According to Sonia Roberts, tobacco journalist, medicated snuff accounted for around 64% of all snuff sold.in 1981. What the percentage is today remains unknown but medicated snuffs are still very popular.
Although commercially sold medicated snuff doesn’t appear to have a long history there seems to be doubt over when it was first introduced.
Medicated snuff (menthol or menthol and eucalyptus) was certainly available in the 1890’s. As far as I am aware, the earliest commercial medicated snuff was made by B.W & Co. in London, but I stand to be corrected. Picture of an early tin is shown below.
Silas Burroughs and Henry Wellcome were two American entrepreneurs with an interest in medicine. They operated their business from Snow Hill, London. The snuff, which also contained 1/6% cocaine, was recommended by chemists and druggists for relief from nasal catarrh. The earliest advertisement for their menthol snuff that I could find is dated 1895. However, as the London partnership of Burroughs and Wellcome dates from 1880 it’s likely that their earliest menthol snuff pre-dates 1895.
The 1920s saw the advent of J&H Wilson’s’ Finest Menthol Snuff’ and McChrystal’s ‘Original and Genuine’ snuff – still popular in 2024.
Dr. John Rumney of Stainmore Brough (born 1796) is often credited for concocting the earliest medicated snuff for himself and his patients but there is no evidence that it was ever sold commercially. Illingworth’s ‘Dr. Rumney’s Mentholyptus Snuff’ dates from December 1930 but I don’t know if it has any similarity with Dr. Rumney’s original concoction. Probably not since Dr. Rumney (whose portrait appears on the tin) had died sixty-nine years earlier in 1861.
Any additional comments on early medicated snuffs welcome.
