college of pharmacy and the birth of organized american pharmacy the philadelphia college of pharmacy (pcp), modeled—at least in concept—after the collége de pharmacie in paris, was aided by european talent in its early, formative years. elias durand, who had served as "pharmacien of the grand army of napoleon i," set up shop in philadelphia in 1825, and "...in connection with the philadelphia college of pharmacy, immediately exerted a strong foreign influence on american pharmacy." according to william procter, jr., durand "directly and indirectly had much to do with the introduction of scientific pharmacy into philadelphia." without teaching at the college, durand still had a big impact by spreading new findings about medicinal plants, making "medicinal chemicals" never before created in the u.s., by training apprentices, like augustine duhamel, who went on to make important contributions and publish in the college journal, and by serving as a role model for foundational figures like procter. hunsberger cites the founding of the philadelphia college of pharmacy (pcp) as "the first step forward in the development of a system of pharmaceutical practice in the united states," with the 1821 "meeting of apothecaries...held in carpenters' hall" (where the continental association had been signed) to set up the first formal college of pharmacy and first pharmacists' association (the philadelphia college of pharmacy) in north america the seminal founding event. on march 13, 1821, "sixty-eight pharmacists signed the constitution of the first pharmaceutical association in the united states," with the symbolism of the carpenters' hall backdrop undeniable: american pharmacy would have a constitution, following in the footsteps of the founding fathers and their constitutional framework. the pcp constitution included a strict code of ethics that would expel anyone from the college who "adulterated" medications or knowingly sold "articles of that character," and provided for a "committee of inspection" to verify the purity, safety and effectiveness of medicines, and a "committee of equity" to arbitrate disputes between member pharmacists. the college, which was founded as an association to advance the discipline of pharmacy not just a university, quickly became a game-changer: in 1824 they published "carefully determined formulas" for the fabrication of (formerly) "secret-formula" patent medicines previously imported from the uk, an essential step toward self-sufficient pharmaceutical manufacturing in the u.s. the philadelphia college of pharmacy also aided the rise of the american pharmaceutical association (apha), which formed at a founding convention congregated in the hall of the college, october 6 to 8, 1852. daniel b. smith, who had long been the pcp's president—ultimately from 1829 to 1854—was elected the apha's first president at the founding convention, and william procter, jr. the first secretary. the "father of american pharmacy" william procter, jr., who graduated from, then taught at the philadelphia college of pharmacy for 20 years, went on to exert so much influence over the formative years of professional pharmacy that he's now widely considered the "father of american pharmacy." procter successfully argued for the establishment of a chair of pharmacy for pharmacist-professors at the pcp in 1844, then wrote "the first american pharmacy textbook," which came to be known as mohr, redwood, and procter's practical pharmacy (1849). the book was not commercially successful, but became a model for subsequent "works of long-lived popularity: edward parrish's an introduction to practical pharmacy (1855-1884), and joseph p. remington's practice of pharmacy (1888-1995 )". procter also led the american journal of pharmacy for 22 years, served 30 years on the u.s.p. revision committee, where he did much to improve the u.s. pharmacopeia, and following five years as the american pharmaceutical association's corresponding secretary, he became the apha's president, leading delegations of american pharmacists in conferences with their counterparts offshore. at the second international congress of pharmacy in paris, france, august 21 to 24, 1867, procter argued forcefully against the "compulsory limitation of pharmacies" (capping their number in a given city or province) under consideration, telling the assembled delegates that, in the u.s., "there is not the slightest obstacle toward a multiplication of drug stores save that a lack of success" and that the american public is "a forceful agent of reform" to keep unscrupulous operators in check. procter's declaration was later seen as a defining statement of "the american way of pharmacy." pharmacy schools and professional organizations spread other major cities on the eastern seaboard followed philadelphia's lead, establishing university training programs, professional associations and colleges of pharmacy that acted as professional associations like the pcp. new york city was among the quickest to follow suit with the new york college of pharmacy, established 1829. as this 1851 notice from the new york daily times exemplifies, pharmacy schools (here the new york college of pharmacy) often were acting as professional associations, or at least promoted pharmacist education and the distinct profession of pharmacist with a guild-like zeal, with this article advertising training for "those who desire to qualify themselves thoroughly as apothecaries" while calling out "inferior druggists" and cautioning that "community ought not to be indifferent" to the character and motives of druggists who "stand aloof from the college." note the use of the term "druggists" to denote medication providers who are not trained pharmacists, while the term "apothecary" is still used as positive synonym. 1860 the first pharmacists arrive on the west coast of america in the newly formed state of california the dr. wilson foskett home and drugstore, opened c. 1897 and now a registered national historic place in idaho county, idaho, shows how pharmaceutical businesses run by a doctor in conjunction with their medical practice, a ubiquitous feature of medicine in 1700s north america, persisted in more rural areas during the 19th century, sometimes even into the 20th century. although the "modern" form of pharmacy was well into its development by the beginning of the 1800s on the east coast and other areas to the west of america, it would take several decades until 1847 before america would finally have control over the furthest south-western continental territories. although there were several legitimate american doctors in los angeles by 1850, none of whom had studied or held degrees in the pharmaceutical sciences, in particular (pharmaceutical formulation) but nonetheless subsequently functioned as "druggist" and as an interesting side note, almost all of whom were not primarily doctors as a main occupation but had other main forms of livelihoods. in ca. 1854 one such case, and also one of the first doctors in l.a., dr. william b. osborn (sometimes spelled as osburn, osbourne, or osbourn), also credited as being the first "drug-store" establisher in los angeles, had turned his business over (to pursue other non-medical endeavors) to dr. james p. mcfarland and john gately downey. the store then under the control of the partnership between mcfarland and downey was then actually run by a dr. alexander hope also a "druggist" as more of an employee of the two men. downey had previously only apprenticed at an apothecary in washington, d.c., until 1846 and later worked as an independent "druggist" in cincinnati, ohio, before finally arriving in california in 1849. once in los angeles, downey's main focus and foremost career ambition was mainly that of a politician rather than that of a schooled, professional apothecary or pharmacist. in 1856 dr. mcfarland had also left the business partnership and california to return home to tennessee. downey eventually sold the "drug-store" to dr. henry m. myles and c.m. small (in order to further pursue his true vocation in politics and go on to become the seventh governor of california from 1860 to 1862) and shortly thereafter dr. myles died and a german immigrant, pharmacist had taken the business over. it was not until c. 1860, which saw the first of two european, immigrant, career pharmacists / apothecaries (both of german descent) who arrived in the newly founded american frontier town of los angeles, california. the first was the pharmacist theodore wollweber (main st. / hall at 59) and in 1861 his only competitor at the time, the second pharmacist adolph junge, who also established his "drug store" in the same temple block (temple street) area on 99 main-st. north of commercial st. and was in operation for about 20 years thereafter until ca. 1880. the future medical pioneer dr. joseph kurtz (german) arrived in l.a. in 1868 at the encouragement and recommendation of close associate adolph junge and would go on to be the first los angeles county medical examiner - coroner from 1870 to 1873 and again from 1876 to 1877 in addition to being one of the founders of the los angeles county medical association in 1871 and the professor of surgery at usc school of medicine (founded in 1885 and in 1999 renamed as keck school of medicine of usc) for 25 years, from 1885 to 1910. also, the later locally well-known (german) pharmacist f.j. gieze came to work as a clerk and colleague following in 1874 for a time thereafter with junge, and would later gain recognition as a trusted pharmacist. around this same time period a dr. j.m. jansco (who specialized in "diseases of children") pediatrician had his practice located at junge's drug-store as well as dr. osborn who had also maintained his office at junge's drug-store from 1865 until his death in 1867. the original prescription book of pharmacist adolph junge bears historical witness to his activity and can still be viewed / researched today in the natural history museum of los angeles county (as part of the "prudhomme papers" archives). the usc college of pharmacy was established in 1905. since the arrival of the first two european-schooled pharmacists in 1860, wollweber and junge, it would then take some 60+ years longer for the retail pharmacy industry as a whole to further develop, "when in 1919 brothers harry and robert borun, along with brother-in-law norman levin, founded borun brothers, a los angeles drug wholesaler". following 10 years later, in 1929, the brothers opened their own los angeles retail outlets under the name thrifty cut rate, which would shortly thereafter be renamed to thrifty drug store and in turn would usher in the age of the modern "drug, sundries & household wares" chain-store model with hired/contracted professional in-house pharmacists. the first store was located at 412 s. broadway in downtown los angeles, just across the street from the original broadway department store. by 1942, they operated 58 chain stores in and around the greater los angeles area, which also served as a business model that most all other large corporate drug store chains would follow. pharmacy and the industrial revolution with the rise of mechanization and mass production, new modes of medication-delivery, among them the tablet (1884), the enteric-coated pill (1884) and the gelatin capsule (first produced on a large scale in 1875 by parke, davis & company, detroit) became practicable. by 1900, most pharmacies stocked the shelves, partially or predominantly, with medicines prefabricated en masse by the growing pharmaceutical industry instead of custom-produced by individual pharmacisti, and the traditional role of the scientifically trained pharmacist to produce medicines increasingly eroded. this shift worried many, raising concerns of quality control, professional irrelevance and more. william procter lamented that, "if the pharmacist becomes a mere dispenser of medicines, 'he relapses into a simple shopkeeper.'” at the "london chemists" drugstore at eighth avenue and 23rd street in manhattan, many foods and medicines are advertised, including ex-lax. photo taken following the gangland killing of mad dog coll, who was using the drugstore phone booth, february 8th, 1932. "soda jerks" dispensing coca-cola at fleeman's pharmacy, atlanta, georgia, circa 1948. this photo documents the first-ever installation of this model of "boat motor"-styled coca-cola dispenser. 20th century 21st century developments background by the turn of the 21st century, several factors gave rise to concerns about a shortage of primary care in the united states . from an aging generation of baby boomers to increasing numbers of physician retirees, it was projected that the united states would be short about 40,000-52,000 physicians by the 2020s. furthermore, "implementation of the affordable care act identifies millions of newly insured patients needing primary care." this shortage was viewed by many as an opportunity to expand the scope of practice of existing healthcare professionals, such as pharmacists. provider status on the federal level, legislation regarding pharmacists' provider status was first introduced to the u.s. house of representatives