Dr. Jayne's Tonic Vermifuge and Dr. Jayne's Sanative Pills, circa 1880
Few patent medicine companies were as successful and long-lived as the line of Dr. Jayne’s Family Medicines. Dr. David Jayne is credited with being one of the first manufacturers to use the almanac as a promotional device. Between 1843, the year he printed his first almanac, and 1930, the Jayne Company distributed over 500 million almanacs.
Jayne used intricate and well-crafted graphics to promote his products to potential customers, at least some of whom were illiterate. Jayne’s ads, with their finely engraved images, left a more vivid mark on the memory of the casual observer than a dozen pages of print. He spared no expense and commissioned detailed engravings on copper plate, partly to appeal to his customers’ sense of aesthetics, and partly to prevent counterfeiting.
Dr. D. Jayne & Sons, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
(Front side, advertising card)