of the rules for our Aseptic Department from 1897:  112 years ago. You Can’t Do That!  A list of what not to do from 1897 Don’t allow a dressing to touch your person or clothing, unprepared tables, tools or apparatus. Don’t touch any other person. Don’t touch a dressing with hands that are not s
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CHAPTER 100

The Incredible 30 Year Ad

By Margaret Gurowitz
Nov 30, 2009
Feels Good on the Back ad
What Johnson & Johnson ad was so popular that people were inspired to make their own versions of it?  Hint:  the ad ran for an incredible 30 years and, when the Company tried to update it, consumers protested.  Here’s another hint:  the ad contained one of our most memorable advertising slogans, and it advertised a product that most people today have never heard of. The Ad that Launched a Thousand Tributes The ad was for RED CROSS® Kidney Plasters, and the tagline was “Feels Good on the Back.”  RED CROSS® Kidney Plasters were one of the Company’s most popular medi
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CHAPTER 101

Wonderful Mother

By Margaret Gurowitz
Nov 30, 2009
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln, Sixteenth President of the United States...and the inspiration behind one of our most popular ads.
Some of the most beautiful and appealing ads in the history of the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies are the historical ads for JOHNSON’S® Baby Powder.  One of the most popular of those ads – and still a favorite today -- is the Wonderful Mother ad from 1922.  But did you know that the ad was inspired by Abraham Lincoln?  Read on to find out why. The Wonderful Mother ad appeared in the leading magazines of its day, such as Women’s Home Companion.  The centerpiece of the ad is a beautiful illustration of a mother looking down at her sleeping baby.  Her arm is protectively around her ot
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CHAPTER 102

Behind the Scenes of Our History

By Margaret Gurowitz
Dec 31, 2009
Here’s another special behind the scenes video tour of some lesser known items from Johnson & Johnson history.  If you’ve ever wondered where the last loading dock for horse drawn wagons at Johnson & Johnson is located, which unusual 1960s fashion was made by one of our operating companies, why we once made doll clothing, and how we got from medicated plasters to JOHNSON’S® Baby Powder, you’ll know the answers to all of those questions after you watch this post.   You’ll also be able to see -- for the first time -- letters from two of our founders written
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CHAPTER 103

1959: McNeil Laboratories Joins the Family

By Margaret Gurowitz
Dec 31, 2009
McNeil Pharmacy
The Origins of our McNeil Business -- the Mc Neil Family Pharmacy Retail pharmacies have been important in Johnson & Johnson history for a number of reasons.  Before the days of supermarkets, they were the places that sold our products to consumers – from medicated plasters to Lister’s Dog Soap to JOHNSON’S® Baby Powder to BAND-AID® Brand Adhesive Bandages.  But retail pharmacies are also a big part of our history in another way:  if it hadn’t been for them, Johnson & Johnson – and some of its operating companies – might not be here at all.  Why is that? 
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About the Writer
Margaret Gurowitz is Chief Historian, Johnson & Johnson, and is a member of the Corporate Communication department.

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About

This blog is a way to tell some of the stories about the early days and history of Johnson & Johnson, and the people who worked here.

  • More about the author
  • More about the blog
  • Museum Artifacts Drive

Recent comments

11 From 1888 to 2013: Celebrating the 125th Birthday of the First Aid Kit
45 Collect a Piece of Johnson & Johnson History: BAND-AID® Brand Adhesive Bandages Tins!
1 Are You Tough Enough for the Aseptic Room?
16 We Made WHAT?! Continued...
39 The Woman Who Invented Duct Tape

CATEGORIES

Did You Know?
Beginnings
People
Employees
Early Products
Events
New Brunswick
Iconic Products
Innovations
Milestones
Traditions
Johnson & Johnson
Advertising
Anniversaries
Landmarks
Local Interest
Connections
Early Science & Tech
Community
Unusual Products
Trivia
International
Partnerships
Video Posts
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Sir Joseph Lister
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