For Immediate Release

Contact: John M. Martino
Phone Number:  (215) 895-1186
Date: 12/01/03

USP Presents Exhibit on World-Famous Alumnus Henry S. Wellcome

University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (USP) will hold a special exhibit to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Henry S. Wellcome’s honorary master’s degree in pharmacy awarded by Philadelphia College of Pharmacy (PCP), now USP, in 1903. The exhibit, which opens Thursday, December 4, in the Marvin Samson Center for the History of Pharmacy at USP, features Wellcome artifacts, photographs and other items from the museum’s collection—now on display.

Wellcome, led by an early interest in pharmacy, attended Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, where he graduated with a pharmacy degree in 1874. He wrote his thesis required for graduation on urethral suppositories. This was the first step in the production of a more useful suppository shape and was the basis for his ovate suppository and bougie designs. After graduation, he traveled for the firm of McKesson & Robbins in Central and South America, and spent his own time investigating the production of quinine from cinchona bark. These trips and experiments later became the basis for his company’s interest in tropical medicine.

Subsequent employment opportunities and travel was followed by the partnership formed with Burroughs in 1880. Soon after the Burroughs-Wellcome partnership formed, they began manufacturing compressed tablets in England, and in 1884 Wellcome coined the term "tabloid." A combination of tablet and alkaloid, the word became one of the world’s most distinguished trademarks.

Burroughs died an early death leaving Wellcome with sole ownership of the growing company. Through Wellcome's leadership the company became one of the largest pharmaceutical manufacturers in England.

The company is now called GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), which was formed in 2000 through the merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is a world leading research-based pharmaceutical company with a powerful combination of skills and resources that provides a platform for delivering strong growth in today's rapidly changing healthcare environment. Headquartered in the UK and with operations based in the U.S., the new company is one of the industry leaders, posessing an estimated seven percent of the world's pharmaceutical market.

University of the Sciences in Philadelphia is a private, coeducational institution founded in 1821 as Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, the first college of pharmacy in North America. Comprising four colleges across a broad range of majors, USP specializes in educating students for rewarding careers through its undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degree programs in the health and related sciences.

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