John Collis Browne
Army surgeon who invented Chlorodyne and a lasting cough remedy.
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via Wikipedia: John Collis Browne · see source
John Collis Browne (1819–1884) was a British Army officer and surgeon with the 98th Regiment of Foot who, during a cholera outbreak in India in 1848, created the medicine Chlorodyne. His formulation later saw widespread use as a general cure in the Crimean War.
After leaving the army in 1856, he partnered with chemist John Thistlewood Davenport at 33 Great Russell Street, assigning him the sole rights to manufacture and market 'Brown's Cough Bottle'. The product's addictive ingredients were eventually reduced due to abuse, and since the Medicines Act of 1968 it has been known as 'J. Collis Browne's Compound'. The Davenport family continued marketing it into the 1960s, and the name lives on in BCB International, a company now producing outdoor equipment such as shark repellent, ballistic underwear, bioethanol fuel packs, and emergency packs for lifeboats.
Quick Facts
- Born
- 1819
- Died
- 30 August 1884
- Place of death
- Mount Albion House, Ramsgate
- Burial site
- St Laurence-in-Thanet churchyard, Ramsgate
- Notable invention
- Chlorodyne
- Military rank
- Surgeon, 98th Regiment of Foot
Facts from the source article.
Background
In 1848, while serving as surgeon with the 98th Regiment of Foot in India, Dr. John Collis Browne developed Chlorodyne specifically for use during an outbreak of cholera. The medicine later saw extensive use as a general cure during the Crimean War. After leaving the army in 1856, Browne entered into a partnership with chemist John Thistlewood Davenport at 33 Great Russell Street, assigning him the sole right to manufacture and market 'Brown's Cough Bottle'. The formulation was abused, leading to a reduction of its addictive ingredients.
Following the Medicines Act of 1968, it became officially known as 'J. Collis Browne's Compound'. The Davenport family continued marketing the product up until the 1960s. BCB International, named after the product, now focuses on outdoor equipment including shark repellent, ballistic underwear, bioethanol fuel packs, and emergency packs for lifeboats.
More in 19th-century British Inventors
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: John Collis Browne (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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