# Dr. S. N. Thomas Electric Oil



## glassy eyed

I have a little bottle of Dr. S.N. Thomas electric oil . I'm looking at it and on the sides it is embossed with internal on 1 side and external on the other. I got curious about this as I originally thought it was oil for electric motors or something But I found it was medicinal.


----------



## David E

What size is the bottle Have three listed, will give you the short topic.
 DR S.N. THOMAS ECLECTRIC OIL INTERNAL EXTERNAL
 FOSTER MILBURN & CO.
 Advertised in 1888
 Long story also takes it to Canada .
 Glass Company of inventory of mould equiptment in 1926 indicates the firm was still producing hand-finished Electric Oil Bottles.
 Aqua 4 1/2"x 1 1/2" x 1"
 Aqua clear 5 1/2"x?x?
 Aqua 5 1/2"x2"x1"  Toronto . Ont.  Several sizes and varients, the clear vessels being the most recent.

 Dave


----------



## glassy eyed

Thanks Dave- The bottle I have is 5 1/4 " tall 2" wide 1 " deep  Clear? (although still very dirty) the seem goes right up through the lip. Is embossed  on back wit DR. thomas electric oil , embossed on each side internal on 1 external on other and embossed on the front with northrop and lyman co limited toronto ont. I say the front because it is indented . 

 Dave.


----------



## TheDiggerBoy91

That means it must date after 1926 but before 1935, so it must be ca. 1926-1935[]


----------



## woody

Watch the spelling.

 Electric vs. Eclectric


----------



## glassy eyed

You are correct it is eclectric  - I kind of like that word will incorporate it into my everyday vocabulary some how.  " My what an ecletric hairstyle you have  Miss" or  " I find your opinions on this matter to be quite eclectric"


----------



## rubycon

*RE: Dr. S. N. Thomas Eclectric Oil*

I have just found one of these bottles in 30 feet of water (on SCUBA) and two feet of mud with the cork intact and full of an orange liquid. The liquid has a VERY strong smell....like liniment or a strong rubbing compound.
 Any tips on sealing the cork and preventing evaporation?


----------



## deenodean

I just found 2 of those Northrop & Lyman Eclectric  Toronto . Ont. oil bottles in a dig yesterday in Nova Scotia...one had a crack in it and broke in two, the other is mint. Dr.S.N. Thomas is also on the front. .  Any value to these or are they common?


----------



## mctaggart67

Don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but most Dr. S.N. Thomas's Eclectric Oil, Toronto, Ontario bottles are very, very common. In fact, many diggers will leave them behind at digs for others to have for free and when sold at bottle shows up here they tend to go into the bargain boxes under the tables. BIMs date from the 1870s to the late 1910s. ABM cork-tops from around 1920 to the late 1920s. And ABM screw-tops from around 1930 to the 1960s when Northrop & Lyman disappeared when it went bankrupt. However, there are 4 variants to look out for that are sought by Canadian collectors:

 1) examples from Newcastle, C.W. (the C.W. stands for Canada West, the name for Ontario before Canadian Confederation in 1867) - run in the $75 to $150 range, depending on condition and crudeness of glass

 2) early 1870s Toronto, Ontario examples made in a hinge mould - run around $50

 3) 1880s/1890s Toronto, Ontario examples in which the embossing can be read correctly if the bottle is poured to the right while being held in the left hand (if you notice most horizontally embossed medicine bottles have embossing that can be read correctly the other way around: pouring to the left when held by the right hand) - run around $20 - $25

 4) late 1910s Toronto, Ontario BIM examples that are about twice the standard 4-ounce size (must be BIM and not ABM in this size!), of which I've only ever seen a few examples in 30+ years of collecting - run around $50 ????

 Of course, pre-1920 boxes and box inserts are nice to get, too. I'm afraid I cannot comment on American variants of Dr. S.N. Thomas's Eclectric Oil.

 Hope the above helps.    Cheers, Glen


----------



## blackstk

Is anyone willing to sell a Mint Condition Bottle?
 Kindly Advise,
 Kim


----------



## luckiest

Next one I find I'll bring home, if someone out there wants one.


----------



## |MDB|

> ORIGINAL:  mctaggart67
> examples from Newcastle, C.W. (the C.W. stands for Canada West, the name for Ontario before Canadian Confederation in 1867) - run in the $75 to $150 range, depending on condition and crudeness of glass


 
 I have two of the Northrop and Lyman Canada West and four from Ontario. They are fairly common in Atlantic Canada.


----------



## blackstk

Thank you!  
 I am looking to purchase a collectible bottle as well as trying to find out if the elixir is still available.  As a child, my Grandfather used to give me Eclectric Oil for cough and whatever else that ailed.  It really worked and I would love to obtain a fresh bottle or possible case.

 Kindest Regards,
 Kim


----------



## AntiqueMeds

I always wondered where that eclectric word came from.  It seems to be a made up word from a merging of electric and eclectic. 
 Wouldnt be the first fantasy word on a patent medicine.

 It always seems to confuse people, similar to the confusion with Burnetts Cocoaine.


----------



## dollarbill

I'd like one .I'll trade a barkwards z bromo for one.
   bill


----------



## |MDB|

.


----------

