Willow Bark Institute
| Willow Bark Institute | |
|---|---|
| Opened | 1895 |
| Closed | 1950 |
| Current Status | Demolished |
| Building Style | Single Building |
| Location | Danvers, IL |
History[edit]
In the early 1890s, Danvers physician Fred J. Parkhurst opened the Willow Bark Institute, staking his personal and professional reputation on a peculiar method to cure drunkenness. Parkhurst's treatment consisted of having patients ingest a bitter liquid before they downed a shot of whiskey. The main ingredient in the cure was salicin, a chemical found in the bark of the willow tree that's similar to aspirin. Obviously, Parkhurst hoped that after the typical three-week treatment his patients would associate their reflexive nausea with demon whiskey. There were similar treatment programs, the most famous being the Keeley Cure. Based in Dwight, Dr. Leslie E. Keeley's gold chloride treatment was well known throughout the nation.
In May 1903, Parkhurst opened the Concord Hotel in Danvers to serve as a boarding house for his patients. The Concord featured more than 40 rooms, public and private dinning areas and a well-appointed lobby that opened onto a spacious porch running alongside two sides of the hotel. Parkhurst passed away in 1915, though his institute remained open for several more years. In 1935, Ernest W. Mammen, a longtime Bloomington surgeon, resurrected the Willow Bark name and reopened the clinic at the old Parkhurst home in Danvers. Dr. Mammen closed this second incarnation of the institute in 1950.
