Embracing Vitalized Air …with a Coupon: Dr. W. A. Dartt of Milwaukee

From a trade card of Dr. William Allen Dartt (1852 to 1917), the obverse (above) depicts two sleepy cherubs embracing in the moonlight as they balance precariously on a flowering sprig. The overprinting states, “This Card Good for VITALIZED AIR…. Unless this card is presented 50 Cents will be charged.” After writing his thesis on “Gold for Fillings” for his 1876 D.D.S. degree from the Philadelphia Dental College, Dartt struck gold again as Milwaukee’s leading advertiser of “vitalized air” a nesthesia (nitrous oxide adulterated by a trace mixture of ethyl alcohol with chloroform). Milwaukee city directories listed Dr. Dartt as practicing at this “97 Wisconsin Street” address from at least 1885 to 1886. (Copyright © the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ Wood Library-Museum of Anesthesiology.)
Source: Anesthesiology - Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: research