Two From One: Pre-Pro Whiskey

[Robby Raccoon]

I've had the Canmalt for a while. Now here is a Canada Pure Finest Malt from the same company, Hazeltine & Perkins Drug Co. of Grand Rapids, Michigan, from which I have several paper label bottles.

The Canmalt was circa 1907. I'd assume the same for the whiskey.

Two neat semi-local pre-Prohibition paper-labels.

 

[Harry Pristis]

The oval label in your last image says something to the effect that "this product is sold only for medicinal purposes." That suggests to me that this is a whiskey imported during Prohibition. Sale of whiskey was prohibited except for medicinal purposes, and only by a physician's prescription. The fact that this whiskey was sold by Hazeltine & Perkins Drug Co. supports this suggestion.
Because of the difficulty in purchasing this medicinal whiskey, I suspect these bottle are much less common than any pre-Prohibition whisky bottles.

 

[Robby Raccoon]

The bottle it is next to is dated to circa 1907, though, and has an identical style label. That and that, at least up here, the statement on the round one label 'Pure and Without Drugs or Poison" is rarely seen on post-pro and prohibition bottles I've seen (newest I've seen it was 1919 dated), suggests that this one should be pre-Prohibition.

Medicinal whiskeys have been sold before, during, and since Prohibition, so this is all still just best guess work based on information I can find and our pool of knowledge.

 

[Harry Pristis]

Now that I think of it, doesn't Michigan have some unusual regulation of liquor? I seem to remember from my early years that liquor is (was?) sold only in state-run stores. Maybe it's not safe to postulate about Michigan based on how regulation was done in other nearby states.

 

[Robby Raccoon]

I'm not sure. I've seen few liquors from before Prohibition ended. I know my town had a few kinds, but that's it.

As a note of interest, I have the oddest feeling that I saw an identical one of these somewhere once before, but I can't think of where.