Rexall Drug on Menaul, and other pharmacies like it, have disappeared from the landscape taking with them their neighborhood pharmacist; candy counter, medical supplies and magazines. What about other old drug store trappings – the apothecary, show globe and mortar and pestle? Are they all gone, too?
Photo: Dr. John A. Pieper, dean and professor, College of Pharmacy
The University of New Mexico College of Pharmacy skillfully educates the modern pharmacist, but also cherishes the history of both the practice and the college. The college currently houses, in very tight quarters, memorabilia from the profession and the professionals who have served communities statewide.
Pill Collector
Dr. John A. Pieper, dean and professor, College of Pharmacy, is equal measure teacher and curator. He recently took a several pharmacy students and a U-Haul to Hobbs where they picked up wood and glass apothecary cabinets replete with current and classic chemical concoctions that belonged to Curtis Lindersmith, Jr. R.Ph., a 50-year pharmacist who owned and operated Nizhoni Pharmacy in Gallup for 30 years.
“For us to accept a collection as large and vast as this one, it had to be appraised first. Pieper said. He said that Lindersmith died in 2005 and that the collection included items dating to the 1910s and 20s with the more recent items dating to the mid 1960s. The cabinets and medicines now grace the dean’s conference room.
Museum of Medicines
One small room in the college is dedicated to housing the museum. The show globes, a traditional medicine display, photos of the college’s early leaders, and even a pre-statehood pharmacist’s license vie for space in the tiny room.
UNM Pharmacy retired faculty member William Fiedler collected items. “We’ve had people donate items to the collection continually over the years,” Pieper said, noting that some of the museum materials are in storage.
A small case at next to the college’s entrance also features a number of items including the original metal College of Pharmacy sign. The college’s first home, from 1948-75, was in what is now the Biology Annex, designed by John Gaw Meem. The 8,000 square foot facility was built for a staggering $150,000.
“Roy Bowers, the first dean of the college, raised money to have Meem design a sign. They raffled off a rod and reel at the state pharmacy association to raise the $250 needed to have it made,” Pieper said.
The Walls Speak
The Biology Annex still bears evidence of its earlier role. Murals depicting traditional and modern medicines were painted in 1950. When the Biology Department took over the building in 1975, the murals were painted over; however, remnants of them remain above the dropped ceiling.
“We would like to see the murals restored and the building become a museum to honor the significant history of pharmacy in New Mexico,” Pieper said.
“Pharmacy is the oldest health professional education program at UNM. The college’s first 30 years were in that building. We recently exceeded 30 years in our existing facility,” Pieper said.
Michel Disco, a 1973 pharmacy graduate, has served as the college’s assistant dean for external programs for four years. She said that the women’s restroom in the Biology Annex still has a trashcan bearing its heritage as “Pharmacy” property.
The college counts its people among its treasures, including Frances Blair, who, in 1949, became one of the first pharmacy faculty members in the United States. Dennis Peña, class of ‘72, served for eight years in the state legislature and is one of four alumni of the College who have served in the New Mexico legislature.
“The College of Pharmacy has graduated 2,500 pharmacists. Of those, approximately 1,000 graduated when the college was in the original building. We would like to reclaim a piece of our history and expose the UNM community to our heritage,” Pieper said.
Media Contact: Carolyn Gonzales, (505) 277-5920; e-mail: cgonzal@unm.edu